Drama Major
LEGENDARY LEAF MATS SUNDIN HAD A KNACK FOR BIG MOMENTS THAT ENDEARED HIM TO COLLECTORS AROUND THE WORLD.
If Mats Sundin had pursued higher education instead of hockey, he might have felt right at home as a drama major. Time and again over the course of his 18 NHL seasons, the legendary center displayed a remarkable knack for stepping into the spotlight at the perfect moment and bringing the house down.
Big goals were his calling card. Take the 500th of his career, for example. Killing a penalty in overtime against the Flames, Sundin won a puck battle at his own blueline, dashed into the Calgary zone and unleashed a laser that beat Miikka Kiprusoff high glove to clinch a 5-4 Leafs victory.
Oh, and it also happened to be his third tally of the contest.
No wonder his teammates needed only one word to describe Sundin: Clutch.
“I think of all those big goals,” said Leafs great Darcy Tucker when asked to reflect upon Sundin’s retirement. “He loved those moments, you know, when the game was on the line. That’s when he was at his best.”
“When we needed [a goal], he always seemed to deliver,” echoed Matt Stajan. “He loved the pressure.”
While Sundin excelled at drama, he also could have majored in history. He initially made his mark in the record books on June 17, 1989 when the Quebec Nordiques made him the first European-born player to be selected first overall at the NHL
draft. While the pick was a no-brainer in hindsight, it was seen as a bold choice at the time, when many thought Western Canada forward Dave Chyzowski was a safer bet than the Swede.
It turned out the Nordiques knew what they were doing. Chyzowski played just 126 NHL games; Sundin was an immediate smash. He record 23 goals and 59 points as a rookie in 1990-91, making him an instant sensation with collectors during the hobby’s biggest year. Within two seasons, he established career-highs in goals (47) and points (114) and was on his way to superstardom in the league and in the hobby.
But it wasn’t until a stunning trade at the NHL Draft in Hartford on June 28, 1994 that Sundin truly found his stride.
Having lost back-to-back Western Conference finals, the Maple Leafs were looking for a game-changing center to take the pressure off Doug Gilmour. The Nordiques, who were loaded down the middle with Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg and Mike Ricci, wanted toughness to help them get past their arch-rivals from Montreal. And so they sent Sundin, Todd Warriner and Garth Butcher to Toronto for Wendel Clark, Sylvain Lefebvre and Landon Wilson in one of the biggest trades of the decade.
It was a risky deal for Leafs GM Cliff Fletcher. Clark was coming off a 46-goal season and was one of the most popular players in franchise history. But just like the Nords did on draft day, Fletcher knew what he was doing. If Sundin wasn’t quite as beloved as Wendel, he proved infinitely more
valuable in the long run. He went on to play 13 seasons in Toronto, leading them in scoring 12 times on his way to establishing franchise records for goals (420) and points (987).
It took a special player to rack up those numbers, and at 6-5, 231, Sundin fit the bill. He was a beast down low, incredibly strong on his skates. He was a master at controlling possession and carving out space in the greasy areas where he could unleash befuddle goaltenders with a lethal shot.
“Once he had the puck on his stick, no one was taking it away from him,” Fletcher told Sportsnet.
But the real hallmark of Sundin’s game was consistency. He knew what was expected of him, and he delivered. Sundin is one of just three players to score at least 20 goals in his first 17 NHL seasons. He also earned eight All-Star Game invites. He eventually succeeded Gilmour as the captain, wearing the C for 10 seasons.“What’s underrated is that he was a great captain,” Fletcher said. “He challenged our players.”
He might not have been the working man hero that Wendel was, but Sundin was beloved in Toronto. Following his retirement, he was honored outside Scotiabank Arena