Frank Foyston was a star in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) but never really reached the same level in the NHA, WCHL or NHL, all of which he played in for at least 39 games.
Do players like Foyston, who only excelled in one of the early pro leagues, truly belong in the Hall of Fame?
Listen to us talk about Frank Foyston here:
Frank Foyston’s Career:
- NHL:
- 1926-28; 2 seasons, none quality (by modern PPG standards)
- Totals:
- 17G,
- 7A for
- 24P in
- 64 games
- Era: Of the 6 players 35 years of age and older to play in at least 50 games between 1926 and 1928, Foyston is
- 2nd in Goals and Points
- 1st in GPG, APG, PPG and Offensive Point Shares
- 4th in Assists
- 5th (2nd last) in Point Shares
- No NHL Playoff games
- Adjusted: 31G, 44A for 75 points
- Bought into the NHL when the WHL folded, sent to the minors to end his major pro career.
- NHA:
- 1912-1915; 3 seasons +1 game, 2 quality
- Totals:
- 37G,
- 11A (as good as 19th All Time) for
- 48P in
- 56 games (as high as 20th All Time but unlikely)
- If the qualifier is set to 40 games (2 seasons), Foyston is as high as
- 22nd All Time in GPG,
- 12th in APG and
- 23rd All Time in PPG
- 20-game average: 13G, 4A for 17P
- Playoffs: 1G for 1P in 2 games
- PCHA:
- 1915-24; 9 seasons, all quality
- Totals:
- 174G (2nd All Time),
- 53A (9th) for
- 227P (5th) in
- 202 games (4th)
- Per Game: If the qualifier is set to 82 games, Foyston is
- 5th All Time in GPG, 13th in APG and 7th in PPG
- 30-game average: 26G, 8A, 34P
- Didn’t calculate a 3-year peak because it’s too complicated
- Playoffs: 8G, 1A for 9P in 12 games
- Skipped out of his NHA contract to play in the PCHA
- WCHL:
- 1924-1926, 2 seasons, neither quality (retired part way through the second)
- Totals:
- 12G,
- 8A for
- 20P in
- 39 games
- 30-game average: 9G, 6A for 15P
- Playoffs: 3G, 1A for 4P in 7 games.
Frank Foyston’s Accomplishments:
- No NHL accomplishments
- No NHA accomplishments
- PCHA:
- Goals:
- Leader-boards:
- Led the PCHA in Goals twice,
- Top 5 seven times,
- Top 10 probably eight times (all but 1 season he was in the league)
- Leader-boards:
- GPG leader-boards:
- Led the PCHA in GPG twice,
- Top 5 six times,
- Top 10 probably eight times
- Assists:
- Leader-boards:
- Top 5 in Assists at most twice,
- Top 10 as many as eight times but possibly fewer
- APG leader-boards:
- Top 5 in APG as many as two times,
- Top 10 maybe 5 times, it’s hard to tell
- Leader-boards:
- Points:
- Leader-boards:
- Top 5 in Points seven times,
- Top 10 eight times (all but one season he was in the league)
- APG leader-boards:
- Top 5 in PPG seven times,
- Top 10 at least eight times
- Leader-boards:
- Goals:
- No WCHL accomplishments.
Frank Foyston’s Great Teams:
- PCHA:
- Best Player? (by points) on one PCHA Stanley Cup Champion (’17 Metropolitans) and one PCHA Stanley Cup finalist (’19 Metropolitans – series cancelled due to Spanish Flu),
- NHA:
- Centre (at a time when there was only one centre on a hockey team) on one NHA Stanley Cup Champion (’14 Blueshirts),
- WCHL:
- Role Player (by points) on one WCHL Stanley Cup Champion (’25 Cougars) and one Runner Up (’26 Cougars).