Vincent Damphousse

[JianYang]

I've always considered damphousse to be one of those hall of very good type of players.

He finished with over 1200 points in his career, but I was shocked to see that he never had a 100 point season.

What were your impressions of the player?

Wathing him on the habs, he never looked like the shiftiest, or flashiest player.... Yet there he is with quite a career. I seem to remember he had a pretty accurate wrist shot off the wing, but other than that, I don't know if anything really stood out as far as his skill level. He certainly seemed to think the game well.

I also think he could be quite a nasty peice of business with his stick when he lost his cool, but it seems like that aspect of his game kind of went under the radar.

 

[MadLuke]

First ballot hall of very good ?

Back in the days I felt the Canadians did almost an Montreal Expo fire sale with him and Reechi, traded for very little salary back, particularly bad move because they were some rare player that played 75 games or more every year (While the Koivu, Corson, Brunet, et.. were always injured).

Considering he made team canada at the w cup, he probably quite the good reputation around the league.

 

[JianYang]

First ballot hall of very good ?

Back in the days I felt the Canadians did almost an Montreal Expo fire sale with him and Reechi, traded for very little salary back, particularly bad move because they were some rare player that played 75 games or more every year (While the Koivu, Corson, Brunet, et.. were always injured).

Considering he made team canada at the w cup, he probably quite the good reputation around the league.

Regarding the trade:

Damphousse was having a down year on a bad hockey club. I believe his contract was expiring too.

So the habs shipped him at the deadline for a 1st, 2nd, and a 5th round pick. None of those draft picks made a considerable impact, although marcel Hossa did carve out somewhat of an NHL career.

The recchi and damphousse trades were the habs playing the seller role in the trade market.

But basically what they ended up with was zubrus (who was solid, but not a star), marcel Hossa, and Matt carkner.

Ouch.

 

[Big Phil]

I know the Habs won with Damphousse at their #1 offensive guy, but that team in 1993 was Roy, Roy and more Roy. No doubt he is the reason they won. Nothing against the rest of the cast, they were good, but not great. So while I would say Damphousse did win a Cup by being more or less his team's offensive star, the truth is I don't like my chances if he is my best forward.

On the positive side, he is a classic type of 2nd line centre that you would love. A Nieuwendyk-type. Hard to see why one is in the HHOF and the other isn't. I don't think Damphousse ought to be in there, but did Nieuwendyk really have a better career than him? I don't see much difference between the two to be honest.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

When I picture Damphousse it's his breakaway move. He loved to come in and show backhand before abruptly turning sharply to tuck it in on his forehand.

 

[Jim MacDonald]

Guys/Gals correct me if I'm wrong on this, but would it be fair to say Damphousse was a top-6 forward on ALL the teams he played on? (Toronto, San Jose, Montreal and maybe more?) It just seems in my mind I recall whatever team he was on he was one of the better/top offensive players. The Oilers are hitting my brain late here too....I think he was an Oiler...

 

[Marc the Habs Fan]

I know the Habs won with Damphousse at their #1 offensive guy, but that team in 1993 was Roy, Roy and more Roy. No doubt he is the reason they won. Nothing against the rest of the cast, they were good, but not great. So while I would say Damphousse did win a Cup by being more or less his team's offensive star, the truth is I don't like my chances if he is my best forward.

On the positive side, he is a classic type of 2nd line centre that you would love. A Nieuwendyk-type. Hard to see why one is in the HHOF and the other isn't. I don't think Damphousse ought to be in there, but did Nieuwendyk really have a better career than him? I don't see much difference between the two to be honest.

I would argue Muller was just as important as Damphousse as he was the team's top line C in 1993.

Damphousse was on the wing during that 1993 run. In fact, he only moved to C fulltime sometime in 1996. The fact he spent a lot of time on the wing probably hurts his HHOF candidacy.

And yes, in 1999 Damphousse was about to be UFA. Ditto for Recchi. Salaries were rising, the Canadian dollar was falling, the Habs roster was aging and the Habs were owned by the Molson brewery company, who had to answer to their shareholders and as a result they did not want to run big deficits on a hockey team (the Habs are now owned by the Molson family itself and don't have to explain to shareholders why they ran a deficit if there is one).

I am quite sure the 2000 1st rounder we got from that Damphousse to SJ trade was conditional based on Vinny re-signing with SJ, which he did. Like they did so often back then, the Habs whiffed on the pick by taking Marcel Hossa when you had a plethora of future long-time NHLers available.

Guys/Gals correct me if I'm wrong on this, but would it be fair to say Damphousse was a top-6 forward on ALL the teams he played on? (Toronto, San Jose, Montreal and maybe more?) It just seems in my mind I recall whatever team he was on he was one of the better/top offensive players. The Oilers are hitting my brain late here too....I think he was an Oiler...

This would be fair to say. He had 89 points in his lone EDM season.

 

[Stephen]

Guys/Gals correct me if I'm wrong on this, but would it be fair to say Damphousse was a top-6 forward on ALL the teams he played on? (Toronto, San Jose, Montreal and maybe more?) It just seems in my mind I recall whatever team he was on he was one of the better/top offensive players. The Oilers are hitting my brain late here too....I think he was an Oiler...

