Former New York Islanders forward Kyle Okposo has had a tremendous NHL career. It may have taken him 17 years, but the 36-year-old can now call himself a Stanley Cup Champion after he and the Florida Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers in seven games.
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Finally, getting the chance to be back in the playoffs—let alone winning the whole thing—was a magical moment for Okposo, his family, and his friends.
For Islanders fans, it was a feel-good moment for a player who, through difficult times on Long Island, always went to work to help try and turn a strong tide in a winning direction.
Okposo spent nine years on Long Island, racking up 139 goals with 230 assists for 369 points in 529 games. He donned the "A" for his final seven seasons in Blue & Orange and had a tremendous impact on his young teammates at the time, who are now leaders for the team today.
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But how did Okposo end up on the Islanders, to begin with?
Former Islanders general manager Neil Smith shared the story with Sean Cuthbert and myself on Hockey Night in New York this past Sunday.
"I gotta say the scouts had him up high, but not where the Islanders were picking that year," Smith said. "And when a lot of the reports came in, and I read them, and I read a lot of the things about his character and his work at thickness, psychological profile, and so on. He was up there with Jordan Staal and people who were really high up in the draft.
"I just felt that he was the right guy and was the power forward type player that could really do well in the NHL. And I'm so proud of Kyle opposed so because, had I not been there, they were going to pick a defenseman that year that ended up being the player that the Rangers took for in the first round (Bobby Sanguinetti), and his name escapes me right now."
It's very likely that Okposo will hang up the skates after hoisting Lord Stanley. In 1,051 career regular-season games, Okposo scored 242 goals with 372 assists for 614 points. He played in the 2017 NHL All-Star Game with Buffalo.
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