Does Viacheslav Fetisov Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Festisov is perhaps the greatest Russian defender of all time. (The GRDOAT?) But his NHL career was past his prime.

Does he belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Listen to us discuss his case here:

Viacheslav Fetisov’s Career:

• NHL:
  • 1989-98; 9 years, 8 qualify
  • Totals:
    • 36G
    • 192A for
    • 228P,
    • +114 in
    • 546 Games;
    • 45.3 PS
  • Draft: Drafted 201st overall in 1978 and then Drafted 201st overall in 1983, Fetisov is
    • 44th in Goals
    • 27th in Assists
    • 33rd in Points
    • 4th in Plus/Minus
    • 24th in Point Shares while
    • 40th in Games
  • Era: Of the 16 D aged 30 and over who played in 410 Games (5 seasons) between 1989 and 1998, Fetisov is
    • 6th in Goals and GPG
    • 5th in Assists
    • 6th in APG
    • 5th in Points
    • 6th in PPG
    • 4th in Plus/Minus
    • 6th in Offensive Point Shares
    • 3rd in Defensive Point Shares
    • 5th in Point Shares
    • 2nd in Games Played
  • 82-game average: 6G, 29A for 34P, +17; 6.8 PS
  • 3-year peak (1995-98): 82-game average of 6G, 30A for 35P, +29
  • No possession stats
  • Playoffs: 
    • 2G,
    • 26A for
    • 28P,
    • +3 in
    • 116 Games
    • Era: Of the 25 D to play in at least 82 playoff games between 1989 and 1998, Fetisov is
      • 24th (2nd last) in Goals and GPG
      • 11th in Assists
      • 14th in APG
      • 14th in Points
      • 17th in PPG
      • 18th in Plus/Minus
      • 4th in Games Played
  • Adjusted:
    • Hockey-Reference:
      • 36G,
      • 186A for
      • 222P
      • 82-game average: 6G, 28A for 33P
      • Fetisov is obviously not on any Per Game leader-boards
    • VsX: Doesn’t qualify for the adjustment
  • Trades:
    • Traded at nearly 37 for a 1995 3rd Rounder (David Gosselin)
• Soviet League:
  • 1974-75, 1976-89, 14 seasons
  • Totals:
    • 153G
    • 221 for
    • 374P in
    • 478 Games
  • There’s no standard length for a Soviet League season so let’s say 82-game average of 26G, 38A for 64P
• KHL:
  • 2009-10; 1 game
• IHL:
  • 1994-95, 2 games
• AHL:
  • 1990-91, 1 game

Viacheslav Fetisov’s Accomplishments:

• NHL:
  • Top Player:
    • Top 5 Defensive Player once (‘96)
  • Plus/Minus:
    • Top 5 in Plus/Minus once
• Soviet League:
  • MVP (‘82, ‘86)
  • Master of the Sport
  • A bunch of other Soviet awards that sound very political

Viacheslav Fetisov’s Great Teams:

• NHL:
  • Top 4 D (by points) on one Champion (‘97 Red Wings), one Runner Up (‘95 Red Wings) and one Final Four (‘96 Red Wings)
  • Top 6 D (by points) on one Champion (‘98 Red Wings)
• Olympics:
  • Best Player? (by points) on twos Champions (‘84, ‘88 USSR)
  • Best D? (by points) on one Runner Up (‘80 USSR)
• Canada/World Cup:
  • Best D (by points, but didn’t make the tournament All Star team) on one Champion (‘81 USSR)
• World Championships:
  • Best Defenceman Tournament Award and Media All Star on four Champions (‘78, ‘82, ‘86, ‘89 USSR) and one Bronze (‘85 USSR)
  • Best Defenceman (Media All Star) two Champions (‘83, ‘90 USSR), one Runner Up (‘87 USSR) and one Bronze (‘91 USSR)
  • Top 4??? D (by points) on two Champions (‘77, ‘81 USSR)
• Soviet League:
  • Best D? on thirteen Champions (‘75, ‘77, ‘78, ‘79, ‘80, ‘81, ‘82, ‘83, ‘84, ‘85, ‘86, ‘87, ‘88, ‘89 CSKA Moscow)
  • Played only one game (no idea whether it was regular season or playoffs) on one Champion (‘75 CSKA Moscow)
• World Juniors:
  • Best Defenceman Tournament Award and Media All Star on two Champions (‘77, ‘78 USSR)
  • Unknown role (didn’t score) on one Champion (‘76 USSR)
• European Juniors:
  • Best Defenceman (won tournament award) on one Champion (‘76 USSR)
  • Top 6? D (by points) on one Champion (‘75 USSR)