Former Michigan Tech goaltender Pheonix Copley, left, of the Capitals stands tall while run into by the Winnipeg Jets’ Adam Lowry, center, in the second period of an NHL game on March 10, 2019, in Washington. (AP file photo)

While Northern Michigan University doesn’t have any players on these teams, five league schools each have two — Michigan Tech, Lake Superior State, Minnesota State-Mankato, Bemidji State and Bowling Green State. And four more have one player each — Ferris State, Alabama-Huntsville, Alaska-Anchorage and Alaska-Fairbanks.

This “baker’s baker’s” dozen include three who are Stanley Cup winners in the past two seasons — Fairbanks’ Coton Parayko with the St. Louis Blues in 2019 and MTU’s Pheonix Copley and Anchorage’s Jay Beagle with the Washington Capitals in 2018.

Five WCHA alumni are among the dozen NHL teams at the Eastern Conference “bubble” in Toronto — Copley is still with the Capitals while LSSU’s Kevin Czuczman is with the Pittsburgh Penguins. There’s also BGSU’s Mark Friedman and Mankato’s Tyler Pitlick with the Philadelphia Flyers and Mankato’s Teddy Blueger with the Penguins.

In the Western Conference, which has another dozen NHL teams playing in Edmonton, the nine WCHA alumni include Parayko with the Blues, Beagle with the Vancouver Canucks, Tech’s Jujhar Khaira with the Edmonton Oilers and LSSU’s Buddy Robinson with the Calgary Flames. The other five are Ferris’ Gerald Mayhew and Bemidji’s Brad Hunt with the Minnesota Wild, BGSU’s Ryan Carpenter with the Chicago Blackhawks, Bemidji’s Zach Whitecloud with the Vegas Golden Knights and Huntsville’s Cam Talbot with Calgary.

Former Lake Superior State player Kevin Czuczman of the Pittsburgh Penguins shoots during the first period of a preseason NHL game on Sept. 21 in Columbus, Ohio. (AP file photos)

Since the WCHA was founded in 1951, 56 players and coaches who were in the league have been members of Stanley Cup-winning teams.

That group is led by a pair from Denver University who each have their name on the Stanley Cup six times — Pioneers forward and NHL Hall of Famer Glenn Anderson and DU coach Ralph Backstrom. Anderson won six Cups with Edmonton in 1984, ’85, ’87, ’88 and ’90 and the New York Rangers in 1994, while Backstrom won a half-dozen times with the Montreal Canadiens in 1959, ’60, ’65, ’66, ’67 and ’69 before he coaches at Denver from 1981-90.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.