Scott Gomez Shares A Story That Proves What We Already Knew: Ken Daneyko Is A Lunatic

The Player's Tribune

Scott Gomez: So I’m in the showers, shampooing or whatever, when all of a sudden I hear this deep, booming voice.

“No. Fucking. Way.”

Finally, I peak my head out the shower and see Dano standing in front of a mirror, making his pecs bounce like Hulk Hogan.

And I say, “Hey King, is everything okay?”

He turns to me. He doesn’t laugh or smile.

“No, it’s not okay,” he says. “There’s no fucking way a 36-year-old man should be looking this good!”


Ken Daneyko: I was getting up there in age at the time, but I was still pretty strong. So I was flexing in the mirror, grunting. Maybe I was screaming. Kind of like a WWF wrestler would, you know?

“Oh my god! You gotta be kidding me. There’s no way!”

I remember (Gomez) poking his head out around the corner all sheepishly.

“Hey King, is everything okay?”

And I was still all pumped up from lifting. So I said something like, “No! Hell no! There’s no way a 36-year-old should be this jacked!”



I have to admit, when I first started reading this I thought Gomez was giving an exaggerated version of the tale. Giving the story a little more juice if you will. I thought Daneyko's account would maybe bring it back down to earth a little bit. In retrospect, I am an idiot. Why would I ever question the lunacy of Ken Daneyko? Of course he was going all meathead in the mirror after a gym session. I bet in the next chapter he follows up his wrestling promo by shotgunning a beer and smashing the can on his skull. That's just the type of thing a person that is completely void of any offensive talent has to do to get the nickname "King". Think about that. Ken Daneyko, as probably the least purely talented player on the roster was the 'King' of the locker room. You could probably start an entire website dedicated to the unspeakable things that Dano did over the course of his career to earn that title.

Got to respect Kenny going all in once he got caught too. Getting busted eyeing yourself up is one of the most embarrassing things that can happen to a person. Never mind talking to yourself while you do it. Might as well turn it from an awkward confrontation to an all time story by dropping a punchline that lacks any humility whatsoever. Might as well get a laugh out of a situation that has one completely naked dude questioning another half naked dude's sanity. More so than having a high level of dedication to the sport you've got to be tough as nails and be a little bit of a loose cannon to last 20 years as a physical presence in the NHL. Ken Daneyko may have a loose screw or two, but maybe that's what you need to last two decades in the game and retire a champion.