Rob Blake

1,270 GP (240-537–777)

1997-98 James Norris Trophy winner

2001 Stanley Cup Champion

Olympic gold medalist (2002)

IIHF World Champion (1994, 1997)

Triple Gold Club member

Hockey Hall of Fame Inductee (2014)

The year was 2001, the host was Brett Lindros, and the player was Rob Blake.

In the midst of his first season with the Colorado Avalanche, Blake fit right in with the club despite only playing in 13 games to close out 2000-01 with his new team. He scored two goals as part of 10 points to help the Avs finish the season with the Presidents' Trophy. In the postseason, Blake scored three more times to contribute 19 points along the way to winning his first, and only, Stanley Cup in a career that spanned two decades.

The former blueliner takes us on a trip down memory lane and back to the heyday of the Los Angeles Kings in the 90s. From meeting Wayne Gretzky for the first time, to celebrity regulars, the former Kings captain, who served as such from 1996 to 2001, ranks a pregame pep talk from Canadian comedic legend John Candy’s as one of his favourite moments in the city.

Then and now

June 19, 2010, Blake retired from the NHL. Shortly after his legacy was preserved in the Hockey Hall of Hame, the LA Kings raised his No. 4 to the rafters of Staples Center in a ceremony January 17, 2015.

Blake continued his involvement with hockey, serving as GM of the American Hockey League's Ontario Reign. Shortly thereafter, he accepted a position with the Kings in 2017 as vice president and general manager, making him the ninth GM in the franchise's history – a position he still holds today.