Brian Skrudland’s loyalties are a bit divided – but not in a bad way – as he considers the Stanley Cup Final between the Florida Panthers and the Edmonton Oilers.
The first captain of the Panthers still has a soft spot for the team, having worn the “C” on their jersey for four seasons – from their 1993 birth through his 1997 free-agency signing with the New York Rangers – then in retirement having served with the franchise in various capacities.
That said, Skrudland is a proud Canadian, a native of Peace River, Alberta, who today calls Calgary home. So there’s the matter of a team from his country not having won the Stanley Cup since the Montreal Canadiens’ 1993 championship.
Skrudland has won the Cup twice – as a rookie with the 1985-86 Canadiens, then with the 1998-99 Dallas Stars, his penultimate NHL season. A fine checking forward, he scored 343 points (124 goals, 219 assists) in 881 games over 15 seasons.
He is widely celebrated for a Stanley Cup Playoff record he has held since Game 2 of the 1986 Final against the Calgary Flames, scoring just nine seconds into overtime to register the fastest extra-time goal in NHL history.