Hispanic Heritage Month

The NHL has been blessed with having all kinds of players, from all walks of life, from all corners of the planet.

Despite being one of the top four sports in North America, not many people of Latin descent have made it into the NHL.

There are many factors as to why, but that’s not what we are here to talk about. Here are the best players to play in the NHL of Latin descent.

Top Latino Hockey Players  

7. Matt Nieto

Matt Nieto grew up in Long Beach, California, so it was a California dream when the Sharks drafted him 47th overall in 2011. He spent three years with Boston University, before continuing his hockey career with the Worcester Sharks of the AHL.

He played with the Sharks from 2013 to 2017, before being put on waivers by San Jose. He was claimed by the Avalanche and played in Colorado for the better part of four seasons.

He then re-signed in San Jose and has been playing there since. In 570 NHL games he has 83 goals and 102 goals for 165 points.

6. Raffi Torres

Raffi Torres had one interesting NHL career. He played for 15 seasons between the Islanders, Oilers, Blue Jackets, Sabres, Canucks, Coyotes, and San Jose Sharks.

He spent the majority of his career as a fourth line depth forward/ enforcer. Raffi had two major suspensions in his career, one with the Coyotes for 21 games and another for 41 games with San Jose.

He had a long NHL career of 635 games where he had 137 goals and 123 assists for 260 points. Interesting enough, he was drafted 5th overall in his draft class.

5. Max Pacioretty

Max Pacioretty, “Patches”, is one of the best American-born players in the NHL. He was drafted 22nd overall by the Canadiens in 2007 and went on to have a fantastic one season with Michigan. 

Patches played for the Canadiens for the better part of eight seasons before they shipped him off to Vegas in a controversial trade.

After four great seasons with Vegas, Patches was traded for literally nothing, to the Hurricanes. In 850 NHL games thus far, he has scored 323 goals, 319 assists, tallying 642 points.

4. Al Montoya

Al Montoya spent the majority of his NHL career as a backup but was a memorable and invaluable addition to any team. Drafted 6th overall by the New York Rangers in 2004.

He was supposed to be the Rangers the next goalie for the Rangers, until Henrik Lundqvist exploded on the scene. Montoya played 168 NHL games between the Coyotes, Islanders, Jets, Panthers, Canadiens, and Oilers.

He also played numerous games for the Checkers, Wolf Pack, Rampage and Condors of the AHL. He had a career 2.65 GAA and a .908 SV%. He retired in 2019.

3. Auston Matthews

Auston Matthews was born in California, but his mother is originally from Mexico. Matthews grew up in sunny Arizona. After two years in the USNDT program, instead of going to the CHL or NCAA, he decided to go pro and get paid early.

He played 36 games for the ZSC Lions where he recorded 24 goals and 22 assists for 46 points. He was drafted 1st overall in 2016 by the Leafs and has been the golden boy ever since. In 407 NHL games so far, he has scored 259 goals and 198 assists for 457 points.

2. Bill Guerin

Even though Bill Guerin has publicly stated he doesn’t know much about his heritage. Guerin had one hell of an NHL career, starting in 1989, being drafted by the Devils 5th overall.

Over his 19 years in the show, he played for the Devils, Oilers, Bruins, Stars, Blues, Sharks, Islanders, and the Penguins. He won the Stanley Cup in 1995 and 2009 as a player, he also won it twice as an Assistant GM in 2016 and 2017.

In 2019, he was announced as the fourth GM in Minnesota Wild history. He was elected to the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013. He also had 856 career NHL points.

1. Scott Gomez

Scott Gomez is possibly the greatest NHL player born in Alaska and had one interesting NHL career. Drafted 27th overall by the Devils in 1998, he played for the Rangers, Devils, Canadiens, Sharks, Panthers, Blues and Senators.

He also played a few games in the AHL with the Hershey Bears. Most notably, during lockouts, Gomez would play for the now defunct Alaska Aces in Anchorage, his hometown.

Gomez won two Stanley Cups in his NHL career, both with the Devils. In 1,079 career NHL games, Gomez scored 181 goals and 575 assists for 756 points.

How would you rank these great Latino players? Rank below to be added in the Power Rankings.

Related Links:

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• Top 10 NBA Latino Players 2022 Rankings
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