Position: RW First signed: 2003-2004 Initial salary: $5.8 million
In the summer of 2003, the Avalanche shocked the hockey world when both Selanne and his former Mighty Ducks teammate Paul Kariya took one-year deals at a discounted rate, so they could play together with the Avalanche. Needless to say, their tenure in the Mile High City was disappointing, at best.
Selanne gets the nod over Kariya on this list because he took less of a discount, and disappointed more. Kariya was injured for much of the season, while Selanne spent much of the campaign in coach Tony Granato’s doghouse. In what was easily the most disappointing season in Selanne’s career, he saw his point production cut in half, going from 64 to 32. He also saw himself be named a healthy scratch for the first time in his career.
In his next NHL campaign, he scored 90 points, so apparently Selanne and the Avalanche simply weren’t meant to be. He has an argument to be placed atop this list, but for some reason, I think Granato should shoulder his share of the blame as well.
