Scott Stevens

Stevens was born in Kitchener, Ontario, to Larry and Mary Stevens, the middle child of three brothers.[2][3][4] Larry owned a paper products company and was also a semi-professional Canadian football player.[3] All three Stevens brothers played hockey as children; older brother Geoff would later go on to be a scout for the New Jersey Devils, while Mike, the youngest, enjoyed a brief NHL career with several teams.[4]

As a youth, Stevens played in the 1976 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Kitchener.[5] Growing up near Toronto, he was a fan of the Toronto Maple Leafs and idolized Leafs defenceman Börje Salming.[6][7] Stevens attended Eastwood Collegiate Institute, where he played middle linebacker on the school's Canadian football team.[7] One of his teammates was Markus Koch, who would go on to win a Super Bowl with the Washington Redskins of the National Football League.[8] However, hockey was Stevens' true passion. He and his brothers often played hockey in the house, ruining the furniture repeatedly.[8] He eventually earned a spot on the Kitchener Junior B team and passed on the opportunity to tour Czechoslovakia with the Kitchener midget team in order to play there.[9] His play impressed scouts and he was taken ninth overall by his hometown Kitchener Rangers in the 1981 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) draft.[3]

The 1981–82 Kitchener Rangers were a team that featured several future NHL players. The defensive corps included Dave Shaw and Al MacInnis, Wendell Young was the team's starting goaltender, and the top scoring line on the team was Jeff Larmer, Brian Bellows and Grant Martin.[10] Stevens and Shaw were an integral part of the Rangers' defence, playing in every game of the season en route to the team's Memorial Cup victory. In addition, both played in the OHL All-Star Game.[11] Rangers head coach Joe Crozier said of Stevens, "He's come a long way this year ... He's strong, tough, handles the puck well and has tremendous hockey sense."[11] Stevens led all rookie defencemen in scoring and was named the second-best defensive defenceman and second-best body-checker in a poll of OHL coaches.[3]

Stevens was taken fifth overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals. Due to injuries to other players during training camp, Stevens made the team at age 18 and never played a game in the minor leagues.[12] He made an immediate impact, scoring on his first shot in his first NHL game.[3] He scored 25 points in his debut season and made the All-Rookie Team. In addition, he led all rookie defencemen in penalty minutes. He finished third in the voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy, which is awarded to the league's Rookie of the Year. He was also named the Capitals' Rookie of the Year.[3] Stevens' debut with the Capitals coincided with the team's first playoff appearance, although they were eliminated in the first round by the New York Islanders.[13][14]

The following year, he would nearly double his point total from the previous year, finishing with 13 goals and 32 assists for 45 points. Only teammate Larry Murphy had more points among defencemen.[15] His 201 penalty minutes would lead the team; he would ultimately lead the Capitals in the category five times during his tenure with the team, and eventually set the team record for most career penalty minutes by a defenceman.[3] However, Stevens' personal success did not translate to the Capitals, who were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by the Islanders.[15] During this period, Stevens learned from veterans Rod Langway and defensive linemate Brian Engblom on the finer points of playing defence.[16] Head coach Bryan Murray also helped calm the fiery young Stevens, who would learn to fight less and play harder.[16] Stevens spoke fondly of his time with the Capitals years later, saying:[16]

We had a great bunch of guys and we worked hard. We were great defensively. We might have been at times a little challenged scoring and we might have been a bit challenged in the goal at times... But there are no regrets.

— Scott Stevens

The 1984–85 season would be a breakout year for Stevens. He set a team record for defencemen by scoring 16 power play goals,[12] and tied a team record for goals by a defenceman with 21.[3] His performance was good enough to land him a spot in the All-Star Game.[3] Stevens would lead all Capitals defencemen in scoring for the first time, finishing the year with 21 goals and 44 assists,[17] and earned the team's Fan Favorite Award.[3] His offensive abilities and size made Murray consider moving him to winger.[12] The Capitals finished second in the Patrick Division, but were out of the playoffs early again, this time courtesy of the Islanders.[17] Before the next season, the Capitals acquired Dwight Schofield in the waiver draft. Schofield was known for his abilities as an enforcer, and his goal was to keep other teams' hitters away from Stevens and Langway, who were deemed too valuable to lose to penalties.[12] The plan worked, as Stevens finished with 165 penalty minutes, the lowest in his career to that point. He also added 15 goals and 38 assists that season.[18] However, the Capitals continued their playoff woes; after defeating the Islanders in the first round, they lost to the New York Rangers in the division finals.[19]

