Welcome to LWOS’ Summer Hockey Series, Best of the Rest. Plenty of sites do a version of a 30 greats in 30 days series, but this year we are doing something a little bit different. We want to look at the best player from each team who is not in the Hockey Hall Of Fame. In order to do this there are some rules. First the player must have been a significant part of this franchise (franchises include their time in a previous city… see Winnipeg/Atlanta) and must be retired for at least 3 years, making them Hall of Fame eligible. To see all the articles in the series, check out the homepage here.
While Ron Francis leads the team in almost every offensive statistical category kept on record (earning him the nickname “Ronnie Franchise”), the Hartford Whalers have housed several Hall of Famers including Gordie Howe, Brenden Shanahan, and Paul Coffey. However, besides Francis, the three individuals mentioned failed to make a bigger impact on the Connecticut hockey club before they made the move to Carolina in 1997 than Pat Verbeek.
As his career began with Devils in 1982, the 5’9″ right wing made a name for himself despite critics bashing him for his lack of size in a professional sport filled with physicality. While becoming well-known around the National Hockey League as the “Little Ball of Hate,” Verbeek paved the way for future hockey players under six feet. Despite his importance to the game of hockey as a whole, Pat Verbeek lacks the “call” to the Hall.
Hartford Whalers/Carolina Hurricanes – Pat Verbeek
Verbeek was traded to the Whalers on June 17, 1989 by the Devils for Sylvain Turgeon, while he was on a fishing trip in Canada. Because of a lack of communication on the waters, the winger found out about the trade a week and a half later, providing some initial disappointment as he had suited up for New Jersey in his first seven seasons in the NHL. Nonetheless, business was business, and the Whalers had acquired a player with an insurmountable amount of grit combined with the ability to put the puck in the back of the net.
In the 5 1/2 seasons played with Hartford, Verbeek registered 403 points in 433 games. He managed to put up a career-high 89 points in his first season with the Whalers in 1990, leading the team in both points and penalty minutes. The 43rd overall pick in the 1982 draft lead both categories once again in ’91, becoming the only individual to earn that achievement in the entire league at the time. Verbeek would then be awarded the captaincy in ’92 after being selected to the All-Star Game in the previous campaign.
He continued to hold that title until his journey with the Whalers came to an end in 1995 after a trade sent him to the New York Rangers. Verbeek would make history during the 1997-1998 season when he became the first player in NHL history to record over 2,500 penalty minutes while scoring 400 goals.
The now 50-year-old also played with Detroit and Dallas, as he captured his only Stanley Cup title in 1999 wearing the Stars uniform. Verbeek retired in 2002 as a two-time All Star with 522 goals, 541 assists, and 2,905 penalty minutes in 1,424 NHL games.
Internationally, Verbeek captured a silver and a gold medal in the World Championships in 1989 and 1994 respectively while playing for Team Canada. On the other hand, his career could have easily never come to fruition as he lost his left thumb while working on his auger in 1985, as well as having three fingers severely lacerated due to the injury.
Despite the horrific circumstances of the incident, doctors were able to re-attach his thumb back successfully, allowing his hockey-playing days to continue. Three months later, he was at training camp with the Devils lifting weights and participating fully without setbacks.
“I’ve never looked back on what could have been. I think I was more happy and blessed and thankful that I was able to proceed and have a career.”
What Pat Verbeek exemplified throughout his hockey career was that if you possess the skills and determination to be successful in any sport, then your height shouldn’t matter. In fact, Verbeek is considered one of the most ornery players to ever step foot on the ice, dishing out brutal hits to those three inches taller than him while participating in 67 fights. Throughout his tenure in the NHL, he never used his stature as an excuse, prompting others to follow in his footsteps.
Some may call him one of the most unusual 500-goal scorers in the National Hockey League, due to his unorthodox physical play mixed in with a great knack for the net. Verbeek might not make it into the Hall of Fame, but he certainly has made his mark on the game of hockey.
When inducted into the Connecticut Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012, Verbeek had this to say about the possibility of being selected for hockey’s greatest honor:
“Obviously that would [be an honor],” Verbeek stated. “That’s not something you think about when you start playing, but it would be really cool to achieve.”
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