| Kevin Stevens | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born | (1965-04-15)April 15, 1965 (age 60) Brockton, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||
| Height | 6 ft 3 in (191 cm) | ||
| Weight | 230 lb (104 kg; 16 st 6 lb) | ||
| Position | Left wing | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Pittsburgh Penguins Boston Bruins Los Angeles Kings New York Rangers Philadelphia Flyers | ||
| National team |  United States | ||
| NHL draft | 108th overall,1983 Los Angeles Kings | ||
| Playing career | 1987–2002 | ||
Kevin Michael Stevens (born April 15, 1965) is an American formerice hockey player and currentscout in theNational Hockey League (NHL). He playedleft wing on a line withMario Lemieux during thePittsburgh Penguins'Stanley Cup championships in1991 and1992. During his career, he also played with theBoston Bruins,Los Angeles Kings,New York Rangers, andPhiladelphia Flyers. In 2017, Stevens was named Special Assignment Scout with the Penguins hockey organization.[1]
Stevens was born inBrockton, Massachusetts, but grew up inPembroke, Massachusetts. As a youth, he played in the 1978Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with the Hobomockminor ice hockey team from Pembroke.[2] While attendingSilver Lake Regional High School in Kingston, Massachusetts, Kevin Stevens played both hockey and baseball. He was invited to try out for both theToronto Blue Jays and thePhiladelphia Phillies; however, accepting that he was not a great hitter in baseball, he decided to play hockey instead. Stevens accepted a full scholarship to play hockey forBoston College, and was drafted in the sixth round (108th overall) in the1983 NHL draft by theLos Angeles Kings. Several months later, his rights were traded to thePittsburgh Penguins forAnders Håkansson, a left winger from Sweden who had recently been traded to the Penguins along withRon Meighan from theMinnesota North Stars for the Penguins' first round pick in the 1983 draft (Brian Lawton).[3]
Upon graduating from Boston College in 1987, Stevens joined theU.S. National Team and represented the U.S. at the1987 World Championships and at the1988 Winter Olympics. Stevens' play steadily improved during his time with the team and in 1987-88 he finished with 45 points in 44 games.[citation needed]
Stevens played a few games with the Penguins in the1987–88 NHL season, then spent the1988–89 NHL season jumping back and forth between theNational Hockey League (NHL) and theMuskegon Lumberjacks of theInternational Hockey League (IHL). Starting with the1989–90 NHL season, Stevens became one of the top left wingers and power forwards in the league. He had four consecutive seasons of at least 40 goals and 80 points from 1990 to 1994 and surpassed 50 goals and 100 points in 1991–92 and 1992–93. In the1991–92 NHL season, Stevens scored 2 points more thanWayne Gretzky (then in his 13th season), becoming only the third person in NHL history to outscore Gretzky in the regular season, though he still finished second in points to teammateMario Lemieux. His 123 points that year also set a record for the most points by an American-born player and a left wing in one season. The 55 goals he scored the following year tied him withJimmy Carson for most goals in a single NHL season by a United States-born player. That record would stand for another 29 years before being broken byAuston Matthews on April 7, 2022.[4] During thePittsburgh Penguins' back-to-backStanley Cup seasons of 1990–91 and 1991–92, Stevens was the only Penguin to play in every regular season and playoff game. He is also one of four NHL players to have accumulated more than 50 goals and at least 200 PIM in a season, the others are Keith Tkachuk, Brendan Shanahan and Gary Roberts. His 17 goals during the 1990–91 playoffs are tied for fourth all-time (only Jari Kurri and Reggie Leach with 19 and Joe Sakic with 18 have surpassed that mark). He scored 13 more in the 1991–92 postseason.
On May 21, 1992, during game three of thePrince of Wales Conference final against theBoston Bruins, Stevens became the 25th player in NHL history to score three goals in a single playoff period. Scoring ahat trick in the first period, he would add one more goal before the end of the game. The Penguins swept the Bruins then swept theChicago Blackhawks to win their second straight Stanley Cup.
One year later, on May 14, 1993, the Penguins were playing theNew York Islanders in game seven of thePatrick Division finals. Early in the first period, Stevens skated in and checked Islanders' defensemanRich Pilon, hitting Pilon's visor with so much force that he knocked himself unconscious. Stevens landed face first on the ice and, unable to soften the blow upon landing, shattered most of the bones in his face and required extensive reconstructive surgery. Doctors cut an incision below his hairline from ear-to-ear, which was later closed with over 100 stitches, peeled back his skin and reassembled the bones in Stevens' face with the use of metal plates. Stevens came back to have one more strong season for the Penguins, in 1993–94 (41 goals, 47 assists), before being traded the next year.
Stevens was sent to the Boston Bruins in 1995 along withShawn McEachern forGlen Murray andBryan Smolinski. Stevens was never given a chance to succeed in Boston except in preseason when he was paired with Adam Oates and Cam Neely. During the regular season Stevens was in Coach Steve Kasper's doghouse and usually played with 3rd or 4th liners. At one point Coach Kasper "benched" Stevens and Neely. Making the two stars sit on the bench for the entire game. The move proved it was time for Stevens to move on but it proved to be the end for Kasper as well. After being traded from the Penguins, Stevens never again reached the success that he had while in Pittsburgh. After "disappointing" in Boston with 23 points in 41 games, he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings. After a poor season, he was traded to theNew York Rangers in 1997, where he experienced several solid seasons, but failed to match the expectations levied on him from his marked success playing with Mario Lemieux and the Penguins.
