Of all the players to be featured on The Back Check so far, Jack Walker has, by far, the least impressive stats we’ve seen. So why the hell is in the Hall of Fame?
Listen here to hear if we can figure it out:
Jack Walker’s Career
- NHL:
- 1926-28; 2 seasons, neither quality by modern standards
- Totals:
- 5G,
- 8A for
- 13P in
- 84 games
- Era: Of the 10 players age 35 and older to play in 82 NHL games between 1926 and 1928,Walker is
- 8th in Goals and PPG
- 9th in GPG, Offensive Point Shares and Point shares
- 2nd in Assists
- 4th in APG
- 6th in Points
- 82-game average: Walker only played 84 games
- Playoffs: Walker never played in the NHL playoffs
- Adjusted:
- Hockey-Reference:
- 9G,
- 50A for
- 59P
- VsX: Obviously doesn’t qualify for the adjustment
- Hockey-Reference:
- Traded into the NHL.
- NHA:
- 1912-15; 3 seasons, 2 quality
- Totals:
- 32G,
- 23A (as high as 8th All Time) for
- 55P (as high as 22nd) in
- 40 games (as high as 24th)
- Per Game: If the qualifier is set to Walker’s 40 games played, Walker is as high as
- 1st All Time in APG and
- 9th in PPG
- 20-game average: 16G, 12A for 28P
- Playoffs: 3G for 3P in 2 games
- Skipped out on his contract for the MPHL and then for the PCHA
- PCHA:
- 1915-24; 9 seasons, 7 quality
- Totals:
- 82G (probably 12th All Time),
- 58A (probably 7th) for
- 140P (probably 8th) in
- 186 games (maybe 8th)
- Per Game: Walker might be as high as
- 15th All Time in GPG,
- 9th in APG and
- 12th in PPG
- 24-game average of: 5G, 10A for 15P
- Playoffs (since 1919): 1G, 4A for 5P in 10 games.
- WCHL:
- 1924-26; 2 seasons, both quality
- Totals:
- 16G,
- 15A (as high as 19th All Time, but unlikely) for
- 31P (as high as 25th All Time, but unlikely) in 5
- 8 games (as high as 20th, but unlikely)
- Per Game: It’s unlikely that Walker is as high as
- 25th All Time in PPG, 12th in APG and 23rd in PPG (it’s more likely our information is incomplete)
- 30-game average: 8G, 8A for 16P
- Playoffs: 4G for 4P in 8 games
- NOHL:
- 1907-12; 5 seasons, all quality
- 78G in 57 games
- It’s entirely possible Jack Walker was the best player in the history of this league but there’s no information about it online
- Playoffs: 5G in 4 games
- Maritime Professional Hockey League:
- 1912-13; 1 quality season
- 21G in 15 games
- MPHL did not have playoffs
- Not enough information online about this league.
Jack Walker’s Accomplishments
- NHL: Never on any NHL leaderboards
- NHA:
- Top 10 in Goals once probably
- Top 10 in GPG once probably
- Led the league in Assists once
- Led the league in APG once
- Top 5 in Points once
- Top 5 in PPG once
- PCHA:
- Top 10 in Goals up to four times
- Top 5 in GPG once, Top 10 up to four times
- Top 5 in Assists probably twice, Top 10 probably four times
- Top 5 in APG as many as three times, Top 10 probably four times
- Top 5 in Points once, Top 10 four times
- Top 5 in PPG once, Top 10 four times
- [Note: it’s worth noting that the size of league makes these Top 10 finishes less impressive and he often had ½ to ⅓ the PG stats of the league leader]
- WCHL: Never on any leaderboards
- NOHL and MPHL: no information
Jack Walker’s Great Teams:
- NHA:
- Top 6? Forward (by points) on one NHA Stanley Cup Champion (‘14 Blueshirts)
- PCHA:
- Top 6? Forward (by points) on one PCHA Stanley Cup Champion (‘17 Metropolitans)
- WCHL:
- Top 3? Forward (by points) on one WCHL Stanley Cup Champion (‘25 Cougars)
- NOHL:
- Top 3? Forward (by points) on one NOHL Stanley Cup Runner Up (‘11 Bearcats)