19 NHL Stars Who Lost Everything: Where Are They Now?

When one makes so much money, it is really their duty to foster good spending habits, for themselves and their loved ones. The 20 hockey players on this list did not manage their money correctly, in fact, they managed their money terribly. Maybe the player made a stupid business move, got arrested, had bad spending habits, or all three.

In its famous paradox, the equation of money and excrement, psychoanalysis becomes the first science to state what common sense and the poets have long known - that the essence of money is in its absolute worthlessness, Norman O. Brown.

So what does this quote mean exactly? It intends to say that money has no real feeling to invoke happiness in people. Money is used to buy vast and eccentric things, but it can plot the downfall of anyone.

Some of the men on this list will be obvious to be here, but others will be shocking to readers. Some of your favorite stars are broke, it is a fact. They have blown away their money on luxuries they can no longer afford or made poor investments. This article is not just how these guys went broke, but also a commentary of what these men are doing today.

19 Darren McCarty

While playing in the NHL, McCarty filed for bankruptcy. Can you imagine? A guy making millions of dollars and being poorer than the common individual? He was on the Calgary Flames at the time and said that the lockout was the reason for the filing. But really? Questionable to say the least. Apparently, he was fined over $6 million dollars during his career for penalties.

Today, he fights for the legalization of cannabis. He says that cannabis helped him overcome his alcoholism.

18 Ray Whitney

Ray Whitney made a horrible investment which was organized by Len Barrie. 18 NFL stars lost their wealth because of this stunt and the left-winger lost a striking $3 million from this whole ordeal. He was not the only person to lose money of course, but his investment was very significant compared to other investors.

Ray has three children. He lives in North Carolina and is often cited as a local hero in his small town. He continues to save money and work side jobs coaching hockey to youth.

17 Mike Vernon

Len Barrie—mentioned above—also lured Vernon into his investment. Vernon lost a whopping $9.6 million dollars. Of course, this is a major portion of the wealth he accrued playing in the NHL.

Today, Vernon lives in Calgary with his wife and four kids. One of his sons–Matthew—is a goalie for the Aberdeen Wings. He is involved in real estate sales and development and invests in Bear Mountain resort in British Columbia.

16 Doug Harvey

Harvey was a fierce drinker and struggled with alcoholism throughout his career. After retiring, his alcoholism continued and he struggled with mental health. Near the end of his life, he lived in a mobile home and was somewhat of a recluse.

Unfortunately, Mr. Harvey passed away due to his illness.

15 Kevin Stevens

Stevens was being stupid when he got arrested while with a prostitute, and on top of that had $500 worth of drugs. To top off this charade that he pulled, he was also married with children at the time of this. I feel very bad for his children and wife. They must've gone through a whole lot to cope with his mistakes. Perhaps Stevens looked after so many people, that he forgot to look after himself. He retired in 2002.

Kevin Stevens has failed to get his act together and was charged with the intent of selling oxycodone.

14 Derek Sanderson

Sanderson spent all of his NHL earnings on drugs, sex, and many other stupid endeavors. He was homeless after retiring. Sanderson was forced to pay his attorney a lot of money for problems in which he inflicted. It should be noted that he made nearly $3 million in his career but lost basically all of it.

Ironically, he is now a financial adviser to athletes. I guess he learned from his mistakes, sobered up, and is now teaching people about his mistakes. He seems to be doing well in his old age and making a money pack. His situation isn't as bad as some others who literally blew everything they had, but for more money. Hockey players didn't make as much money when he played.

13 Chris Nilan

Chris Nilan was what hockey fans affectionately called an enforcer on the ice. He loved hitting people and stood up for his teammates. Unfortunately, he eventually got addicted to a certain drug and struggled with alcoholism. It should be noted he was charged with shoplifting in 2009. He lost a lot of earnings and self-respect that day.

Nowadays, Nilan has his own radio show in Montreal titled "Off The Cuff." He is very open about his past mistakes in NHL and admits to his blunders.

12 Mike Modano

Mike Modano made a couple of bad investments. Modano lost nearly $4 million when he took a leap of faith investing in an entertainment corporation. He lost everything for a short amount of time but worked his way to where he is now.

Needless to say, Modano regretted his decision heavily. "Our cash flow as professional athletes doesn't last forever, and you need to just let it be and take care of itself."

Today Modano golfs, and he actually did own a restaurant and bar in Texas, but it closed in 2012. He is the Vice President of and Founder of The Mike Modano Foundation. He increases literacy and education and raises awareness for low-income areas. While it's unfortunate Modano had to go through this, at least it can serve as a cautionary tale to athletes looking to invest their money.

11 Michael Peca

Peca made a lot of money in the NHL, and just as simply, lost a big chunk of it. Peca made the poor decision to invest in a Mexican golf course. Their financial adviser Phil Kenner, who duped Peca into investing, is currently in jail. Kenner spent investment money on various things, including alcohol. Peca had dais he invested with Kenner because of the trust he had built with him.

Today, Michael Peca lives in New York, away from his home country of Canada. Peca has two children, and a wife named Kristin. Peca sometimes will do interviews with the ESPN about stuff that had gone on with his career, and memories involving it. Once again, Peca's tale is that of a warning sign to athletes on where to invest their money once they retire.

