Jim Dowd James Thomas " Jim " Dowd ( born December 25 , 1968 , in Brick Township , New Jersey ) is a retired professional hockey player for the NHL . He played for 10 different NHL teams . His high school hockey success and his 1995 Stanley Cup victory with the state ' s NHL team has made him a local hero in his home state amongst younger hockey players . Throughout an extensive NHL career , he has proven his ability to be a role player on teams with more skilled players . He is also a frequent guest on NHL Live . Early life , high school and college . As a junior , Dowd helped Brick Township High School capture the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association ice hockey title for the 1985 – 1986 season . The only New Jersey native on the Devils , Dowd was drafted in the seventh round in 1987 out of Brick High School , but he went to Lake Superior State University , where he scored 91 goals and led the team to the national title in the 1987 – 88 season . In his senior year , he broke the national scholastic scoring record , finishing with a four year tally of 375 points : 189 Goals , 186 Assists . He was also named the CCHA ' s Player of the Year in 1991 . Post - college and professional hockey . New Jersey Devils and the Stanley Cup . After college , Jim Dowd joined the now - defunct Utica Devils ( New Jersey ' s minor league affiliate ) of the American Hockey League ( AHL ) . He became the first New Jersey native to play for the New Jersey Devils when he made his NHL debut during the 1991 – 1992 season . He spent the 1991 – 92 season and the 1992 – 1993 season in the AHL , with single - game NHL appearances in both seasons . As a top scorer with the AHL ' s Albany River Rats ( the Devils ' new affiliate ) in the 1993 – 1994 season , Dowd made impressive appearances with the Devils , collecting 5 goals and 10 assists in 15 regular season games , and 2 goals and 6 assists in 19 games during their playoff run . The labor dispute shortened the 1994 – 95 NHL season , which was further shortened for Dowd when a shoulder injury and surgery caused him to miss 35 games . However , the highlight of Dowd ' s career with the Devils came in Game Two of the 1995 Stanley Cup Finals . With 1 : 24 left in regulation , he notched the game - winning goal , giving the Devils a 2 – 0 series lead over the Detroit Red Wings to take back home to New Jersey . The Devils completed the sweep at home for their first Stanley Cup Championship , earning Dowd a treasured spot on the Stanley Cup . Late 1990s . Less than six months after helping the Devils capture the Cup , Jim Dowd was traded with a 2nd round 1997 draft pick to the Hartford Whalers on December 19 , 1995 , for Jocelyn Lemieux and a 2nd round 1998 draft pick . Later that same day , Hartford traded Dowd with Frantisek Kucera and the 2nd round 1997 draft pick to the Vancouver Canucks for Jeff Brown and a 5th round 1998 draft pick . Dowd would only play 38 regular season games and one playoff game for the Canucks . On September 30 , 1996 , the New York Islanders claimed Dowd from the Canucks in the NHL Waiver Draft . He only played in three games for New York , spending the rest of the 1996 – 1997 season with the International Hockey League ' s ( IHL ) Utah Grizzlies and AHL ' s Saint John Flames . Dowd signed with the Calgary Flames on July 10 , 1997 , as a free agent . In the 1997 – 1998 season , he played in 48 games with the NHL Flames and another 35 regular season ( and 19 playoff ) games with the AHL Flames . On June 27 , 1998 , Dowd was traded by Calgary to the expansion Nashville Predators for future considerations . For the second time in his career , he was traded before playing a single game , this time to the Edmonton Oilers with Mikhail Shtalenkov on October 1 , 1998 , for Éric Fichaud , Drake Berehowsky , and Greg de Vries . Dowd appeared in one game with the Oilers during the 1998 – 1999 season , spending the rest of the season with their AHL affiliate , the Hamilton Bulldogs . As a group two free agent , he re - signed with Edmonton on September 7 , 1999 , and played the 1999 – 2000 season with the Oilers appearing in an NHL career high 69 games . Recent NHL career . The next chapter in Jim Dowd ' s career began on June 23 , 2000 , when the Minnesota Wild selected him during the 2000 NHL Expansion Draft . A couple of weeks later , Jim ' s wife Lisa gave birth to their first child : James Thomas Dowd Jr . , 8 lb . 10 oz . , 21 " . After nearly four seasons with the Minnesota Wild , Dowd was traded to the Montreal Canadiens on March 4 , 2004 for a 4th round 2004 draft pick . After the season , Dowd became an unrestricted free agent and signed with Germany ' s Hamburg Freezers during the 2004 – 05 NHL lockout . Dowd was signed as an unrestricted free agent by the Chicago Blackhawks on August 5 , 2005 . On March 9 , 2006 , Dowd was traded to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for a fourth round draft pick . His brief tenure with the Avalanche ended after the 2005 – 06 season , with Dowd again becoming a free agent . On November 2 , 2006 , after left winger Dan LaCouture cleared waivers , the Devils signed Dowd to a one - year contract . The contract paid Dowd the NHL minimum of $ 450 , 000 . " It ' s great . You should see the smile on my face , " Dowd said via phone . " I ' ve tried to come back every time I became a free agent . I ' d call New Jersey , but the timing was never right . " When Dowd returned to the Devils , he was forced to wear jersey # 12 , as John Madden wears # 11 . He went on to score 4 goals as well as have his first career multi - goal game , which came against the Florida Panthers . After the season ended with a loss to the Senators in the Second Round of the Playoffs , questions arose about the futures of such Devil ' s veterans as Dowd and Rasmussen . Jim Dowd had been scratched several times in favor of Rod Pelley , so he probably knew he would not be as welcome the following year . On September 11 , Dowd announced that GM Lou Lamoriello and the Devils were uninterested in offering him a contract . He then mentioned that he would attend the Philadelphia Flyers Training Camp to try and make the Flyers . He has become a solid PK and defensive center for the Flyers , scoring his first goal with the Flyers against the Devils . However , he was released after the last game of the Flyers ' 2008 - 09 preseason , along with Bryan Berard , to allow rookie development . ( notably Danny Syvret and Darroll Power ) . He retired on October 8 , 2008 .