Merger to Lockout

Does Bernie Federko belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Bernie Federko has extremely impressive assist and point totals and rate stats; he remains in the Top 15 in APG all time and Top 20 in PPG.

But he’s a controversial inducted – some see him just as a “compiler” or a “good stats bad team” guy. And it’s safe to say that, had he been born 20 years earlier or 20 years later, he wouldn’t have the numbers he does.

So does Bernie Federko belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Listen to us discuss his case here:

Does Rod Langway Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Rod Langway won two Norris trophies and finished 2nd in Hart trophy voting to Wayne Gretzk once. He totally belongs, right?

However, Langway is the basically only purely defensive defenseman to win the Norris trophy in the trophy’s history. (Or, if you prefer, he’s the only purely defensive defenseman to win it since Bobby Orr transformed the position.)

Listen to us discuss whether or not he belongs:

Does Grant Fuhr Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Does Grant Fuhr belong in the Hall of Fame?

Sure, he has Cups and a Vezina. And he has the record for most goalie games played in a single season.

But he also has extremely mediocre stats compared to his contemporaries, most of whom are not in the Hall of Fame like he is.

Then, there’s this other thing: he’s arguably the first ever African Canadian (or African American) hockey star in history. A true trail-blazer.

So does he belong?

Listen to us debate his case here:

Is Pat LaFontaine the Greatest American Hockey Player of All Time?

Håkan Dahlström, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Some people believe Pat LaFontaine is the Greatest American Hockey Player of All Time. (The A-GOAT? The GAOAT?) This is despite an injury-shortened career and no Stanley Cups.

Does this claim hold up to scrutiny?

Listen to us talk about LaFontaine here:

Is Ray Bourque the Greatest D of All Time?

Ravenswing, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Ray bourque is the career leader in goals, assists and points for a D, he has 5 Norris Trophies and he has more end-of-season All Star team appearances than anyone other than Gordie Howe.

So where does he rank all time among the greatest defencemen ever? Is he #2? Is he not even in the Top 5 as one of us used to believe?

Listen to us talk about Bourque here:

Is Paul Coffey the Greatest Offensive Defenceman of All Time?

Paul Coffey’s offensive stats are just staggering. He owns the single season goals record for a defender and almost topped Orr’s points record. He had both an extremely high offensive peak and also did things consistently through his career that few have ever done before. If he was healthier at the end, he probably would be the highest scoring D in NHL history.

But, especially in the ’80s, there were huge concerns about his defense. And some people still believe he should have played forward.

So where does he rank all time? Does such a player belong in the Hall of Fame?

Listen to us talk about Paul Coffey here:

Does Larry Murphy Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Larry Murphy played forever and won a bunch of Cups. But he never won a Norris and never made a 1st All Starm Team.

Does Larry Murphy Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Listen to us discuss his case here:

Does Cam Neely Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Meowwcat, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Cam Neely is one of only 8 players to unofficially score “50 Goals in 50 Games”. (He did it in the Bruins’ 66th game of the season, so it doesn’t count in the NHL’s eyes.) And, when healthy, he was one of the most dominant goal-scorers of his era. On the Bruins…

But his career numbers are not as good as you think they are and, beyond some 2nd All Star Teams, he didn’t really get much acknowledgement as an elite player during his career.

So, does Cam Neely belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame? Listen to us discuss his case here:

Does Peter Bondra Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Peter Brondra is one of the best Slovak players of all time and scored 500 goals at a time it was pretty hard to do so. Had the Rocket Richard Trophy existed he would have won it twice.

So, does he belong in the Hall of Fame? Listen to us talk about his case here:

Does Rogie Vachon Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Rogie Vachon was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2016, almost 35 years after he retired, to some controversy.

To some, he was one of the best goalies on the planet at his peak. To others, his career stats just aren’t good enough.

So, does he belong? Listen to us talk about him here: