The Sad State Of NHL Withdrawal: Hockey Players In Film

07.14.09 | Brian Sieck | Staff NotesPrint this Post

Tags: Hockey Movies, Sports Movies

The 2008-2009 NHL Season has barely ended and already “puckheads” everywhere are clamoring for the drop of the little rubber disc on the new campaign. The summer can be a frustrating time for hockey fans as they impatiently wait for teams to resume play. That’s why, to combat the hockey doldrums, the ten best roles and cameos from NHL players featured in film are going to be counted down here. They don’t necessarily have to be hockey movies (though, most are) given that the list of solid films on the sport is rather short. They just have to be fun. However, players will get special consideration if they play someone other than themselves, or even just have lines of dialogue. Let’s face off:

10. Wayne Gretzky – D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994): Sure, he plays himself, but any time “The Great One” makes an appearance, it’s worth a mention. After all, he is the best player to ever play the game. Also, look for cameos from greats Cam Neely, Luc Robitaille and Chris Chelios.

9. Mike Modano – The Mighty Ducks (1992): Yes, the longtime Minnesota North Star and Dallas Star also plays himself, but he does manage to deliver a few nice lines in a great hockey movie for kids. Minnesota North Stars tough guy Basil McRae also appears.

8. Phil Esposito – Mystery, Alaska (1999): Again, Esposito plays himself in a fun film about a local amateur pond hockey team that challenges the New York Rangers to an exhibition game. However, the Ranger, Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins legend and Hall of Famer certainly deserves to be mentioned on this list. Look for other fun appearances from Jim Fox (L.A. Kings) and Barry Melrose (Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings) among a great cast.

7. Sean Avery, Pascal Dupuis, Vincent Lecavalier, Ian Laperriere, and others – The Rocket (2005): Included here more for the ensemble aspect of the cast, most of these NHL players don’t have lines in the film about Montreal Canadien great Maurice “The Rocket” Richard. However, it’s notable that they all played former NHL skaters, including Tampa Bay Lightning star Lecavalier as Jean Beliveau, and Laperriere as “Boom Boom” Geoffrion. It’s also worth mentioning that current Stanley Cup Champion and Pittsburgh Penguin Pascal Dupuis’s older brother Roy, plays the Rocket.

6. Marty McSorley – Con Air (1997): The first non-hockey movie on the list features McSorley as the co-pilot of the plane carrying Nicolas Cage that gets hijacked by prisoners. McSorley, one of the toughest pugilists ever to play in the NHL for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Edmonton Oilers, L.A. Kings and others, gets special marks for displaying acting chops as someone other than a hockey player. The consummate tough guy also has turns in Forget Paris and Bad Boys.

5. Ryan Walter – Miracle (2004): Many may miss him, but Walter plays a referee in the tremendous film about the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team that brought home the gold against insurmountable odds. A hard-working player, Walter played fifteen seasons in the NHL for the Washington Capitals, Montreal Canadiens and Vancouver Canucks. He was a captain for the Caps and even won a Stanley Cup with the Habs in 1986.

4. Jay Caufield – Sudden Death (1995): Sure, everyone probably remembers Pittsburgh Penguin Luc Robitaille scoring the game-tying goal in the seventh game of the fictional Stanley Cup Final between the Pens and Chicago Blackhawks to send the game into overtime during the Jean-Claude Van Damme action flick. However, many may not realize that former Pens and New York Rangers tough guy (and Philadelphia native) Jay Caufield plays the Pens goaltender in the film, has lines, and even gets a close-up.

3. Eric Nesterenko – Youngblood (1986): Many folks remember the late Peter Zezel as the only real hockey player in this fictional tale of a young hockey prodigy. However, most viewers don’t realize that the man who played the father of Dean Youngblood was none other than former Toronto Maple Leaf and longtime Chicago Blackhawk Eric Nesterenko. “Elbows” was actually considered one of the best defensive players of his era and managed to score well over 500 points in his career. He even won the Cup in 1961 with Chicago. The film itself is sometimes hard to defend, as it’s unintentionally silly at times, but it does have its supporters. Look for Keanu Reeves as the goalie.

2. Cam Neely – Dumb and Dumber (1994): That’s right, everyone remembers Sea Bass. Cam Neely, the quintessential power forward for the Boston Bruins whose great career was cut short due to injuries, played the bully who terrorized Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels in the hilarious Farrelly Brothers film. Bam Bam Cam is easily the most accomplished actor on this list, also appearing in films such as Me, Myself & Irene and What’s the Worst That Could Happen?

1. David Hanson – Slap Shot (1977): While playing the role of a goon as part of the notorious Hanson Brothers trio in this classic film probably wasn’t much of a stretch for the career minor leaguer who also had brief stints with the Detroit Red Wings and Minnesota North Stars, David Hanson gets special marks for basically playing a parody of himself. He tops the countdown because he has a major role in the greatest film ever made about the sport. The bespectacled but thuggish Hanson Brothers have not only become hockey icons over the years, but they’ve transcended the game to become a pop-culture phenomenon.