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2014 Memorial Cup’s talent pool compares well with legendary 2005 tournament

The legacy from the 2005 Memorial Cup in London, nearly a decade on, pops up constantly.

When Team Canada celebrated the Olympic men's gold medal in Sochi, the players exulting on the ice included Shea Weber, who nine years ago was the linchpin of the Kelowna Rockets defence. Then there was Corey Perry, a 130-point scorer for the London Knights, who capped off one of the most dominant seasons in major junior annals by winning the city's first OHL title and first Memorial Cup title on home ice. London won the championship game by shutting out 17-year-old Sidney Crosby and the Rimouski Océanic, who had the onerous task of regroup for the final after playing in a Saturday night semifinal. (The off-day between the semifinal and final is another legacy from 2005. As former Knights trainer Don Brankley says in reference to complaints about the schedule from Crosby and former Rimouski coach Doris Labonté: "They cried and cried and now they add the extra day.")

That tournament, along with the 2005 world junior championship where Crosby, Perry and Weber were also part of Canada going a perfect 7-0 en route to the gold medal, satisfied many a hockey fix during a season when the NHL went dark thanks to a season-scuttling lockout that many swore would be the end of the sport. (How did that work out?) It was considered one of the most talent-studded ensembles ever to descend on the Canadian Hockey League's year-end showcase. The proof is in who has gone on to a sustained NHL career. Along with three superstars, the '05 tournament included notable NHLers such as Brian Bickell, David Bolland, Dan Girardi and Jamie McGinn (then a 16-year-old with the Ottawa 67's) and Marc Methot.

Comparing past performance to potential is dicey. Only four NHL first-rounders played in the '05 tournament, or fewer than half of the 10 that will lace 'em up in London, starting Friday. So it's worth asking if this Memorial Cup might surpass that seemingly unsurpassed previous tournament at Budweiser Gardens.

Here's the 2005 alumni roll call, ranked by games played.

2005 Memorial Cup alumni

CHL team

Age

Draft slot

NHL games

Corey Perry

London

19

28th/2003

655

Shea Weber

Kelowna

19

49th/2003

622

Dan Girardi

London

20

Free agent

569

Sidney Crosby

Rimouski

17

1st/2005

550

Blake Comeau

Kelowna

18

47th/2004

422

Marc Methot

London

19

168th/2003

397

Brandon Prust

London

20

70th/2004

369

David Bolland

London

18

32nd/2004

355

Jamie McGinn

Ottawa

16

36th/2006

347

Bryan Bickell

Ottawa

18

41st/2004

279

Dan Fritsche

London

19

46th/2003

256

Marc-Antoine Pouliot

Rimouski

19

22nd/2003

192

Troy Bodie

Kelowna

19

278th/2003

154

Kyle Cumiskey

Kelowna

18

222nd/2005

132

Derek Joslin

Ottawa

17

149th/2005

116

Rob Schremp

London

18

25th/2004

114

One can only project current teenage prospects so much. This tournament might not have the top-end talent of the 2013 tournament in Saskatoon that boasted three of the top four NHL picks with the Halifax tandem of Nathan MacKinnon and Jonathan Drouin and Portland's Seth Jones. It also boasted six of the first 16 selections.

The field makes up for it with depth. Fifteen players are top-50 selections. The chart below doesn't even take into account the best draft-eligible talent, Guelph's Robby Fabbri, who just became the third 17-year-old player to ever be the Ontario Hockey League's playoff MVP.

2014 Memorial Cup

CHL team

Age

Draft slot

NHL org.

Griffin Reinhart

Edmonton

19

4th/2012

Islanders

Bo Horvat

London

18

9th/2013

Canucks

Max Domi

London

18

12th/2013

Coyotes

Nikita Zadorov

London

18

16th/2013

Sabres

Curtis Lazar

Edmonton

18

17th/2013

Senators

Kerby Rychel

Guelph

19

19th/2013

Blue Jackets

Anthony Mantha

Val-d'Or

19

20th/2013

Red Wings

Michael McCarron

London

18

25th/2013

Canadiens

Henrik Samuelsson

Edmonton

19

27th/2012

Coyotes

Jason Dickinson

Guelph

18

29th/2013

Stars

Mitch Moroz

Edmonton

19

32nd/2012

Oilers

Matt Finn

Guelph

19

35th/2012

Maple Leafs

Tristan Jarry

Edmonton

18

44th/2013

Penguins

Anthony Stolarz

London

19

45th/2012

Flyers

Brock McGinn

Guelph

19

47th/2012

Hurricanes

In the here and now, it seems astounding the Detroit Red Wings were able to trade down last June to draft Mantha, who only scored 24 goals in as many playoff games, including the last-minute Game 7 winner. Still, it's a list of NHL aspirants that bumps out Winnipeg Jets signing Scott Kosmachuk (the No. 70 pick in 2012), who had 101 points in the OHL regular season.

The Memorial Cup is not always going to have a breakout star on the level of MacKinnon, Crosby, Taylor Hall with the 2009 and '10 Windsor Spitfires and Jonathan Huberdeau with the 2011 Saint John Sea Dogs. Having one player to focus on is great for TV purposes, but if anyone bemoans the lack of star power in London, let it go in one ear and out the other. It's a deep talent pool.

London will inevitably end up hosting the Memorial Cup again in another nine or 12 seasons, sure as shooting, so that might be a good time to look back at how everyone fared at the next level.

Neate Sager is a writer for Yahoo! Canada Sports. Follow him on Twitter @neatebuzzthenet.