The 1986–87 season saw Stevens return to his old ways, as he spent a career-high 283 minutes in the penalty box. The total set a Capitals record (since broken) for penalty minutes in a season.[3] Despite missing three games with a broken right index finger, an injury he suffered against the Islanders, Stevens would finish the year third on the team in scoring with 61 points; his 51 assists were also good enough for second on the Capitals. The Caps were once again eliminated by the Islanders in the first round of the playoffs.[20]

During the 1987–88 season, Stevens set Capitals records for most assists and most points by a defenceman in a game, with five assists against the Los Angeles Kings on December 6, 1987.[3] Later that season, he would score at least one assist in eight consecutive games, setting another team record for defencemen.[3] He finished the year second on the team in scoring with 12 goals and 60 assists for 72 points, tops among all Capitals blueliners.[21] He ended up finishing second behind Boston Bruins defenceman Ray Bourque in the voting for the James Norris Memorial Trophy. In addition, he was named as a NHL First Team All-Star.[3] Stevens would suffer a shoulder injury in the first round of the playoffs against the Philadelphia Flyers, a series the Capitals would win.[3] He returned in time for the Capitals' divisional finals against his future team, the New Jersey Devils. Despite tying a team record by posting four assists in Game 6 of the series,[3][22] the Capitals fell four games to three.[21]

The Capitals won the Patrick Division in the 1988–89 season, and Stevens' 68 points (including a team-leading 61 assists) led Caps defencemen. He had 225 penalty minutes; this was the last time Stevens would have over 200 minutes in his career.[23] He was named to his second All-Star game, and added an assist as the Wales Conference lost to the Campbell Conference 9–5.[24] However, the Caps could not translate their regular season success into the playoffs, as they lost in the first round to the Flyers.[23] The 1989–90 season saw mixed success for Stevens. Personally he struggled, as he was beset with injuries, including a broken foot that caused him to miss nearly two months. In addition, he was suspended for three games for gouging Chicago Blackhawks player Dave Manson in the eye during a fight. Stevens said he never hit Manson's eye, but that the eye hit Stevens' helmet during the fight.[3] Missing a third of the season led to Stevens' lowest point total since his rookie year; he finished with just 11 goals and 29 assists for 40 points, although it was still second among Capitals defencemen.[18][25] Despite his lowered stats, the Capitals made their furthest inroads in the playoffs ever. After defeating the Devils in the first round and the Rangers in the second round, the Capitals were in the conference finals for the first time in team history where they were swept by the Bruins.[25]

Over eight seasons with the Capitals, Stevens finished with 98 goals and 429 points in 601 games.[12] He also set team records (all since broken) for penalty minutes (1,630), games played by a defenceman (601), points by a defenceman (429), goals by a defenceman (98), assists by a defenceman (331), playoff games played (67), playoff points (53), playoff assists (44) and playoff goals by a defenceman (9).[3]

After eight seasons in Washington, Stevens felt it was time to move on.[16] The St. Louis Blues courted him and offered a four-year deal worth $5.145 million. Since he was a restricted free agent, Washington had the option to match the offer sheet. However, they declined and consequently received two first-round draft picks plus $100,000 in cash, turning into five first-round picks if the Capitals did not have a top-seven draft pick in the 1991 or 1992 entry drafts, as compensation (two of these picks would become Sergei Gonchar and Brendan Witt).[3][12]

Stevens' signing had far-reaching ramifications on player contracts in the NHL. At the time, the deal made him the highest-paid defenceman in the league.[16] In addition, the deal included a $1.4 million signing bonus.[3] Several defencemen considered superior players to Stevens, including Ray Bourque and Chris Chelios, were earning less money, and Capitals defenceman Kevin Hatcher held out until he received a contract similar to Stevens'.[16] General managers worried that these players would begin demanding bigger contracts. The players did end up asking for more money, and this escalation was one of the factors in the 1994–95 NHL lockout several seasons later.[3][12]

After his arrival in St. Louis, Stevens was named captain of the Blues.[12] He scored 5 goals and added 44 assists for 49 points, good enough for fifth on a team led by Brett Hull and Adam Oates.[26] He also made the Campbell Conference All-Star Team.[27] The Blues were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by the Minnesota North Stars.[28]

Stevens' time with the Blues would only last one season. In the offseason following the 1990–91 NHL season, the Blues signed Brendan Shanahan from the New Jersey Devils,[16] who, like Stevens the year before, was a restricted free agent, entitling the Devils to compensation. As the Blues still owed first round picks to the Capitals (now five instead of two, as the 1991 pick given up ended up being the 21st pick), other compensation had to be negotiated, and the Blues and Devils could not agree on what the compensation was; the Blues offered goalie Curtis Joseph, forward Rod Brind'Amour, and two draft picks, but the Devils only wanted Stevens.[16] The case went to arbitration, and arbitrator Edward Houston awarded Stevens to the Devils as compensation on September 3, 1991, with cited news reports the next day first appearing on September 4, 1991.[3][29]

