These former NY Islanders are money when playing the puzzle game 'Puckdoku'

For thousands of hockey fans, their summer mornings start not with a cup of coffee or a workout but with playing 'Puckdoku.' Are you one of them? For those that don't know, Puckdoku is a puzzle game that is challenging and addictive in a way that is similar to Wordle, but instead of your vocabulary being tested, it's your hockey knowledge.

Each game has three rows and three columns. On one side is either a team name/logo, and the other side will have a statistical milestone, such as 50 goals scored in a season or Calder Trophy winner. For example, if the Edmonton Oilers were on the top and the Islanders were on the side, Ryan Strome or Jordan Eberle would be the correct answers. Bryan Berard could be used for an Islander that has won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year.

To complete it successfully, you have nine 'shots' or guesses. The player must have played at least one regular season NHL game for the team to be counted. If you get one wrong, you miss your shot at completing the puzzle in full. On top of finishing with nine correct answers, more advanced players shoot for a low rarity score by selecting players that are less popular amongst game players.

Going back to that Oilers-Islanders example, instead of picking Eberle or Strome, a player may choose Brandon Davidson, a 2010 Edmonton sixth-round pick that was traded for a 3rd round pick to the Islanders in 2018 and played 15 games on Long Island. In fact, Davidson is a good name to remember, as he played for seven franchises (Edmonton, Montreal, the Islanders, Chicago, Calgary, San Jose, and Buffalo) in only 180 career NHL games.

These former NY Islanders are money when playing the puzzle game 'Puckdoku'

Whether you've been playing the game for a few weeks or will start doing so today, we thought it would be helpful to arm you with some former Islanders that are absolutely money when playing Puckdocku. Nine NHL players in history have played with at least ten teams, and six of them spent time on Long Island! Here they are to help you start your morning off right.

Mike Sillinger - 12 NHL teams (Detroit, Anaheim, Vancouver, Philadelphia, Tampa Bay, Florida, Ottawa, Columbus, Phoenix, St. Louis, Nashville and the Islanders)

The MVP of Puckdoku is Mike Sillinger

Sillinger played for 12 teams and was traded nine times during his NHL career, both league records. He already had the record for most teams when he signed as a free agent with the Islanders in 2006, scored 42 goals in 141 games over three seasons, and played in his 1,000th NHL game with the team. Selected 11th overall by the Detroit Red Wings in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, Sillinger made his debut as a 19-year-old during the 1990-91 season.

He was first traded on April 4, 1995 to Anaheim with Jason York for a 6th round draft pick in 1996, Mark Ferner and Stu Grimson. In March 1996, he was traded to the Vancouver Canucks and played 138 games over three seasons. In February 1998, he was dealt to the Philadelphia Flyers and then was dealt from Philly to the Tampa Bay Lighting in December of the following season.

Sillinger would be traded six more times before his career ended. The Lightning traded him to the Panthers for Dwayne Hay and Ryan Johnson in March 2000, and then Florida dealt him to the Ottawa Senators a year later. He signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets ahead of the 2001-02 season but was moved to the Dallas Stars two years later for Darryl Sydor. The Stars flipped him to the Phoenix Coyotes on the same day for Teppo Numminen.

In March 2004, Sillinger was traded to St. Louis for goaltender Brent Johnson and played 64 games for the Blues over two seasons. He was traded for the final time of his career when St. Louis dealt him to the Nashville Predators on Jan. 30, 2006 for Timofei Shishkanov.

Jim Dowd - 10 teams (New Jersey, Vancouver, Islanders, Calgary, Edmonton, Minnesota, Montreal, Chicago, Colorado, Philadelphia)

Born in Brick, New Jersey, Jim Dowd was the second high school hockey player from the Garden State to make it to the NHL and won a Stanley Cup with his hometown New Jersey Devils in 1995, appearing in 11 post-season games after playing just ten in the regular season.

Eleven teams have owned Dowd's rights, but he played for ten during a nine-year NHL career. Early into the 1995-96 season, Dowd was traded by GM Lou Lamoriello to the Hartford Whalers, who then moved him to the Vancouver Canucks on the same day. He played only one game with Vancouver before he was placed on waivers and claimed by the Islanders on Sep. 30, 1996.

Dowd appeared in only three games with the Islanders and signed as a free agent with the Calgary Flames in 1997. The Flames moved him to the Nashville Predators in 1998 for "unknown considerations" before being sent to the Edmonton Oilers months later. The Wild drafted Dowd in the 2000 Expansion Draft, and he stuck in Minnesota for four seasons until he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in March 2004. He signed with the Chicago Blackhawks before the 2005-06 season and was moved to the Colorado Avalanche in March of that year. He signed a one-year contract as a free agent to return to New Jersey in November and finished his career the following season with the Philadelphia Flyers.

