June 22, 2004
Our NHL Draft All-Bust Team

With expectations can come letdowns. These college players didn't quite live up to their first-round billing.

G: Jason Muzzatti, Michigan State/Calgary Flames (21st overall in 1988) – In Muzzatti's defense, '88 wasn't a great year for goalies. Only three netminders picked that year have played in more than 100 NHL games – Stephane Fiset, Wade Flaherty and Dominic Roussel.

D: Jason Herter, North Dakota/Vancouver Canucks (8th overall in 1989) – NHL career amounted to one game with the Islanders in 1995. Detroit chose future Hall-of-Famer Niklas Lidstrom 45 spots later.

D: Michael Stewart, Michigan State/New York Rangers (13th overall in 1990) – The '90 draft was a strong one for collegians (Smolinski, Tkachuk, Weight and Conroy, to name a few) but Stewart, the first NCAA player taken that year, never made it to the NHL.

F: Jason Botterill, Michigan/Dallas Stars (20th overall in 1994) – His 14 career NHL points are 83 fewer than former Wolverine teammate Bill Muckalt, who was selected 201 picks later in the same draft.

F: Barrett Heisten, Maine/Buffalo Sabres (20th overall in 1999) – Speaking of unheralded teammates stealing the higher picked star's thunder, Heisten has no points in 10 NHL games, while rabble-rouser Niko Dimitrakos (24 points this season) was taken by San Jose at 155.