Bernie Nicholls

1,127 NHL GP (LAK, NYR, EDM, NJD, CHI, SJS)

475 G, 734 A, 1,209 PTS

3x NHL All-Star ('84, '89, '90)

1985 World Champion (Team Canada)

The year was 1996, the host was Paul Romanuk, and the player was Bernie Nicholls.

With over 1,200 NHL career points to his name, Nicholls was a natural goal-scorer. He netted 19 hat tricks in the league (one in the posteason), and twice hit the 100-point mark in the regular season over the course of a career that spanned nearly 18 seasons.

He hit career-highs in 1988-89 with his draft club, the Los Angeles Kings, by amassing 70 goals, 80 assists, and 150 points. A fan favourite in Los Angeles, Kings fans may remember him as the original bread man, dubbed "Pumper Nicholl" for his one-of-a-kind goal celebration.

"I've done it since I was a kid," Nicholls told Sports Illustrated in 1982 interview. "I'm so happy when I score I have to let it out."

After 1,127 games at hockey's highest level, the three-time NHL All-Star retired at the age of 36 at the end of the 1998-99 season as a member of the San Jose Sharks.

Then and now

In early 2012 Nicholls briefly returned to the Kings franchise as a coaching consultant, and has since kept himself active in the hockey community participating in alumni events, and recently participated in the Brockville Winter Classic Weekend 2019 held over the Family Day weekend.

Born in Haliburton, Ontario, he continues to enjoy life outdoors as an avid goler and hunter. He is also a part owner of AllSportsMarket, "an experimental exchange where investors can buy and sell sports teams, just like traditional stocks, and earn dividends when their teams win or appreciate in value."

You can also keep up with Nicholls by following him on Twitter!

Full Be A Player: Rewind series here