The best players ever drafted after the 100th pick

	After being drafted 117th overall by Calgary in '84, Brett Hull was dealt to St. Louis during his rookie season and became a star. Getty Images

Just as success is not guaranteed among top draft picks, a player chosen much later on draft day should not be written off so quickly. The likes of Dave Taylor, Steve Larmer and Brett Hull did not create much, if any, buzz among scouts, general managers and pundits during their draft years. Yet with all the goals and points they went on to score, it is safe to say that their careers turned out quite well.

Many others players who were forced to wait a long time for a phone call from an NHL team went on to distinguish themselves in the league. Below are the top 10 players who were selected no earlier than the 100th pick. The list does not include young players such as Detroit's Pavel Datsyuk (171st, 1998) and Henrik Zetterberg (210th, 1999), who appear to be on their way to becoming draft gems. Also not listed are players from Soviet-bloc countries (Dominik Hasek, etc.) whom NHL clubs took a flier on during the 1980s in the hope that they would someday defect or be permitted to leave their homeland.

1. Brett Hull, LW, Calgary
Selected: 117th, 1984
GM: Cliff Fletcher

A pudgy 220-pounder as a teen, the Golden Brett was drafted out of Tier II Penticton and put in a pair of seasons at Minnesota-Duluth before turning pro. He called it quits early last season and left his mark with 741 goals, good for third all-time. During the 1990-91 season with St. Louis, Hull became the fifth player to record 50 goals in 50 games, and he would complete that season with a stunning 86 in 78 contests. It was the second of five consecutive years in which he posted more than 50 goals.

2. Doug Gilmour, C, St. Louis
Selected: 134th, 1982
GM: Emile Francis

Size mattered to the scouting departments that failed to look beyond the roughly 150 pounds on the frame of this Cornwall center. Gilmour rose from a solid 20-goal checking pivot during his first three seasons in the Gateway City to a playmaker who topped 80 points on eight occasions. Gilmour, who scored 450 goals and 1,414 points, registered a career-best 127 points in 1992-93.

3. Luc Robitaille, LW, Los Angeles
Selected: 171st, 1984
GM: Rogie Vachon

Long after Mario Lemieux was taken No. 1, fellow Quebec junior Robitaille was selected. He hung up his skates at the conclusion of last season and took into retirement a résumé that boasts 668 goals, the 10th-highest total in NHL history. Lucky Luc topped 100 points four times in his first seven seasons en route to 1,394 for his career. He scored at least 44 goals in each of his first eight years, topped by a high of 63 in 1992-93.

4. Steve Larmer, RW, Chicago
Selected: 120th, 1980
GM: Bob Pulford

Despite an exceptional career at Peterborough, Larmer had to wait until the sixth round for his selection -- 117 picks after the 'Hawks tabbed Denis Savard. He didn't wait long to make his mark in the NHL, however, as he netted 43 goals during his rookie season of 1982-83 and won the Calder Trophy. Larmer posted four more 40-goal seasons in a career that boasted 441 goals and 1,012 points.

5. Andy Moog, G, Edmonton
Selected: 132nd, 1980
GM: Glen Sather

The former Billings Bighorn (WHL) debuted with Edmonton in 1980-81 and would team with Grant Fuhr in goal for the next several years while winning three Stanley Cups. Wanting to be a No. 1, Moog moved on to Boston, where he helped lead the Bruins to the Cup finals in 1990 and won a career-high 37 games in 1992-93. Moog, who appeared in four All-Star matches, ranks 12th all-time with 372 wins, plus another 68 in the playoffs.