Mark Hendricks

As a token of appreciation to the players that laced them up for the Jenkins Cup Champion Red Army team this late fall and early winter, the blog will be highlighting each player's season and doing a brief recap of a few defining moments that the player made to help Mother Russia dance her way to greatness.

Mark Hendricks
Regular Season Stats: 14GP: 38 G, 33 A, 71 P
Post Season Stars: 4GP: 6 G, 7 A, 13 P
(All stars per Hendricksmemoryability)

To many, Mark Hendricks is Red Army. As the most tenured Soviet, he has seen the good, the bad, the really bad, the atrociously bad, and recently, the awesome. In this past season, he set another slew of franchise records with his goals, assists, points and most points in a game totals. After last season's 68 points, many thought Hendricks had hit his peak, and with other players asserting themselves offensively, Hendricks probably wouldn't eclipse the 60 point mark again. They were wrong. With other players scoring, Hendricks' assist total went from the low twenties to the low thirties. His goal total remained around the same, hovering just below that 40 goal plateau. Still, it wasn't the stats that made people fall in love with the Rocket Richard, Ross, and Hart trophy winner (the Pearson went to Steve Hand, who has a distinct advantage because he is sleeping with Pearson), it was his two way play in the post season.

Hendricks had been there before, atop the league stats in every category on an average to above average team. What happens? The playoffs come, he is shut down, his team loses, and they start again. This postseason, Hendricks committed himself to dictating the pace of the game and dominating puck possession. It paid dividends. In the second round, he has a goal and three assists. In the third round, he had three goals. In both games in the championship series, he had a goal and an assist. He no longer needed the five or six goal nights that previous Red Army teams needed him to have just to stay in the game. Hendricks made sure that when he was on the rink, his line was going to have the puck. Even if they didn't score, they didn't get scored on. His line finished with at least a +1 rating every game, and it was by no coincidence that three of the Soviet victories in the playoffs were of the one goal variety.

Hendricks, unlike many of his fellow Comrades, will forever be judged on the team's performance, especially playoff performance, rather than his own. His personal accolades are well documented and it is no secret that the offensive talents he possesses make opposing defenders and goalies nervous, but it is how he makes the team go that truly matters. For many seasons, #18 was merely a good player on an okay team.

Now he's the best player on the best team.

Regular Season: A+
Playoff Rounds 1&2: A+
Championship Series: A+

Fun note: Hendricks enjoyed his first career penalty free regular season. He was whistled once in the playoffs for hooking. Scott Hoefer killed the penalty.