On June 7, 2016, the Minnesota Wild hired Stevens as an assistant to head coach Bruce Boudreau.[71] Less than a year later, on May 30, 2017, Stevens resigned to "spend more time with his family".[72]

Scott Stevens

Medal record
Representing  Canada
Men's ice hockey
World Championships
	1983 West Germany	Ice hockey
	1985 Prague	Ice hockey
	1989 Sweden	Ice hockey
Canada Cup
	1991 Canada Cup	Ice hockey
World Cup of Hockey
	1996 World Cup of Hockey	Ice hockey

In addition to his NHL career, Stevens represented Canada in several international ice hockey competitions. He attended summer camp with Team Canada prior to the 1983 World Junior Championships, but because of his commitment to the Capitals, he was unable to join the team.[3] His first experience with the senior team was at the 1983 World Ice Hockey Championships, where he won a bronze medal.[6] The following year he made the Canadian team for the 1984 Canada Cup, but he did not play.[3] During the 1985 World Ice Hockey Championships, he scored a goal and added two assists as Canada finished with a silver medal.[3][6] He played only two games during the 1987 tournament; Canada finished in fourth place.[3][6] Two years later, he scored two goals as Canada once again won the silver medal. During the tournament, he suffered a serious cut when Börje Salming's skate sliced his face; he would receive 88 stitches for the wound.[3][6] He finally won international gold with Canada during the 1991 Canada Cup.[3][6] Five years later, he played in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, the successor to the Canada Cup. Finishing with two assists, Stevens won the silver medal; Canada finished in second place after giving up four goals in the final four minutes of the championship game against the American team.[73]

NHL players were first allowed to participate in the Olympic ice hockey tournament at the 1998 games. Stevens was selected to join Team Canada, but finished without a point for the only time in his international career. Canada would finish fourth after losing their semi-final match-up against the Czech Republic in a shootout.[3][6][74] Stevens would be part of Canada's orientation camp for the 2002 Games,[75] but he would not make the final roster.[76]

Stevens was the first Devils player to have his number retired; he was honoured at a ceremony at Continental Airlines Arena on February 3, 2006.[77]

Stevens left a controversial lasting legacy on the NHL. Stevens was the longest reigning captain in Devils history.[78] Later on in his career, he mentored the younger Devils defencemen like Colin White and Brian Rafalski, who was Stevens' defensive linemate.[79] Long-time teammate Scott Niedermayer said Stevens was "not the most vocal guy around", but he would talk to players when it was necessary.[79] Stevens was honoured by the Devils by becoming the first player in team history to have his number retired by the team–his number 4 was raised to the rafters on February 3, 2006.[77] Additionally, the Kitchener Rangers have retired number 3 for Stevens.

Stevens was also remembered as a hard hitter. Among the victims of Stevens' body checks were Vyacheslav Kozlov, Eric Lindros, Paul Kariya, Shane Willis and Ron Francis, the last of whom was inducted with Stevens into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007.[80] Some players have accused Stevens of playing cheap and intentionally trying to physically injure players permanently. After his check on Shane Willis, Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Artūrs Irbe said Stevens was "trying to kill [Willis] or put him out of the playoffs". Stevens responded:[80]

What kind of respect do I get? ... Just because I'm a physical player, it's O.K. to come at me and do what you want? Hey, it's a hockey game. It's not figure skating. You know what? I can take a hit and I can give a hit. I don't care who it is. No one gets a free ride out there. I don't get a free ride, and no one gets a free ride from me.

On the other hand, Kozlov did not blame Stevens for his hit and said he was a clean player.[8] He was often credited with changing the momentum of a game not with a goal, but with a hard check,[81] earning him the nickname "Captain Crunch".[82] He was named the fifth-most fearsome player in NHL history by the Sporting News in 2001 and was voted the toughest player in the NHL by the voters.[83] Current NHL defencemen Dion Phaneuf and François Beauchemin are often compared to Stevens, and Phaneuf says he has idolized Stevens' style of play.[84]

Stevens met his wife Donna while he was playing junior hockey with Kitchener.[4] The couple has three children; Kaitlin, Ryan and Kara.[85] He is a fan of the outdoors, and spent his summers away from hockey at Lake Catchacoma.[4] He also enjoys duck hunting in his spare time, and is a fan of the Three Stooges. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, he started a program called Scott's Tots for the families of the victims.[86] Stevens resides in the town of Far Hills, New Jersey. He joined the NHL Network as a commentator in December 2017.[87]