GObama!!!

Well, we all know the result of the presidential election that took place south of the 49th parallel last night; should be some positive changes occurring. On a side note, the NFL's Washington Redskins have correctly predicted the last EIGHTEEN presidential results!!! It occurs on the last home game before the election, if the 'skins win - the party in power STAYS, if the 'skins lose - the party in power LOSES. Kind of eerie isn't it, I'm sure Barack is an avid Steelers fan now. But it got me thinking... Which NHL players would make great Prime Ministers? I've compiled a list of 10 current and former players and honorable mentions that would do a fine job carrying the title of Mr. Prime Minister...

European Presence...
Peter Stastny - Member of the Slovak Democratic & Christian Union in European Parliament
Slava Fetisov - Is the Minister of Sport in Russia and inaugural chairman of WADA's Athlete Committee.
Vladislav Tretiak - Elected to the State Duma as a member of the United Russia party, chairman of the State Duma Committee on Physical Culture, Sport, and Youth.

Honorable Mentions...
Dany Heatley - Politicians are commonly referred to as criminals... Anyone remember his car crash? No? Still too soon for that joke?

Scott Niedermayer - Would anyone beat this guy in an election? Seriously, the guy wins everything (Memorial Cup, World Jr, IIHF World Championship, Olympic Gold, World Cup and Stanley Cup)!!!

Joe Sakic/Ron Francis (tie) - Canada is such a nice country and well, these are just two nice guys...

Mike Keenan - Anyone who can kick-start Todd Bertuzzi could surely kick-start our country.

Alan Eagleson - 1st NHLPA president, but has those 'criminal qualities' (indicted on theft and fraud charges).

The List...
10. Claude Lemieux - Politicians are also known to hide behind their speech writers and ministers of parliament. Did anyone hide behind his teammates more then this guy?

9. Scotty Bowman - He won 9 cups. Enough said.

8. Ryan Smyth - It pains me to put him in ANY of my blogs (the traitor), but he's not Captain Canada for nothing. The guy literally bleeds Red & White.

7. Ken Holland - Has anyone else created a model of success to follow better then this GM? Perhaps he should take a stab at creating a model for a successful country...

6. Bobby Clarke/Jeremy Roenick (tie) - I know Roenick is American, but politicians are great speakers and NO ONE speaks their mind more then these two.

5. Gary Bettman - Again, he's American, but has anyone done more for the state of the league then Bettman? He took a struggling league from 400 Million in revenue to 2.2 BILLION (not to mention the league expansion, TV deals...). Could you imagine the rise of the Loonie if Bettman were in power?!

4. Bryan Trottier - Longest serving NHLPA player's president (8 years).

3. Steve Yzerman - He was the longest serving captain in PRO SPORTS history and is now the Vice-President for the Red Wings as well as the Executive Director for Team Canada at the 2010 Games.

2. Ken Dryden - 6 Stanley Cups, Conn Smythe winner, Calder trophy winner, Summit Series goalie, 5 Vezina Trophies, 5 First All-Star Teams, Hall of Fame inductee... all in only SEVEN FULL SEASONS!!! Not to mention, he was named the Minister of Social Development in 2004.

1. Mark Messier - The only man to captain TWO different teams to Stanley Cup victories. His Stare - Unmistakable. His trademark off-wing wrist shot - Unstoppable. His Guarantee - Legendary. Possibly the greatest leader the NHL has or ever will see.

Cheers.
-Smith