Who wore number 61 in NHL?

Whether we’re talking about jersey numbers or using stats in sports arguments, numbers have and will always have a place in sports in a variety of different ways. Players are recognized by their numbers and they are part of a player’s legacy.

Rick Nash

Richard McLaren Nash is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, also known as the director of player development for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). After being selected first overall in the 2002 NHL Entry Draft by Columbus, he played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Blue Jackets, New York Rangers and Boston Bruins, and was selected to play in six National Hockey League All-Star Games.

Prior to turning professional, Nash was a highly regarded prospect with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) where he spent two seasons, earning the Emms Family Award in 2001 as the League’s Rookie of the Year. He began his NHL career with the Blue Jackets immediately following his draft, in 2002–03, and was nominated for the Calder Trophy as NHL Rookie of the Year. In his second NHL season, Nash scored 41 goals to tie with Jarome Iginla and Ilya Kovalchuk as winners of the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy as the NHL’s leading goal-scorer. Nash is a five-time NHL All-Star and was also awarded the NHL Foundation Player Award in the 2008–09 season for his charitable work in the Columbus community.

Internationally, Nash has represented Team Canada, with whom he has won one gold and two silver medals at the World Championships, and two gold medals at the Winter Olympics in 2010 and 2014. Additionally, he has represented Canada at the 2002 World Junior Championships, helping the team to a silver medal, and also competed for Canada in the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin.

Cory Stillman

Cory Stillman is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for several teams between 1994 and 2011, winning the Stanley Cup twice. He is also known as an assistant coach with the Arizona Coyotes.

Drafted sixth overall by the Calgary Flames in 1992, Stillman was an AHL All Star with the Flames’ affiliate in Saint John in 1995. As well as the Flames, he would go on to play for the St. Louis Blues, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, Ottawa Senators, and Florida Panthers over his 15-year NHL career, scoring over 700 points over more than 1,000 games.

Stillman won the Stanley Cup in 2004 and 2006 with the Lightning and Hurricanes, respectively. He is one of the few players in the NHL’s history to win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back seasons with different teams (the 2004–2005 season was wiped out by a lockout).

Maxim Afinogenov

Maxim Sergeyevich Afinogenov is a Russian former professional ice hockey player. Known for his skating speed, he was drafted by the National Hockey League (NHL)’s Buffalo Sabres in the third round, 69th overall, in 1997 and played nine seasons with the club. He then played one season with the Atlanta Thrashers before signing and finishing his career in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).

Byron Bitz

Byron John Bitz is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger. He last played with the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL). A third- or fourth-line forward, he was known for his size and physicality.

A native of Saskatchewan, Bitz played minor hockey in his hometown of Saskatoon. After earning rookie of the year honours in the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) with the Nanaimo Clippers, he was selected 107th overall in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft by the Boston Bruins. Before turning professional with the Bruins organization, he spent four years playing college hockey with the Cornell Big Red, helping the team to an ECAC Hockey championship in 2005 and serving as captain in 2006–07 as a senior.

After signing with the Bruins in August 2007, Bitz played one season in the American Hockey League (AHL) with the Providence Bruins, Boston’s minor league affiliate. The following season, he earned a spot on Boston’s roster. In March 2010, he was traded to the Florida Panthers. His tenure with Florida was beset with injuries, however, and he missed the entire 2010–11 season with a sports hernia. Becoming an unrestricted free agent in July 2011, he signed with the Vancouver Canucks.

Craig Cunningham

Craig Alvin Cunningham is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played with the Boston Bruins and Arizona Coyotes in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Boston Bruins, 97th overall in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, before being called up to the Bruins in December 2013.

During his junior Western Hockey League (WHL) career, he won a Memorial Cup with the Vancouver Giants as a rookie in 2007 and was named to the WHL West First All-Star Team in 2010. He left the Giants as the team’s all-time games played leader.

Cunningham played 63 NHL games across both the Bruins and Coyotes before being forced to prematurely retire in late 2016 due to health problems. Cunningham is also known as a pro scout for the Coyotes, as well as assists in player development.

Jacob de la Rose

Jacob Waldemar de la Rose is a Swedish professional ice hockey forward known for playing with Färjestad BK of the Swedish Hockey League (SHL). de la Rose was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the second round, 34th overall, of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. He previously played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Canadiens, Detroit Red Wings and St. Louis Blues.

