Cam Neely
Photo: theonion.com
Cam Neely was originally drafted by the Vancouver Canucks and played three seasons in Vancouver. The Canucks traded Neely and a draft pick to the Boston Bruins for Barry Pederson. Almost immediately, it became apparent that the Bruins had received the better of the deal. In his first full season following the trade, Neely’s 36 goals led the club, and his 72 points more than doubled his previous year’s performance.
Neely’s success stemmed largely from his hard, accurate shot, quick release, and his willingness to engage in the more physical aspects of the game. At 6 ft 1 in and 215 lb, Neely was as devastating with his body checks and fists, as he was with his goal scoring exploits. He became the archetype of the ultimate power forward. He would play ten seasons with the Bruins, and though increasingly injury-prone, recorded some remarkable scoring feats. Only Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Brett Hull scored a better goals per game average over the course of an NHL season than Neely did with his 50-goals-in-49-games in the 1993-94 season. Also, only ten players in NHL history scored a better goals per game average over their career than Neely. He reached the fifty goal mark three times, played in five All-Star games, and was named the league’s Second Team All-Star at right wing in 1988, 1990, 1991, and 1994. Neely also had a cameo appearance in the movie Dumb & Dumber, as the character Sea Bass. Sea Bass was brought back as a smaller cameo role in the film Me, Myself and Irene.
