Hot Gallery: Stars of the NHL Before They Were Famous

This photo taken in 1978 during his Junior Year at Mira Mesa High School in San Diego, CA shows a youthful portrait of a man known for being old. Having retired in 2010 at age 48 (how do you like that, slackers) Chris Chelios is the second oldest man to lace up his skates in an NHL game. How old was he? He was old enough to be Atlanta Thrasher teammate Ilya Kovalchuk's father. I mean, if Chelios were from Russia and named Kovalchuk…well, you get the idea.

This Ducks and now Flyers star Chris Pronger is a member of hockey's Triple Gold Club, having won an Olympic Gold Medal, a World Championship and a Stanley Cup. However if mixing suspensions and stints on the injured list were an honor he'd be a member of that club too. He missed the rest of the 2011-2012 season due to a concussion. Here he is shown during his Sophomore year of 1988 at Dryden High School in Dryden, Ontario where it looks like he's gotten a head start on losing teeth. Check out this hot gallery of Pro Ballers, Before They Were Stars!

Scott Gomez, current player for the Florida Panthers is one of only four players (as of 2011) of Latino heritage to ever play in the NHL. Seen here in a picture from his Senior year at East Anchorage High School in Alaska, little would he know that he would one day have not one but two Stanley Cup championships but zero hair. Here's a Before They Were Stars gallery of NFL players, try and guess who!

Sidney Crosby is so good that the year he was drafted the process was referred to in the press as The Sidney Crosby Lottery. This superstar from the Pittsburgh Penguins is already thought of by some as one of the games all time greats, but injuries slowed him down. In 2012, Crosby signed a contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins that will keep him there until the 2024-25 season unless he's traded.  Here he is in his Sophomore year at Shattuck-St. Mary's School in Fairbault, Minnesota. Along with the NBA's LeBron James (St. Vincent St. Mary's of Ohio) showing that to be a young sports legend, your high school must apparently have the words St. Mary's in the name.

Sure The Hockey News called the late Tim Horton the 43^rd greatest NHL player of all time, but let's face it, this great player for the Leafs, Rangers, Penguins and Sabres is known for his legendary chain of Tim Horton's donut shops, the sponsor of this year's All Star Game. An NHL record holder, Stanley Cup Champion and someone who was parodied in the film Wayne's World (Stan Mikita's donuts) Tim Horton lived a good life. Here he is seen in 1948 during his senior year at Toronto's St. Michael's College. You can tell by that look on his face he's thinking…"Mmm. Donuts!"

Okay, this is Wayne Gretzky. If you don't know who this is, all other hockey pictures are probably a blur to you. He is simply The Great One, the greatest hockey player of all time. If we did a gallery of NHL Record Holders, there would just be one picture in it…his.  Here he is shown during his Junior Year at St. James Dunne Collegiate and Vocational School in Sault St. Marie, Ontario Canada,  from the look he's sporting he probably could've opened for Peter Frampton back then too if he wanted to.