Since 2010, de la Rose has played for the Swedish national teams at the junior levels, winning silver medals at the 2012 IIHF World U18 Championships and the 2013 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.

On March 19, 2019, de la Rose was sent to hospital with an accelerated heart beat. It was the second time during the season that he’d suffered such an episode. The previous event occurred during the 2018-19 NHL preseason while he was a member of the Montreal Canadiens. He was shut down for the remainder of the season following the second episode, and underwent a surgical procedure on his heart in April to correct the problem. He reported for training camp with the Red Wings in September 2019 – prepared to return to regular play.

Raphael Diaz

Raphael Salvador Diaz is a Swiss professional ice hockey defenceman known for playing with HC Fribourg-Gottéron in the National League (NL). Diaz previously played with the Rangers during the 2014 season after the trade deadline. He began his professional career with EV Zug in 2003 and has also played with the Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers and the Calgary Flames. After returning to Switzerland with EV Zug Diaz has won the 2019 Swiss Cup and the 2020-21 NL Championship

Diaz was selected to play for the Switzerland men’s national ice hockey team at the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics. He previously represented Switzerland at the 2004 IIHF World U18 Championships, the 2005 and 2006 IIHF World U20 Championship, the 2008 Ice Hockey World Championship, and captained the team at the 2017 Spengler Cup.

Corey Perry

Corey Perry is a Canadian professional ice hockey player known for playing with the Tampa Bay Lightning of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played the first 14 years of his career with the Anaheim Ducks. He then played for the Dallas Stars and Montreal Canadiens. Perry is known for his goal-scoring ability and abrasive playing style, with an ability to get under his opponent’s skin, which earned him the nickname “the Worm”.

He captured a Memorial Cup with the Ontario Hockey League (OHL)’s London Knights and a gold medal with Canada at the World Junior Championships during his major junior career. Perry was drafted in the first round, 28th overall, by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft and won the Stanley Cup with the club in 2007. In 2008, he recorded 29 goals and 25 assists. He improved in 2009 to 72 points and was named to his first NHL All-Star Game. Perry continued his ascent in 2010 as he scored 27 goals and had 49 assists. In 2011, he won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league’s most valuable player for the 2010–11 season. He led the NHL with 50 goals and finished third in points behind Daniel Sedin and Martin St. Louis, with 98.

Internationally, Perry has won gold medals with Canada at the 2010 and 2014 Winter Olympics. He became a member of the Triple Gold Club after captaining Canada to gold at the 2016 IIHF World Championships, in addition to previously winning the Stanley Cup and the Olympic gold medal. Perry is only the second player (joining Scott Niedermayer) to combine Triple Gold membership with gold at the World Junior Championships, a Memorial Cup win, and a World Cup of Hockey win.

Oleg Saprykin

Oleg Dmitrievich Saprykin is a Russian former professional ice hockey player. Saprykin played with HC Dynamo Moscow, SKA Saint Petersburg, HC Sochi and Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg. He played in the 2009 KHL All-Star Game, held in Red Square and was a member of Ufa’s Gagarin Cup championship team in 2011. Saprykin also played parts of seven seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was a first round selection, 11th overall, of the Calgary Flames and also played for the Phoenix Coyotes and Ottawa Senators. Internationally, Saprykin has played with the Russian National Team on two occasions and was a member of the team that won the gold medal at the 2009 World Championship.

Troy Terry

Troy Nathan Terry is an American professional ice hockey center known for playing with the Anaheim Ducks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Terry was drafted by the Ducks at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, in the fifth round, 148th overall.

A native of Denver, Terry played with the Colorado Thunderbirds under-16 team at the Tier 1 Elite Hockey League from 2008 until 2014. He eventually left the Thunderbirds to play in the United States Hockey League (USHL) with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program (NTDP).

Lars Eller

Lars Fosgaard Eller is a Danish professional ice hockey player known for playing with the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed “the Tiger”, he was drafted by the St. Louis Blues in the first round, 13th overall in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft. He later joined the Montreal Canadiens, where he played six seasons before being traded to the Capitals in 2016. He became the first person born in Denmark to win the Stanley Cup when the Capitals won in 2018, notably scoring the Stanley Cup-winning goal.