During the 1999–2000 season, Stevens struggled. Not only did he rarely see the ice during this season, but after a game against theSt. Louis Blues, he was caught in anEast St. Louis, Illinois motel with a prostitute andcrack cocaine.[5] After this event, Stevens entered the NHL/NHLPA Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program.
After being released from the program, he played a brief stint with thePhiladelphia Flyers before being traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a second time in 2001.[6] His return to Pittsburgh revitalized Stevens,[7] where he impressed by scoring 23 points in 32 games reuniting with his former line mates Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr, and adding a further six points in 17 playoff games as the Penguins reached the Eastern Conference Finals. He then re-signed with the Penguins for the 2001-02 season.[8] However, after struggling with just one goal in 32 games, he left the team before a game in Buffalo in January, 2002 to fly back home to Pittsburgh and discuss his future with his wife.[9] He ultimately did not return to the team, and retired from professional hockey.
Stevens returned the Penguins in an off-ice role as atalent scout from 2005 to 2012, including the2008-09 NHL season, when the Penguins (and Stevens) won their third Stanley Cup. In 2017, he was hired again by the team, this time as a Special Assignment Scout.[10]
In 2011, Stevens left the Pittsburgh Penguins organization as a pro scout to spend more time with his family. He coached youth hockey including a traveling team in the Boston area. In June 2015, his son, Luke Stevens, was drafted by the Carolina Hurricanes 5th round, 126th overall pick. Luke played four years of college hockey atYale University, but was ultimately not offered a contract by the Hurricanes, and signed a minor league contract with theWilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins of the AHL in August 2020.
In May 2016, Stevens and a co-defendant were charged with conspiracy and possession with intent to distributeoxycodone.[11] In May 2017, Stevens entered a guilty plea in a Boston federal court and was sentenced to probation, community service and a $10,000 fine.[12] Stevens admitted to being addicted to prescription drugs since May 1993 when he sustained injuries during a game – an addiction that destroyed his marriage and his post-playing career in hockey.[12]
On January 13, 2018, Stevens' recovery from addiction and his subsequent community service was presented in a 30-minute documentary entitled "Shattered" which aired onSportsnet, a Canadian sports channel. Stevens and his sister Kelli Wilson co-founded the Power Forward foundation to combat addiction through education, de-stigmatizing, and recovery programs. It has supported efforts to usetherapy dogs insober homes through a project called D.O.E.R. (Dog Ownership Enhancing Recovery).[13]
On September 5, 2024, Stevens was announced alongsideMatt Cullen,Brianna Decker,Frederic McLaughlin, and the 2002 USA Paralympics Sled Hockey Team to be enshrined into theUnited States Hockey Hall of Fame as the Class of 2024 on December 4.
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| All-Hockey EastFirst Team | 1986–87 | [14] |
| AHCAWest second-team All-American | 1986–87 | [15] |
Bold indicates led league
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1982–83 | Silver Lake Regional High School | HS-MA | 18 | 24 | 27 | 51 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1983–84 | Boston College | ECAC | 37 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Boston College | ECAC | 40 | 13 | 23 | 36 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Boston College | ECAC | 42 | 17 | 27 | 44 | 56 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1986–87 | Boston College | ECAC | 39 | 35 | 35 | 70 | 54 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1987–88 | United States | Intl | 44 | 22 | 23 | 45 | 52 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1987–88 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 16 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Muskegon Lumberjacks | IHL | 45 | 24 | 41 | 65 | 113 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 24 | 12 | 3 | 15 | 19 | 11 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 16 | ||
| 1989–90 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 76 | 29 | 41 | 70 | 171 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1990–91 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 80 | 40 | 46 | 86 | 133 | 24 | 17 | 16 | 33 | 53 | ||
| 1991–92 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 80 | 54 | 69 | 123 | 254 | 21 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 28 | ||
| 1992–93 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 72 | 55 | 56 | 111 | 177 | 12 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 22 | ||
| 1993–94 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 83 | 41 | 47 | 88 | 155 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1994–95 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 27 | 15 | 12 | 27 | 51 | 12 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 21 | ||
| 1995–96 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 41 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1995–96 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 20 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1996–97 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 69 | 14 | 20 | 34 | 96 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1997–98 | New York Rangers | NHL | 80 | 14 | 27 | 41 | 130 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1998–99 | New York Rangers | NHL | 81 | 23 | 20 | 43 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1999–2000 | New York Rangers | NHL | 38 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 43 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 23 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2000–01 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 32 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 55 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 20 | ||
| 2001–02 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 32 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 25 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 874 | 329 | 397 | 726 | 1,470 | 103 | 46 | 60 | 106 | 170 | ||||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Representing United States | ||
| Ice hockey | ||
| World Championships | ||
 | 1996 Vienna | |
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | United States | WC | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | |
| 1988 | United States | OG | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | |
| 1990 | United States | WC | 10 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 18 | |
| 1996 | United States | WC | 8 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 12 | |
| Senior totals | 32 | 11 | 9 | 20 | 42 | |||