Damphousse led the Oilers in scoring the only year he was in Edmonton. He went from leading the Leafs in 1991, to the Oilers in 1992 and Canadiens in 1993.

Kind of a tough feat to have played in that era and not come away with at least one 100 point season though. Like when Joe Juneau gets one, you'd think Damphousse would have gotten there too at some point.

 

[Marc the Habs Fan]

When I picture Damphousse it's his breakaway move. He loved to come in and show backhand before abruptly turning sharply to tuck it in on his forehand.

 

[Normand Lacombe]

If Toronto hadn't traded Damphousse, do you think Toronto wins or advances to the Cup in 1993? Damphousse, Luke Richardson and Peter Ing were traded to Edmonton for Glenn Anderson, Fuhr and Berube in 1991. Here are Anderson's and Damphousse's 1993 playoff stats:

Anderson: 21 GP, 7 G, 11 A for 18 points.
Damphousse: 20 GP, 11G, 12 A for 23 points. His 5 PP goals and 3 game winners were tops among playoff performers.

 

[The Panther]

Yes, the Maple Leafs' Damphousse trade was a disaster. I get what Cliff Fletcher was thinking -- bring in some Cup-veteran, savvy guys to give them poise and confidence -- but since Fuhr was entering a strange trough for a few years and Anderson was prematurely almost done, it was a disaster trade in the long-term.

(Then again, one could argue that Anderson was important to the Leafs' 1993 playoff run and they might not have had such success without him.... but I doubt that.)

Damphousse was a really, really good player. Not only was he a really, really good player, he was also the consummate professional, hard-working, and consistent. I liked him in Toronto (what I can remember), but I really came to appreciate him during his year in Edmonton, when he was the team's best player. He had some crazy chemistry with Bernie Nicholls, but it lasted only 49 games that season.

He was great with Montreal for about the first five of his six seasons, and I'm glad he got a Stanley Cup ring there (as the team's leading scorer, no less).

Even in San Jose, where he probably fell off many fans' radars a bit, he was there for the team's surge into contention, and in terms of Sharks' scoring his first four seasons he went: 2nd, 4th (1st in PPG), 2nd, 2nd... so he was no slouch there, either. Only in his final season (just before the Lock-out) did he fall off offensively, and then right away he retired... to his credit.

Not a bad career, eh? 1205 NHL regular season points (that's around the same amount Lafleur scored with Montreal), plus 104 in the playoffs. Led three Canadian NHL franchises in scoring (!). Six seasons with his hometown team, with whom he won the Stanley Cup as its leading scorer. Spent a month or two in Germany, playing pro there during the 1994 work-stoppage. Played for Canada at the '96 World Cup. Finished his career with five years in southern California in the 'overpriced free-agent' era, making between $5 and $8 million a year. Retired happy and healthy.

 

[Neutrinos]

Damphousse started his career as a LW. Does anyone know when he switched to center?

 

[Neutrinos]

If Toronto hadn't traded Damphousse, do you think Toronto wins or advances to the Cup in 1993? Damphousse, Luke Richardson and Peter Ing were traded to Edmonton for Glenn Anderson, Fuhr and Berube in 1991. Here are Anderson's and Damphousse's 1993 playoff stats:

Anderson: 21 GP, 7 G, 11 A for 18 points.
Damphousse: 20 GP, 11G, 12 A for 23 points. His 5 PP goals and 3 game winners were tops among playoff performers.

Fuhr was then traded to Buffalo for Puppa and Andreychuk

 

[Staniowski]

Damphousse started his career as a LW. Does anyone know when he switched to center?

He moved from LW to C in '95-'96. In the fall of '95, I think. Mario Trembley moved him to centre, and he centered the Habs 2nd line that season.

So, he basically played roughly the first half of his career at LW (though he played a small minority of the time at C); and the 2nd half of his career at C.

 

[Staniowski]

As the Panther said above, Damphousse was hard-working and consistent. He was also a clutch player, had great hockey sense, and really good all-around talent.

These traits made him generally well-liked by his coaches and by fans.

 

[bobholly39]

Fantastic player. Extremely consistent Never did break 100 points no, but came close a few times and was always consistently a top forward in the game.

Very high hockey IQ.

 

[BraveCanadian]

If Toronto hadn't traded Damphousse, do you think Toronto wins or advances to the Cup in 1993?

No way. If they didn't trade Damphousse they wouldn't have had Anderson who had a decent regular season and was important on the playoff run in 93. No Fuhr also means no Andreychuk who lit it up beside Gilmour.

 

[JianYang]

I know the Habs won with Damphousse at their #1 offensive guy, but that team in 1993 was Roy, Roy and more Roy. No doubt he is the reason they won. Nothing against the rest of the cast, they were good, but not great. So while I would say Damphousse did win a Cup by being more or less his team's offensive star, the truth is I don't like my chances if he is my best forward.

On the positive side, he is a classic type of 2nd line centre that you would love. A Nieuwendyk-type. Hard to see why one is in the HHOF and the other isn't. I don't think Damphousse ought to be in there, but did Nieuwendyk really have a better career than him? I don't see much difference between the two to be honest.

