Brendan Shanahan Brendan Frederick " Shanny " Shanahan ( born January 23 , 1969 ) is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey winger who currently serves as the National Hockey League ' s Vice President of Hockey and Business Development . Originally drafted by the Devils second overall in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft , Shanahan played with the St . Louis Blues , Hartford Whalers , Detroit Red Wings , New York Rangers , and New Jersey Devils . He spent the majority of his career with the Red Wings , with whom he won three Stanley Cup championships . With his physical play and goal scoring ability , Shanahan scored 656 goals in his NHL career spanning over 1 , 500 NHL games and , at the time of his retirement , was the leader among active NHL players for goals scored . Shanahan is the only player in NHL history with over 600 goals and 2 , 000 penalty minutes . Competing for Team Canada internationally , Shanahan won a gold medal at the 1994 World Championships , 2002 Winter Olympics , and a 1991 Canada Cup championship . Having won what are considered the three most prominent team titles in ice hockey , an Olympic gold medal , a World Championship and a Stanley Cup , Shanahan is a member of the elite Triple Gold Club . Shanahan currently works in the NHL office as the league ' s vice president of hockey and business operations . Playing career . Start in New Jersey ( 1988 – 1991 ) . Shanahan was drafted by the New Jersey Devils second overall in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft after Pierre Turgeon . Expectations for Shanahan were high after a stellar career with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League ( OHL ) , with whom his number 19 has been retired . In his rookie season with the Devils , in 1987 – 88 , he scored 26 points in 65 games as an 18 - year - old . The following season , in 1988 – 89 , he improved to 22 goals and 50 points . In his third NHL season , he emerged as a point - per - game producer with 72 points in 73 games and a top scorer with the Devils ; his 30 goals finished tied for second in team goal - scoring behind John MacLean . In his fourth and final year of his initial stint with the Devils in 1990 – 91 , he scored 29 goals and 66 points . At the age of 22 , Shanahan was already an established scorer in the NHL . He had also played well in the Devils ' playoff runs . To the St . Louis Blues ( 1991 – 1995 ) . Becoming a free agent following the 1990 – 91 season , Shanahan was signed by the St . Louis Blues on July 25 , 1991 . According to the collective bargaining agreement , he was a restricted free - agent , and therefore , the Devils were due compensation . Ordinarily , this compensation would be in the form of draft picks , but the Blues already owed four first - round draft picks to the Washington Capitals for signing defenceman Scott Stevens the previous year . The Blues made an offer for compensation that consisted of Curtis Joseph , Rod Brind ' Amour and two draft picks even further down the road . However , the Devils were only interested in Scott Stevens . An arbitrator eventually decided that Stevens was to be the compensation , so Shanahan joined the Blues in exchange for Scott Stevens . While Shanahan ' s first season for the Blues yielded similar statistics to his seasons with the Devils , he would reach another level in 1992 – 93 with 51 goals and 94 points in 71 games . He finished second in team goal - scoring to Brett Hull and third in team point - scoring overall . Continuing at that pace the next season , in 1993 – 94 , he recorded personal bests of 52 goals , 50 assists and 102 points . In addition to leading the Blues in points , he was named to the 1994 NHL All - Star Game at mid - season and the NHL First All - Star Team at the end of the year . During the 1994 – 95 NHL lockout , Shanahan played 3 games for Düsseldorf EG of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga , managing to score 5 goals and tally 3 assists in his short stay overseas . When the NHL started back up , he continued to play well for the Blues , recording 41 points in the lockout - shortened season . In the playoffs , he led the team in scoring with 9 points in 5 games . Year in Hartford ( 1995 – 1996 ) . After three seasons with the Blues , on July 27 , 1995 , Shanahan was traded to the Hartford Whalers for defenceman Chris Pronger where he succeeded Pat Verbeek as the team captain . In his only full season for Hartford , he scored a team - high 44 goals and 78 points . For his efforts , he was selected to the 1996 NHL All - Star Game . However , with the uncertainty of the franchise , Shanahan asked for a trade . On October 9 , 1996 , just 2 games into the 1996 – 97 season , Shanahan was traded along with Brian Glynn to the Detroit Red Wings for forward Keith Primeau , defenceman Paul Coffey , and a first - round draft pick . Three Stanley Cups with Detroit ( 1996 – 2006 ) . Shanahan finished off the season with his usual productivity , scoring a total of 47 goals for the season , and was named to the 1997 NHL All - Star Game . In the playoffs , Shanahan contributed 9 goals and 8 assists , helping the Red Wings to their first Stanley Cup since 1955 . They repeated as Cup champions the next year , despite an off - season for Shanahan , in which he managed just 57 points . The following season , in 1998 – 99 NHL season , Shanahan continued at that pace with 58 points , but was still invited to another All - Star Game . Going into the playoffs as back - to - back Stanley Cup champions , the Red Wings were eliminated by the rival Colorado Avalanche . In 1999 – 00 , Shanahan scored 41 goals , indicating a return to his usual form . After the season , he was named to the First All - Star Team for the second time in his career . He put up 76 points in the 2000 – 01 NHL season , although Detroit was upset in the first round of the playoffs to the Los Angeles Kings . The 2001 – 02 season was a banner one for both Shanahan and the Red Wings . Having picked up future Hall - of - Famers Brett Hull , Luc Robitaille and Dominik Hašek in the off - season , the team was primed to win its third Cup since 1997 . They cruised to victory and Shanahan continued to play a big role in their success , scoring 37 goals during the regular season and 19 points in their victorious Stanley Cup run . Shanahan also picked up an Olympic gold medal in Salt Lake City with Team Canada and was named to the Second NHL All - Star Team . The season was also of particular statistical significance for Shanahan , as shortly preceding his Olympic gold medal victory , he recorded his 1000th point in the NHL with two goals against Marty Turco in a 4 – 2 victory over the Dallas Stars on January 12 , 2002 . Then , late in the season , Shanahan also reached the 500 - goal mark , scoring the game - winner against Patrick Roy in a 2 – 0 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on March 23 , 2002 . The win also marked a team accomplishment as it clinched a President ' s Trophy as the top ranked regular - season team . In the season following their third Stanley Cup , Shanahan scored 30 goals and 68 points and won the King Clancy Memorial Trophy at the end of the year for his humanitarian efforts . In the following season , however , his production dipped to 25 goals and 53 points , his lowest totals in fifteen years . After a one - year absence due to the 2004 – 05 NHL lockout , Shanahan showed yet another return to form in the 2005 – 06 NHL season , tallying an impressive 40 goals and 81 points , good for third among Red Wings in scoring . New success with the Rangers ( 2006 – 2008 ) . Shanahan became a free agent following the 2005 – 06 season and signed a one - year , $ 4 million deal with the New York Rangers . After completing a successful nine - year stay in Detroit , he expressed a desire to move on in his NHL career , stating " It really came down to an instinct I had . Detroit has a great past and a great future ahead of them as well , but I guess I just felt that maybe I was identified with the past a little bit more than the future . " Shanahan began his Rangers ' career by scoring his 599th and 600th career goals against Olaf Kölzig on October 5 , 2006 , in a 5 – 3 season opening win against the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden . With assists coming from Petr Průcha on both goals , he became just the 15th player in NHL history to reach the 600 - goal mark . Shortly thereafter , on November 14 , 2006 , Shanahan received the inaugural Mark Messier Leadership Award , an award given monthly to a player selected by Mark Messier who best exemplifies leadership skills on and off the ice . Then , selected to his eighth All - Star Game , he was named captain of the Eastern Conference for the 2007 All - Star Game . On February 1 , 2007 , he made headlines after expressing frustration in a press conference about his perception that NHL referees are biased against team captain Jaromír Jágr . Later in the month , he was involved in a severe on - ice collision with Philadelphia Flyers forward Mike Knuble in a game on February 17 . Shanahan and Knuble caught each other skating in opposite directions as Shanahan was headed for the bench , at which point Shanahan hit his head on the ice and was left unconscious for ten minutes . He was carried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital where he was released the next day . After missing 15 games , Shanahan returned to the lineup in time for the playoffs where the Rangers were defeated by the Buffalo Sabres in the second round . Shanahan completed his first season with the Rangers fourth in team scoring with 62 points in 67 games as an alternate captain to Jagr . After re - signing to another one - year contract with the Rangers , Shanahan ' s struggled to produce offensively as his points total dipped to just 46 points in 2007 – 08 , his lowest total since his rookie season in 1987 – 88 . With his contract expiring in the off - season , he was not tended an offer by the Rangers , believed to be a result of the Rangers ' pursuit of free agent Mats Sundin . Return to the Devils ( 2009 ) . Unable to come to terms with the Rangers , Shanahan sat out the first half of the 2008 – 09 season . Then , on January 10 , 2009 , it was announced that Shanahan agreed to join the New Jersey Devils for his second stint with the team . Four days later , on January 14 , the terms of the contract were finalized and Shanahan signed a one - year , $ 800 , 000 pro - rated contract . Playing in his first game back with the Devils since the 1990 – 91 season , he scored the first goal of the game against the Nashville Predators on a 5 on 3 power play by toe dragging the puck around the opposition player and then shooting it on the pad side on January 19 in a 3 – 1 win . On August 5 , 2009 , Shanahan agreed to a one year deal with the Devils returning for a 22nd season , to play during the 2009 – 10 season . But on October 1 , 2009 , the Devils and Shanahan parted ways , with Brendan Shanahan saying " When I signed this past summer , Lou Lamoriello , Jacques Lemaire , and I agreed that if we were unable to find a suitable fit in which I would be able to compete and contribute at the level I expect from myself , then I would simply step aside . " Legacy . During the 2004 – 05 NHL lockout , Shanahan was the mastermind of what was dubbed " The Shanahan Summit , " a two - day conference in Toronto . It gathered players , coaches , and other influential voices to discuss improvements to the flow and tempo of the game . Ten recommendations were presented to the League and Players Association . According to The Hockey News , Shanahan holds an unofficial NHL record for most modern day career Gordie Howe hat trick s with 17 . However not all teams have kept records of this feat , and it is even believed that Gordie Howe himself only officially had two . According to a Yahoo article , Shanahan would choose to go into the Hall of Fame as a Red Wing , if he had to choose . Retirement . On November 17 , 2009 , Shanahan officially announced his retirement after 21 years in the NHL . Shanahan said , " I would like to thank my family and all of the friends who have helped me achieve and maintain my childhood dream of playing in the National Hockey League " , Shanahan said in a news release . " I am enormously grateful to all of my coaches and teammates I ' ve had the privilege of learning from and playing along side of , throughout my career . While I always dreamed of playing in the NHL , I can ' t honestly say that I would have ever imagined that I ' d be this fortunate and blessed . I would like to sincerely thank everyone who has helped me fulfill this dream . " In December 2009 , Shanahan accepted a position to become the NHL ' s Vice President of Hockey and Business Development . " In a broad sense , I think obviously , I am going to be another voice in the hockey ops , but at the same time people like John Collins and Gary and Bill are going to allow me and teach me the business of hockey , " Shanahan told NHL . com . " What I was excited about in their offer to bring me on board is that it was wide open for me . There was not going to be any room with a closed door and I would be given an opportunity to see and learn . As time goes by there will be some days where my role is more hockey specific and some days where my role is more business or marketing specific . " International play . Played for Canada in : International statistics