Does Brian Leetch Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Brian Leetch was one of the greatest offensive defensemen of his era, perhaps even of all time.

That’s what we discuss on his episode of our podcast – where Leetch ranks all time, with multiple long discussions of his role in the 1994 Rangers’ Cup run.

Listen here:

Leetch’s stats:

Brian Leetch’s Career:

• 1987-2006; 18 seasons, all quality
• Totals:
  • 247G (9th D All Time, 2nd American D),
  • 781A (7th D, 3rd American skater) for
  • 1028P (8th D, 2nd American D),
  • +25 in 1205 games (5th American D);
  • 146.6 PS (12th D All Time);
  • 27:03 ATOI (since 1998-99)
• Among all NHL D, Leetch is 13th All Time in GPG, and 7th All Time in APG and PPG
• Leetch is 2nd All Time among American NHLers in APG
• Leetch is 8th All Time in OPS among NHL D (6th at his retirement)
• Draft: 9th overall in 1986; in his draft class, Leetch is
  • 5th in Goals
  • 1st in Assists and Point Shares
  • 2nd in Points
  • 9th in Plus/Minus
  • 3rd in Games Played
• Era: Of the 25 D to play in at least 1,000 games between 1987 and 2006, Leetch is
  • 2nd in Goals
  • 5th in GPG
  • 2nd in Assists (by 1 assist)
  • 2nd in APG
  • 1st in Points
  • 3rd in PPG
  • 20th (6th last) in Plus/Minus
  • 2nd in Offensive Point Shares
  • 13th in Defensive Point Shares
  • 3rd in Point Shares
• 82-game average: 16G, 53A for 70P, +2; 10 PS
• 3-year peak (‘91-’94): 20G, 68A for 88P, +12; 12.6 PS
• Retired two years before possession stats were tracked
• Playoffs: 28G, 69A for 97P, +2 in 95 games; 28:29 ATOI (13 games)
• Adjusted:
  • Hockey-Reference:
    • 252G (11th D All Time), 787A (7th D) for 1039P
    • Adjusted 82-game average: 17G, 54A for 71P
    • Per Game:
      • 8th D All Time in Adjusted GPG
      • 5th D All Time in Adjusted APG
      • 5th D All Time in Adjusted PPG
  • VsX:
    • Doesn’t qualify for Goals, 821A, 956P
    • Haven’t figured out Defense PG leader-boards for D
• Trades:
  • Traded at 35 as an expiring contract for Jussi Markkanen (28) and a 4th round pick (re-signed with New York immediately)
  • Traded at 36 (on his birthday!) with the above mentioned 4th round pick for Maxim Kondratiev (21), Jarkko Immonen (almost 22), a 1st round pick (Kris Chucko), and a 2nd round pick in 2005 (Michael Sauer).

Brian Leetch’s Accomplishments:

• Conn Smythe (‘94)
• 2 Norris (‘92, ‘97)
• Top 5 in Norris voting an additional 5 times
• Calder (‘89)
• Back Check MVP (’92)
• Top Player:
  • Top 5 Player (by PS) once (‘92),
  • Top 10 player four times (‘91, ‘94, ‘97)
  • Top 5 Defensive Player (by DPS) once (‘94),
  • Top 10 twice (‘97)
• Goals:
  • Single-season totals:
    • 20 goals five times (1 of only 9 D ever), 
    • 15 goals nine times (1 of only 9 D ever)
• Assists:
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in Assists once,
    • Top 10 five times
  • APG leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in APG once,
    • Top 10 twice
  • Single-season totals:
    • 80 assists once (1 of only 3 D ever), 
    • 70 assists three times (1 of only 4 D ever, 1 of only 16 players ever), 
    • 50 assists six times (1 of only 9 D ever), 
    • 40 assists ten times (1 of only 10 D ever)
• Points:
  • Top 10 in Points once
  • Single-season totals:
    • 100 points once (1 of only 5 D ever), 
    • 80 points three times (1 of only 7 D ever), 
    • 70 points seven times (1 of only 5 D ever), 
    • 50 points twelve times (1 of only 8 D ever)
• Top 10 in Plus/Minus once
• All Star:
  • 1st Team All Star twice,
  • 2nd Team three times,
  • 1st Team All Rookie
  • Three Stars:
    • Rookie of the Month once.
  • 9 All Star Game appearances.
• VsX:
  • Best 7 Seasons:
    • Goals: doesn’t qualify
    • Assists: 50th All Time
    • Points: 156th All Time
  • Best 10 Seasons:
    • Goals: doesn’t qualify
    • Assists: 52nd All Time
    • Points: 134th All Time

Brian Leetch’s Great Teams:

• NHL:
  • Best Player (won MVP, led playoffs in assists and points) on one Champion (‘94 Rangers)
  • Best D (by points) on one Final Four (‘97 Rangers)
• Olympics:
  • Top 2? D (by points) on one Runner Up (‘02 USA)