Olli Jokinen - 10 Teams (Los Angeles, Islanders, Florida, Phoenix, Calgary, Rangers, Winnipeg, Nashville, Toronto, St. Louis)

1,231 games, 321 goals and 10 NHL teams for Olli Jokinen in a very good NHL career that included being named an NHL All-Star in 2003. For Islanders fans, he's remembered as being part of two landmark trades for the franchise. Jokinen was drafted third overall by the Los Angeles Kings in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft and scored nine goals in 74 games as his career was getting started.

On Jun. 20, 1999, he was drafted along with a 1999 1st round pick, Matthieu Biron, and Josh Green for star winger Zigmund Palffy and Bryan Smolinski. After posting 11 goals and ten assists in 82 games for a bad Islanders team, he was traded at the 2000 NHL Draft to the Florida Panthers along with future Hall-of-Famer Roberto Luongo for Oleg Kvasha and Mark Parrish.

Jokinen's career took off in Florida, where he served as captain from from 2003 to 2008, scoring 36 goals during the 2002-03 season. However, the playoffs eluded him throughout his career in South Florida. On Jun. 20, 2008, he was traded to the Phoenix Coyotes for Keith Ballard and Nick Boyton. He played 57 games with Phoenix during the 2008-09 season and then was traded to the Calgary Flames for 1st round draft pick in 20100, Matthew Lombardi and Bradon Prust. It was with the Flames where Jokinen would end his NHL-record drought of 799 regular seasons before making his first and only playoff appearance with Calgary in 2009.

The Flames traded him to the New York Rangers in 2010 before he went back to the Flames as a free agent. He later signed with the Winnipeg Jets, who traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Feb. 15, 2015, and was flipped to the Nashville Predators just two weeks later, the 10th and final team he played for during his 17-year NHL career.

Mathieu Schneider - 10 Teams (Montreal, Islanders, Toronto, Rangers, Kings, Detroit, Anaheim, Atlanta, Vancouver, Phoenix)

Speaking of regrettable trades, defenseman Mathieu Schneider had spent eight seasons in Montreal and won a Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993 when he was traded along with Kirk Mueller to the Islanders for Pierre Turgeon and Vladimir Malakhov in April 1995. The trade to Long Island was the first move in what would be many in the back half of Schneider's 21-year NHL career.

After representing the Islanders in the 1996 All-Star Game, Schneider and Wendel Clark were traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs in a deal that landed the Islanders the fourth overall pick in the 1997 NHL Draft (Roberto Luongo) and defenseman Kenny Jonsson. The Leafs traded him in 1998 to the New York Rangers, where he played 155 games for the Blueshirts before being selected by the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2000 Expansion Draft. He signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Kings in 2000 and was moved to the Detroit Red Wings for a 1st round pick, 2nd round pick, and two players ahead of the 2003 deadline.

From there, he signed as a free agent with Anaheim and was traded to the Atlanta Thrashers, who dealt him back to Montreal in 2009. Schneider signed as a free agent with the Vancouver Canucks before the 2009-10 season and was dealt for the final time to the Phoenix Coyotes, where he finished his career at the age of 40.

Derick Brassard - 10 Teams (Columbus, Ottawa, Rangers, Penguins, Florida, Avalanche, Islanders, Arizona, Philadelphia, Edmonton)

Derick Brassard played 62 games for the Ottawa Senators last season and is currently an unrestricted free agent, meaning his list of teams still has a chance to expand. The 35-year-old Brassard was selected sixth overall by Columbus in the 2006 NHL Entry Draft and spent six seasons with the Blue Jackets when he was traded to the New York Rangers in 2013. Brassard was a strong playoff performer for the Rangers and scored a career-high 27 goals during the 2015-16 season.

After that career-best season, the Rangers dealt him to the Senators for center Mika Zibanejad. The Sens moved Brassard with 3rd round draft pick in 2018 and Vincent Dunn to the Pittsburgh Penguins for 1st round draft pick in 2018 , 3rd round draft pick in 2019 , Ian Cole and Filip Gustavsson. The following year, he was traded to the Florida Panthers in deal that sent Nick Bjugstad and Jared McCann back to Pittsburgh. Florida sent Brassard to the Colorado Avalanche for a 3rd round draft pick in 2020 .

Brassard signed as a free-agent with the Islanders in 2019 and was part of the team that advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals in the Toronto/Edmonton bubbles in the summer of 2020. From there, he signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Coyotoes for 2021 and the Philadelphia Flyers the next season. The Flyers traded him at the deadline to the Edmonton Oilers for a 4th round pick.