 Throughout his career , Sakic was one of the top scorers in the league , but in his early years , he was criticized for not leading his team to playoff success . While in Quebec , the Nordiques were one of the worst teams in the league , finishing last in their division five out of the seven years Sakic was with the team , including three straight years of being last overall in the league . After leading the Avalanche to the Stanley Cup in 1996 with his 34 playoff points , Sakic began to be seen as a leader capable of winning , and he was seen as one of the league 's premier players . 
