Counting the Stars - Number 37

Every day this summer (well almost every day anyway...) Defending Big D will count down the greatest players in franchise history (both Dallas and Minnesota), based on the sweater number they wore. Keep coming back for a look at who's the best in Stars history. For a recap on the list so far, click here.

Personally for 37 I was leaning towards one Dave Archibald who only played slightly over two seasons with the Minnesota North Stars between 1987 to 1989.  He had 28 goals and 44 assists in his 162 games with the North Stars.  Pretty solid numbers for a guy who saw mostly third line time at right wing.  He was traded to the Rangers early in the 89-90 season and from there had a very sub-par NHL career.

Still I felt his first two NHL seasons were enough to get him on the list, but I have been overruled with what I suspect is many Stars fans personal pick that we'll reveal after the jump...

#37 - Brad Lukowich

The reliable defenseman spent five seasons with the Dallas Stars making his debut in the 1997-98 season. He was used in his first two seasons mostly with the Stars farm affiliate in Kalamazoo.  While Lukowich did play with the Stars during the 1998-99 championship season, he failed to play in enough regular season games or any of the finals games to qualify getting his name on the Cup.

The following season he became a full time NHLer and his steady play on the blue line helped the Stars get back to the Cup final in 2000.

While his play was often underapriciated, Lukowich's value to the Stars at the time was perhaps expressed in one of the stragest ways in the summer of 2000.  Days before the 2000 expansion draft for the Blue Jackets and Wild, in order to protect Brad from being drafted, the Stars traded Lukowich to the Wild with goalie Manny Fernandez (who himself was sure to be picked by one of the two teams) for the Wild's 3rd and 4th round picks in the 2000 entry draft. The day following the expansion draft the Wild traded Lukowich back to the Stars with a pair of draft picks back in exchange for Aaron Gavey, Pavel Patera and that same 4th round pick the Stars had just got from the Wild.

Lukowich then played 2 more seasons with the Stars before being traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the summer of 2002.

Brad finished with 9 goals, 20 assists and a +14 rating in 224 games played with the Stars from 1997 to 2002.  It's his trademark play of very reliable Stars-like defense is what earns him this spot as the greatest Star to wear number 37.