Does Bernie Nicholls Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Bernie Nicholls had one of the greatest individual seasons in the NHL by someone not named Gretzky. But looking at his career playing without Gretzky (or Dionne), his career is a lot less impressive. Does this point per game player belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Listen to us talk about Bernie Nicholls here:

Bernie Nicholls’ Career:

• NHL: 1981-99; 18 seasons, 15 quality
• Totals:
  • 475G,
  • 734A for
  • 1209P,
  • -39 in
  • 1127 games;
  • 96.8 PS
• Draft: In his draft year (1980), Nicholls, drafted 73rd overall, is
  • 2nd in Goals
  • 5th in Assists and Points
  • 7th in Games Played
• Era: Of the 51 players to play in at least 1,000 games between 1981 and 1999, Nicholls is
  • 12th in Goals and GPG
  • 14th in Assists
  • 11th in APG and Points
  • 9th in PPG
  • 44th in Plus/Minus
  • 13th in Offensive Point Shares
  • 20th in Point Shares
• 82-game average: 34G, 53A for 88P, -3
• 3-year peak (1987-90): 82-game average of 51G, 72A for 124P, +8
• No possession stats
• Playoffs:
  • 42G,
  • 72A for
  • 114P,
  • -13 in
  • 118 games
  • Era : Of the 178 skaters to play in at least 82 playoff games between 1981 and 1999, Nicholls is
    • 28th in playoff Goals
    • 28th in playoff GPG
    • 20th in playoff Assists
    • 18th in playoff APG
    • 25th in playoff Points
    • 17th in playoff PPG
    • 157th in playoff/Plus/Minus
• Adjusted:
  • Hockey-Reference:
    • 417G,
    • 651A for
    • 1068P
    • Adjusted 82-game average: 30G, 47A for 78P (-10P per 82 games)
  • VsX:
    • 426G
    • 705A
    • 994P
• Trades:
  • Traded at 28 to the Rangers for Tomas Sandstrom (25) and Tony Granato (25)
  • Traded at 30 with Steve Rice (20), Louie DeBrusk (20) and David Shaw (27) to the Oilers for Mark Messier (30) and Jeff Beukeboom (26)
  • Traded at 31 to the Devils for Zdeno Ciger (23) and Kevin Todd (24)

Bernie Nicholls Accomplishments:

• Top Player:
  • Top 5 Player (by PS) once (‘89)
  • Top 5 Offensive Player (by OPS) once (‘89),
  • Top 10 twice (‘90)
• Goals:
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in Goals once,
    • Top 10 twice
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in GPG once
  • Single-season totals:
    • 70 goals once (1 of 8 players ever),
    • 45 goals twice,
    • 30 goals three times,
    • 35 goals five times,
    • 30 goals seven times,
    • 25 goals nine times,
    • 20 goals eleven times
• Assists:
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in Assists once,
    • Top 10 twice
  • APG leader-boards:
    • Top 10 in APG twice
  • Single-season totals:
    • 80 assists once,
    • 70 assists twice,
    • 60 assists three times,
    • 50 assists five times,
    • 40 assists ten times
• Points:
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in Points once,
    • Top 10 twice
  • PPG leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in PPG once,
    • Top 10 twice
  • Sngle-season totals:
    • 150 points once (1 of only 5 players ever, Gretzky, Lemieux, Espo, Yzerman),
    • 110 points twice,
    • 100 points three times,
    • 90 points five times,
    • 80 points six times,
    • 70 points eight times,
    • 60 points ten times,
    • 50 points twelve times
• All Star:
  • 3 All Star Game appearances
• VsX Peak:
  • Best 7 Seasons:
    • Goals: 117th All Time
    • Assists: 109th All Time
    • Points: 101st All Time
  • Best 10 Seasons:
    • Goals: 120th All Time
    • Assists 94th All Time
    • Points: 100th All Time

Bernie Nicholls’ Great Teams:

• NHL:
  • Top 3 Forward (by points) on three Final Fours (‘92 Oilers, ‘94 Devils, ‘95 Blackhawks)
• World Championships:
  • Role Player (by points) on one World Championship Runner Up (‘85 Canada)