Steve Kariya was a standout forward for the University of Maine from 1995 to 1999. In his senior season, he was a two-year captain and helped lead the Black Bears to their second NCAA National Championship in 1999. His performance that season, which included 65 points on 27 goals and 38 assists in 41 games, earned him a First-Team All-American selection and a top-ten nomination for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award. He also received the Hockey East Len Ceglarski Sportsmanship Award for the third consecutive year. Kariya finished his college career with 187 career points in 150 games, which ranks tied for sixth on Maine’s all-time scoring list.

After his decorated college career, Kariya, who was undrafted, signed with the Vancouver Canucks. He played in 65 NHL games over three seasons with the Canucks, recording 9 goals and 18 assists for 27 points. While his NHL career was brief, he was a prolific scorer in the minor leagues and in Europe. Kariya was a two-time AHL All-Star and also had a successful career in the Finnish SM-liiga, where he won the Veli-Pekka Ketola trophy as the league’s top point-scorer in 2005. He played his final professional season in 2009-10 before retiring from the game.