Jarret Stoll, a product of the Yorkton area and arguably the Parkland's most successful current NHL player has had a lot of accomplishments throughout his hockey career.
A former first overall selection in the WHL Bantam Draft as well as a former member of Canada's World Junior team, Stoll has lived up to the projections that many had for him back in his young playing days by etching out a long NHL career that has seen him becoming a key role player in one of the winningest current franchises in the league.
A faceoff specialist who had already lifted the Stanley Cup in 2011/12 with the Los Angeles Kings, Stoll completed another successful season when the Kings defeated the New York Rangers in double overtime in Game Five of the 2014 Stanley Cup Finals to earn Stoll and Los Angeles their second Stanley Cup in three seasons with an epic win on home ice that was sealed with a game winning goal from Alec Martinez.
A former Memorial Cup champion as captain of the Kootenay Ice, Stoll's influence on winning teams has made him a consistent figure in the NHL since breaking into the league with the Edmonton Oilers in the mid-00's. Since then the centreman has made his trade by being elite at most of the little things that don't get you on the highlight reels, but earn the respect of coaches and players by doing the things that it takes to win as one of the league's best forwards in the defensive zone.
In fact most of Stoll's contributions couldn't be picked out by the casual or under informed hockey fan.
Always more of a defensive talent, Stoll hasn't broken the 20 goal mark in a season since 2010-11, but remains as one of head coach Darryl Sutter's most used forwards thanks to being the Los Angeles Kings most valuable forward in the defensive zone and nearly a guarantee to be one of the league's best faceoff takers season after season.
Things that have made his contribution to the Kings' success noticable to those in hockey circles, especially analysts who often take note of Stoll's proficient ability to bail the Kings out of their own defensive zone with another easy win in the faceoff circle.
Even with low offensive numbers Stoll did manage to contribute his share of the scoring workload during the 2014 playoffs, pitching in three goals and three assists to the cause. Stoll even helped on the first goal of the Kings Cup clinching win in Game Five, setting up Dwight King to put Los Angeles up 1-0.
Stoll even managed to post an improvement in offensive numbers from Los Angeles' first Stanley cup season, elevating his points total in the regular season from 21 in 2011/12 to 27 this season in 78 games for the Kings. Showing that the now elder statseman of the league is showing now signs of slowing down in his thirties after playing well in the lockout shortened season last year where he was on pace for over 30 points on the season during the 48 game schedule.
Offensive numbers will never be Stoll's calling card and they don't have to be as his faceoff percentage was the league's best in the 2014 Playoffs at 56.7 per cent, a rarity for even some of the greatest faceoff takers of all time.
In the regular season Stoll's numbers were equally as respectable this season as his faceoff rate continued to win well over half of his faceoffs, winning over 53 per cent of them during his 78 games played and remaining in the Top 25 in the league in total faceoffs won despite not being a top line player and having less opportunities to do so.
Stoll now will end the season with a list of accomplishments most dream of as youngsters playing the sport. Two Stanley Cups, a Memorial Cup, being named one of the captains of Canada's World Junior team and being a first overall selection in the WHL Bantam Draft are all on the resume of one of the league's most underrated players.
Playing for a team that is slowly turning into the first dynasty of a new decade, there is potentially even more big moments left in Stoll's career as he heads into the offseason but no matter how things pan out he will go down in history forever as a two time Stanley Cup champion. For most athletes, that is all that matters.
