NHL.com recently posted an article by John Kreiser, that listed the most exciting NHL players of all time, and Hall of Famer Denis Savard was on the list. Below is the write up on Denis:
Denis Savard (1980-81 – 1996-97)
The NHL doesn’t allow do-overs in the draft. If it did, the Montreal Canadiens unquestionably would have wanted one in 1980.
The Canadiens had the first pick in the 1980 draft and picked Doug Wickenheiser, a big, powerful center from Regina. They passed over a speedy little center from Gatineau, Que., named Denis Savard, who went to Chicago with the third pick.
Wickenheiser went on to a serviceable NHL career — 111 goals and 276 points in 556 regular-season games. Savard had exceeded those scoring marks by the end of his fourth NHL season, by which time he already was one of the most exciting players in hockey history.
Savard may or may not have invented the spin-o-rama, a 360-degree spin and deke that usually left defensemen flat-footed, but he became the player most identified with it. The “Savardian Spin-o-rama” was part of an offensive arsenal that helped him pile up five 100-point seasons in his first eight seasons in Chicago that left baffled defensemen and frustrated goaltenders in his wake.
Ironically, Savard became a Canadien 10 years after being drafted — the Habs acquired him in a deal that sent Chicago native Chris Chelios to the Blackhawks — but his magic didn’t make the trip. Savard never again scored 30 goals or averaged a point a game. He made it back to Chicago in 1995 and finished his career with the Blackhawks, retiring with 473 goals, 1,338 points — and thousands of video clips of some of the most spectacular moves in NHL history.
Here is a short highlight video when he was introduced into the Hockey Hall of Fame:
