5 random players you forgot were on the Minnesota Wild

2. Petr Sykora

Sykora won two Stanley Cups in his career, with the New Jersey Devils (2000) and Pittsburgh Penguins (2009). At his best he was something of a power play sniper, with over one-third of his career regular season goals coming on the man advantage (111 of 323). Of his 34 career playoff goals (over a robust 133 games), seven of them came on the power play.

The Penguins did not bring Sykora back after the 2009 cup run, and with no NHL contract he accepted a tryout opportunity with the Wild. They signed him, but a concussion limited him to 14 games and three points (two goals) and he was waived in January 2010. He cleared waivers, and became an unrestricted free agent.

Sykora returned to the NHL for the 2011-12 season, and in a final season back with the Devils he played all 82 games and had 44 points (21 goals).

Expectations surely weren’t high when Sykora landed with the Wild. But he showed he still had something left after that injury and being waived, and Minnesota was not able to tap into it.