During that 93 season, damphousse actually played left wing, and while he racked up the most points, I felt as though kirk muller was the most important forward during that run.

I think that habs team was a perfect example of a team greater than the sum of its parts. Sure, they finished 3rd in their division, but that was a tough division. They were actually 6th in the league with over 100 points.

And people forget that the Habs put that season together while roy was having a relatively bad year.

Roy's switch turned on halfway through the first round, and it was at this point that the club was finally firing on all cylinders, going on a 16-2 run to the Stanley cup.

 

[JianYang]

Damphousse started his career as a LW. Does anyone know when he switched to center?

I remember he still played wing when the habs traded for Turgeon in 1995. A line I remember was damphousse - turgeon-recchi

I'm guessing that damphousse switched to center full time in 1996, after turgeon was dealt.

Theoretically, they could have had their top 3 centers at one point be turgeon, damphousse, and koivu. The habs center situation has a been a huge concern ever since.

 

[Staniowski]

I remember he still played wing when the habs traded for Turgeon in 1995. A line I remember was damphousse - turgeon-recchi

I'm guessing that damphousse switched to center full time in 1996, after turgeon was dealt.

Theoretically, they could have had their top 3 centers at one point be turgeon, damphousse, and koivu. The habs center situation has a been a huge concern ever since.

Damphousse moved to C in the fall of '95. He centered the 2nd line, with Rucinsky and (mostly) V. Bure. Turgeon centered the other scoring line, with Recchi on one wing and either Savage or Kovalenko on the other. So Turgeon and Damphousse were both at C for almost a year.

 

[JianYang]

No, Damphousse moved to C in the fall of '95. He centered the 2nd line, with Rucinsky and (mostly) V. Bure. Turgeon centered the other scoring line, with Recchi on one wing and either Savage or Kovalenko on the other. So Turgeon and Damphousse were both at C for almost a year.

Yeah, I just remember that immediately after the turgeon trade, the line was damphousse-turgeon-recchi.

Now that I look closer, turgeon was traded for in the spring of 95, not the fall, so I got my timelines mixed up.

On that note, what was the trade deadline back then? The habs traded for Turgeon on April 5th. Its just unthinkable these days that a trade can happen so close to the playoffs.

 

[Normand Lacombe]

No way. If they didn't trade Damphousse they wouldn't have had Anderson who had a decent regular season and was important on the playoff run in 93. No Fuhr also means no Andreychuk who lit it up beside Gilmour.

Complete braincramp on my part as I forgot Fuhr was dealt for Andreychuk.

 

[vikash1987]

Yikes, a -31 with the Leafs in 1990-91. That sticks out like a sore thumb.

Honestly, though, he was a favorite player of mine growing up, when he was with finishing with Montreal and then on San Jose. Really adept with the puck and with creating plays. Loved that combo of him and Owen Nolan.

 

[FerrisRox]

I know the Habs won with Damphousse at their #1 offensive guy, but that team in 1993 was Roy, Roy and more Roy. No doubt he is the reason they won. Nothing against the rest of the cast, they were good, but not great. So while I would say Damphousse did win a Cup by being more or less his team's offensive star, the truth is I don't like my chances if he is my best forward.

Patrick Roy had a solid playoff in 1993, and his run in the post-season with his over time success was the stuff of legend, but dismissing that 1993 team as if it was all Patrick Roy's doing is revisionist history.

That 1993 Canadiens squad was offensively deep and Vincent Damphousse was a huge part of their success.

Damphousse had 39 goals and 97 points. Kirk Muller had 37 goals and 94 points. Brian Bellows had 40 goals and 88 points. Stephan Lebeau had 31 goals and 80 points.

Even Mike Keane, known for his defensive work, was a 60 point man on that club. Denis Savard had 50 in just 63 games, Gilbert Dionne potted 20-goals, John LeClair had 19 and the with Mathieu Schneider and Eric Desjardins on the blue line they had two excellent defenseman that helped the offence.

Saying it was "Roy, Roy and more Roy" is a gross simplification of the truth.

 

[JianYang]

Patrick Roy had a solid playoff in 1993, and his run in the post-season with his over time success was the stuff of legend, but dismissing that 1993 team as if it was all Patrick Roy's doing is revisionist history.

That 1993 Canadiens squad was offensively deep and Vincent Damphousse was a huge part of their success.

Damphousse had 39 goals and 97 points. Kirk Muller had 37 goals and 94 points. Brian Bellows had 40 goals and 88 points. Stephan Lebeau had 31 goals and 80 points.

Even Mike Keane, known for his defensive work, was a 60 point man on that club. Denis Savard had 50 in just 63 games, Gilbert Dionne potted 20-goals, John LeClair had 19 and the with Mathieu Schneider and Eric Desjardins on the blue line they had two excellent defenseman that helped the offence.

Saying it was "Roy, Roy and more Roy" is a gross simplification of the truth.

Not to mention that young defensive core that went on to have long, and successful NHL careers (Desjardins, Schneider, odelein, brisebois.)

They weren't quite household names at the time, but that's a really solid defensive core in retrospect.