10 Theo Fleury

Fleury violated the NHL substance code of conduct many times. He did drugs and drank a lot of alcohol. He also was an avid gambler, which lost him a lot of money. Fleury struggled with countless financial issues in NHL and lost a lot of money he earned. Fleury's troubles stemmed from his youth hockey days when he was sexually abused by his coach, Graham James.

Eventually, Theo published a book "Playing with Fire", noting his mistakes, and crazy adventures in NHL. He even says he almost killed himself at one point but realized that would be the dumbest move of all.

9 Slava Voynov

Slava was arrested for domestic violence, and he always has been pretty violent. Apparently, he choked his wife and was very physical towards her. Voynov was making good money but threw it all away, when he decided to hurt his loved one.

Today, Voynov is back on the ice, but it took him ways to get there. He pleaded not guilty to the charges regarding domestic violence, and only went to 90 days of jail. He was detained by the U.S. Immigration Department and then released.

8 Bryan Berard

Berard was another victim of Phil Kenner and his trickery. Berard lost over $6 million in investment money and helped the FBI get Kenner. Kenner and his business partner, Tommy Constantine, were acting highly fraudulent.

Berard eventually got a lot of money back from the government. Berard recounts his eye injury which took his career in another direction, and ultimately ended it. Berard ended up making a lot of money back, and then some. Insurance paid him a nifty $18 million. Fortunately, it worked out for Berard, but it's yet another cautionary tale that you have to be careful who you do business with.

7 Bobby Orr

Bobby Orr is one of the legends of the game of hockey. Orr's fraudulent sports agent (Alan Eagleson), aided him to be nearly bankrupt. He was highly in debt and owed thousands to the government.

Today, he is a sports agent and represents players. Orr works for good service to his players, so what transpired with him, doesn't occur with his players. One major client of his, in particular, is the budding superstar Connor McDavid. McDavid is on the path to a very long, historic NHL career.

6 Sergei Fedorov

The common theme in this article is players making poor investments. That was the case with the former Red Wing. Fedorov was embezzled for nearly $60 million. Fedorov was forced to become a KHL player and try to make some buck back. Fedorov had to sell many houses, and some had to be foreclosed.

Today, Fedorov is the GM for the CSKA Moskow KHL team. He lives in Moscow and ended up winning a big lawsuit. While he won the lawsuit over Joseph Zada, he has been unable to collect on the judgment. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame late last year.

5 Bryan Trottier

Bryan Trottier led the New York Islanders to four straight Stanley Cups in the early 80s. He was perhaps the greatest player in franchise history, but he hit a rough patch after retirement. Trottier opened an ice-rink business but filed for bankruptcy in 1994. Trottier was not only filing for bankruptcy but also was feeling suicidal.

Trottier has since made his living mostly as a coach in the NHL. He won a Stanley Cup as an assistant with Colorado in 2001 and soon took a job as head coach of the New York Rangers, which was blasphemous to fans from Long Island. He is now an assistant coach for the Buffalo Sabres.

4 Patrick Cote

In 2012, Patrick Cote decided to rob two separate Montreal banks. After being released, he robbed another separate bank and served some additional time. Many fans remember what he did in 2002. In 2002, Cote was arrested with having 30 pounds of cannabis in his car!

Today, Cote remains on parole for his crimes. He was released from prison about a year ago.

3 Steve Durbano

Durbano retired from the NHL in 1978. He was arrested in 1981 with 474 grams of cocaine! At the time, this was worth $70,000. Durbano was sentenced to seven years in prison. After being released, he got canned for shoplifting. He also tried to recruit an undercover police officer for an unknown illegal scheme.

In 2002, he died of liver cancer. He was 50 years old.

2 Jack Johnson

The NHL All-Star filed for bankruptcy because his parents were bad with his money. Or maybe he shouldn't have given them the money, to begin with. Even though he earned nearly $10 million, he was left with $50,000 of assets. He made a mistake that couldn't have been prevented, because who wouldn't trust mom and dad. Johnson's parents made bad business decisions and spent money on things that were not necessary.

Jack Johnson is at the grindstone still playing hockey. He's working to make money back and changed his money managers. Johnson sued a bank for $1.5 million and won. He said he is not interested in taking legal action against his parents, because he loves them. He knows they made many mistakes and will work it out with them, and they will do so as a family.

1 Dany Heatley

Dany Heatley's career was once so full of promise, but his personal troubles always seemed to overshadow his on-ice performance.  While Heatley enjoyed several great seasons, it always felt that he was never quite able to reach his full potential.

There was the car accident that resulted in teammate Dan Snyder passing away and that wasn't the only one of Heatley's troubles. In 2012, Heatley's financial adviser made $4 million in unauthorized withdrawals from Heatley's account. Heatley sued Stacey McAlpine for $11 million and McAlpine has been sued by other clients as well.

Hockey fans are left to wonder how Heatley's career would have gone had he been able to avoid so many personal troubles in his daily life.

ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErZ%2Bippeoe6S7zGiloaRdqMGivtJmrqGnXaG8tMCMnq2eqqmptaq6xmauoZ2imnqivsRmq6GdqWK7sMOO