According to some, Punch Broadbent was the original power forward, the first (NHL?) hockey player to combine skill and physicality in a dominant way.
If that’s true, then even without going through is stats he likely has a pretty good case for the Hockey Hall of Fame. But we’ll look at his career anyway.
Listen here:
Broadbent’s stats
Punch Broadbent’s Career
- NHL: 1918-29; 11 seasons, 7 quality
- Totals:
- 121G (9th All Time at his retirement),
- 51A (8th) for
- 172P (9th) in
- 303 Games (5th – Broadbent co-held the NHL career Games Played record multiple times during his career);
- 25.3 PS (23rd)
- Era: Of the 5 players to play at least 300 games between 1918 and 1929, Broadbent is
- 4th All Time in GPG,
- 5th in APG
- 4th in PPG
- 82-game average: 33G, 14A for 47P
- 3-year peak (1919-22): 24-game average of 21G, 8A for 29P
- Playoffs: 4G, 6A for 10P in 23 games
- Adjusted:
- Hockey-Reference:
- 188G, 273A for 461P
- Adjusted 82-game average: 51G, 74A for 125P
- Broadbent doesn’t meet the requirements for the per game boards but if the requirement is set to 300 games, Broadbent is 17th All Time in Adjusted PPG
- VsX: Broadbent doesn’t qualify
- Trades:
- Traded three times, twice for cash and once with cash for Hooley Smith
- Transferred multiple times in the same season because he refused to play for Hamilton and Montreal.
- NHA:
- 1912-15; 3 seasons, all quality
- Totals:
- 50G (19th All Time, at best),
- 10A (possibly 20th All Time) for
- 60P (19th All Time at best) in
- 57 games (as high as 18th All Time, but not likely)
- If the qualifier is set to 40 games (2 seasons), Broadbent is probably 14th All Time in GPG and PPG
- 20-game average: 18G, 4A for 21P
- Playoffs: 3G for 3P in 5 games
- Left the NHA for WWI.
Punch Broadbent’s Accomplishments
- Back Check MVP (’22)
- Back Check Best Player (‘220
- Best Player (by PS) and Best Offensive Player (by OPS) once (’22)
- Goals:
- Scored 30 goals once (1 of only 2 players to do so at his retirement)
- Led the league in Goals once, Top 10 three times
- Led the league in GPG once, Top 10 three times
- Assists:
- Top 5 in Assists once
- Top 5 in APG once
- Points:
- Led the league in Points once, Top 10 twice
- Led the league in PPG once, Top 10 twice.
- NHA:
- Goals:
- Top 10 in Goals twice [barely half the league leader]
- Probably Top 10 in GPG twice [barely half the league leader]
- Assists:
- Top 10 in Assists once
- Hard to know if he was Top 10 in APG even once
- Points:
- Top 10 in Points twice [barely half the league leader]
- Top 10 in PPG twice [barely half the league leader]
- Goals:
Punch Broadbent’s Great Teams
- NHL:
- Top 3 Forward (by points) on one NHL Stanley Cup Champion (’21 Senators),
- Top 3 Forward? (scored 0 points in the NHL playoffs but over 1 PPG in the Stanley Cup finals, against a non-NHL team) on one NHL Stanley Cup Champion (’23 Senators),
- Top 3 Forward? (led NHL playoffs in points but managed just 1 point in Stanley Cup finals) on one NHL Stanley Cup Champion (’26 Maroons),
- Top 3 Forward (by points) on three NHL Runners Up (’19, ’22, ’24 Senators)