Gary Leeman (NHL 1983-1997, Canucks 1994-1995) | 9 | RW

[Kevin Biestra]

This guy is another one from the files of "best hockey players to ever wear the Canucks jersey" but who enjoyed the peak of their abilities elsewhere.  Jimmy Carson was the 1993-94 reclamation project.  It was Gary Leeman the next year.  He had scored 51 goals not that long ago in 1989-90 and was the key piece the Flames got back when they traded Doug Gilmour to the Maple Leafs.  Gilmour solidified his place in the Hall of Fame by being even better in Toronto than he had been in Calgary or St. Louis.  Gary Leeman mostly went on the decline...but he was part of the 1993 Montreal Canadiens that won the Stanley Cup.  He was actually excellent for Montreal after they acquired him for the rest of that regular season (18 points in 20 games).

 

Leeman had 21, 30, 32 and then 51 goal seasons in Toronto but then never scored more than 17 the rest of the way in his career.  He still finished his career with 199 goals despite the rapid descent from his peak and being out of the NHL for the most part at a pretty young age.  That's only about 40 goals less than Henrik Sedin scored in about double the career games (Leeman played 667 in his career, a pretty short run for a guy with such a high peak at such a young ago, but that happens to guys like Leeman and Jimmy Carson and Rob Brown when that early amazing peak creates huge expectations that can't quite be met).

 

Leeman played just 10 games as a Canuck and had two goals.  It was a brief stay, but he was a heck of a player at his best and a credit to the team's history in his small way.

 

He was also awesome at the 1984 World Juniors for Canada (11 points in 7 games).

 

I'm pretty sure I also remember him making a bit of a name for himself in professional poker back around the 2005 lockout.