You can see him even now, rushing up ice, blue line behind him, stick and puck far in front, almost as if he were daring somebody to take it away. When they try, Denis Potvin pulls the puck back, deftly maneuvers through traffic and powers ahead, a square-jawed force in a No. 5 sweater for the New York Islanders.

Potvin may not have been the original offensive defenseman, but he was one of the most prolific, anchoring four Stanley Cup championship teams, winning three Norris trophies and breaking Bobby Orr's record for goals by a defenseman.

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