Does Herbie Lewis Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Herbie Lewis led the playoffs in Goals twice. So, as the second old timer inducted by the Veteran’s Committee, it makes some sense he was admitted to the Hall of Fame.

But did he do enough else to really belong? He was never really a regular season star.

In this episode, we discuss Herbie Lewis’ Hockey Hall of Fame case:

Herbie Lewis’ Career:

• NHL: 1928-39; 11 seasons, 7 quality (my 
• Totals:
  • 148G (21st All Time at his retirement), 
  • 161A (12th) for 
  • 309P (15th) in 
  • 483 games
• Per Game: Lewis obviously doesn’t qualify but if you set the qualifier to 300 Games, at his retirement, Lewis was 
  • 19th All Time in GPG, 
  • 11th in APG and 
  • 16th in PPG
• Era: Of the 19 players to play in at least 450 games between 1928 and 1939, Lewis is 
  • 7th in Goals and GPG, 
  • 6th in Assists, 
  • 5th in APG, 
  • 8th in Points, PPG and OPS, 
  • 9th in PS and 
  • 11th in Games
• 82-game average: 25G, 27A for 52P
• 3-year peak (1933-36): 48-game average of 16G, 23A for 39P
• Playoffs: 
  • 13G, 
  • 10A for 
  • 23P in 
  • 38 games
  • Per Game: Obviously Lewis doesn’t qualify for the qualifiers, but if they’re lowered so he does, at his retirement he was
    • 4th All Time in playoff GPG (nearly half of 3rd, though)
    • 13th All Time in playoff APG
    • 8th All Time in playoff PPG
  • Era: Of the 98 skaters to have played in 20 playoff games between 1928 and 1939, Lewis is
    • 4th in playoff Goals
    • T-1st in playoff GPG
    • 14th in playoff Assists
    • 19th in playoff APG
    • 6th in playoff Points
    • 7th in playoff PPG
    • 20th in playoff Games
• Adjusted:
  • Hockey-Reference:
    • 263G, 
    • 400A for 
    • 663P
    • Adjusted 82-game average: 45G, 68A for 113P  (+61P per 82 games)
    • Per Game: doesn’t qualify
  • VsX: Doesn’t qualify
• Never traded.

Herbie Lewis’ Accomplishments:

• Top Player:
  • Top 10 Offensive Player (by Offensive Point Shares) once (’36)
• Goals:
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 10 in Goals once
  • GPG leader-boards:
    • Top 10 in GPG once
  • Single-season totals:
    • 20 goals twice
• Assists:
  • Lead-boards:
    • Top 5 in Assists twice
  • APG-leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in APG twice
• Points:
  • Leader-boards:
    • Top 10 in Points twice
  • PPG leader-boards:
    • Top 5 in PPG once, 
    • Top 10 twice.

Great Teams

• NHL:
  • Top 3 Forward (led the playoffs in goals) on one Champion (’37 Red Wings) and one Runner Up (’34 Red Wings), 
  • Top 6 Forward (by points) on one Champion (’36 Red Wings) and two Final Fours (’33, ’39 Red Wings)