When we think of legendary New Jersey Devils players, there are tiers of greatness. First, there are the retired numbers. Martin Brodeur, Scott Stevens, Scott Niedermayer, Ken Daneyko, and Patrik Elias stand alone as the heroes of this franchise.
The next tier down, there are the long-term stars and contributors. Here you have names like Scott Gomez, Petr Sykora, John Madden, Sergei Brylin, Bobby Holik, and Claude Lemieux. These guys are Stanley Cup winners and truly brought the team concept to light. They all played an important role in building around the stars. Some guys who didn’t win Cups, like Travis Zajac and Andy Greene, still hold a special place in our hearts.
On top of them, there are the players who had moments that we’ll never forget. Players like Adam Henrique, Taylor Hall, Jeff Friesen, and Kirk Muller all have had their moments.
Then, there are the players lost in obscurity. They might have played a big role, and they likely were expected to be even bigger than they were. There are a bunch of players who deserve to be on that list, but only one makes sense at the top.
Valeri Zelepukin is known for scoring what should be considered the most clutch goal of the 1990s. Unfortunately, his teammates couldn’t finish the job. Zelepukin scored a goal with 7.7 seconds left to tie Game 7 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals against the New York Rangers. This was after the guarantee by Mark Messier, and this was with an outmatched Vancouver Canucks team waiting for them.
Stephane Matteau scored for the Rangers in overtime, and they walked off on their way to the Stanley Cup Final.
While this was a heartbreaking moment for the Devils, it was a star-making one for Zelepukin. The former 11th-round pick in the 1990 NHL Draft had an uphill battle just to make the league. He was taken in the same round as Kevin White, Alan Brown, and Scott Malone, which sounds like names that were generated by EA Sports.
That season, Zelepukin had 26 goals, adding five more goals in the playoffs. He was quickly becoming an important part of the top six. Then, the lockout happened. Showing how insanely stupid the league has been over the years, the NHL followed up a New York Rangers’ Stanley Cup with a work stoppage. When the players finally returned to the ice, the Devils were practicing hard, looking to get back to moment they let slip through their hands a year earlier.
During those practices to ramp up to the season, a serious incident happened that altered the career and life of Zelepukin. Bruce Driver accidentally hit Zelepukin in the eye with his stick. This caused vision loss and forced him to miss three months. When he returned, he was a different player.
Zelepukin, who was coming off back-to-back 20-goal seasons at 25 years old. He was also gaining traction in Selke Trophy voting and even got some All-Star traction that season. He was growing into something special.
The next season after the eye injury, he had two goals between the regular season and playoffs. He did slightly bounce back with 14 goals in the next season, but he was still a shell of his former self.
What if Valeri Zelepukin never suffered his eye injury?
If Zelepukin never injured his eye, the Devils have another superstar forward before the likes of Elias, Sykora, and Gomez. Zelepukin was on his way to 30-goal seasons. He was only going to get better. The eye injury made him a different player, and it’s why his NHL career didn’t make it another 10 years.
If Zelepukin never gets injured, another big shoe doesn’t fall. The Devils may never get Jason Arnott, who scored the Cup-winning goal in 2000. Zelepukin and Bill Guerin were traded to the Edmonton Oilers for Arnott and Bryan Muir.
However, if Zelepukin turned into the player we expected, he would be on the A Line. Instead, his career ended in obscurity. His name is only evoked when another player scores an incredible goal that ends up being meaningless. Think the Zach Parise goal for Team USA at the 2010 Winter Olympics. That is unceremoniously called a “Zelepukin.”
Add us as a preferred source on Google