Does Peter Stastny Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Peter Stastny is a legend; one of the NHL’s first European-trained stars and in the Top 10 All Time in both APG and PPG.

But he was never close to the best player in league – he has one Top 5 Hart finish in his entire career – and he was never a star in best-on-best international competition.

So, does he deserve his reputation as one of the great players of the 1980s?

Listen here:

Peter Stastny’s Career:

• NHL: 1980-95; 15 seasons, 13 quality
• Totals:
  • 450G,
  • 789A  (18th All Time at his retirement) for
  • 1239P (17th All Time at his retirement),
  • -15 in
  • 977 Games;
  • 94.1 PS
• Per Game:
  • 7th All Time in APG
  • 8th All Time in PPG
• Undrafted – of the hundreds of undrafted players since expansion, Stastny is
  • 5th in Goals
  • 9th in GPG
  • 3rd in Assists
  • 4th in APG
  • 4th in Points
  • 4th in PPG
  • Who knows in Plus/Minus (since he’s a minus)
  • 8th in Offensive Point Shares
  • 15th in Point Shares
  • 27th in Games
• Ea: Of the 50 skaters to play in at least 902 games (11 modern seasons) between 1980 and 1995, Stastny is
  • 11th in Goals and GPG
  • 8th in Assists
  • 3rd in APG
  • 7th in Points
  • 2nd in PPG
  • 33rd in Plus/Minus
  • 9th in Offensive Point Shares
  • 12th in Point Shares
• 82-game average: 38G, 66A for 104P, -1
• 3-year peak (1981-84): 80-game average of 48G, 83A for 130P, +14
• No possession stats
• Playoffs:
  • 33G,
  • 72A for
  • 105P,
  • -3 in
  • 93 Games
  • Per Game:
    • 8th All Time in Playoff APG
    • 12th All Time in Playoff PPG
  • Era: Of the 132 skaters to play in at least 82 playoff games between 1980 and 1995, Stastny is
    • 33rd in Playoff Goals
    • 27th in Playoff GPG
    • 18th in Playoff Assists
    • 9th in Playoff APG
    • 21st in Playoff Points
    • 9th in Playoff PPG
    • 89th in Playoff Plus/Minus
• Adjusted:
  • Hockey-Reference:
    • 364G
    • 637A for
    • 1001P
    • 82-game average: 31G, 53A for 84P (-20P per 82 games [the worst we’ve seen, I think])
    • Per Game: Not in the Top 25
  • VsX:
    • 383G
    • 722A
    • 957P
    • Per Game: Not in the Top 25; however, if the qualifier is set to 820 games, Stastny is
      • 8th All Time in VsX Adjusted APG
• Trades:
  • Traded at 33 for Craig Wolanin (22) and Future Considerations (Randy Velischek)

Peter Stastny’s Accomplishments:

• NHL:
  • Top 5 in Hart voting once
  • Calder (‘81)
  • Top Player:
    • Top 10 Player (by PS) once (‘83)
    • Top 5 Offensive Player (by OPS) twice (‘82, ‘83)
    • Top 10 Offensive Player six times (‘81, ‘84, ‘86, ‘88)
  • Goals:
    • GPG leader-boards:
      • Top 10 in GPG once
    • Single-season totals:
      • 45 goals four times
      • 40 goals five times
      • 35 goals seven times
      • 30 goals eight times
      • 25 goals nine times
      • 20 goals eleven times
  • Assists:
    • Leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in Assists four times
      • Top 10 seven times
    • APG leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in APG twice
      • Top 10 eight times
    • Single-season totals:
      • 90 assists once (1 of only 11 players ever)
      • 80 assists twice (1 of only 12 players)
      • 70 assists five times (1 of only 8 players)
      • 60 assists seven times (1 of only 15 players)
      • 50 assists nine times (1 of only 23 players)
      • 40 assists eleven times
  • Points:
    • Leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in Points four times
      • Top 10 six times
    • PPG leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in PPG three times
      • Top 10 six times
    • Single-season totals:
      • 130 points once (1 of only 23 players ever [Stastny was 1 point away from 140])
      • 120 points three times (1 of only 12 players)
      • 110 points five times (1 of only 8 players)
      • 100 points seven times (1 of only 5 players: Gretzky, Lemieux, Dionne, Bossy)
      • 80 points eight times
      • 70 points ten times
      • 60 points twelve times
  • All Star:
    • 6 All Star Game appearances
  • VsX Peak:
    • Best 7 Seasons:
      • Goals: 150th All Time
      • Assists: 30th All Time
      • Points: 46th All Time
    • Best 10 Seasons:
      • Goals: 135th All Time
      • Assists: 33rd All Time
      • Points: 55th All Time
• Playoffs:
  • Led 5 playoff series in Points (t-22nd All Time)
  • Led 28% of his career playoff series in Points (t-18th All Time)
• International:
  • Olympics:
    • Media All Star (Top 3 Forward by points) on non-medaling team (‘94 Slovakia)
  • World Championships:
    • “Best Forward” (led tournament in points) on one World Championship B Group Champion (‘95 Slovak)

Peter Stastny’s Great Teams:

• NHL:
  • Best Player (by points) on two Final Fours (‘82, ‘85 Nordiques)
• Canada/World Cup:
  • Top 6? Forward (by points) on one Canada Cup Runner Up (‘76 Czechoslovakia)
  • Top 9? Forward (by points) on one Canada Cup Champion (‘84 Canada)
• World Championships:
  • Top 3 Forward (by points) on one World Champion (‘76 Czechoslovakia) and one Runner Up (‘78 Czechoslovakia)
  • Top 6? Forward (by points) on one World Champion (‘77 Czechoslovakia) and one Runner Up (‘79 Czechoslovakia)
• WJCs:
  • Top 9? Forward (by points) on one World Junior Bronze (‘76 Czechoslovakia)
• European Juniors:
  • Top 6? Forward (by points) on one European Junior Runner Up (‘75 Czechoslovakia)