Who really belongs in the Hall of Fame?
Every NHL player's case analyzed
Cecil “Babe” Dye quickly became one of the NHL’s early stars and, to this day, if the qualifier is low enough, he remains the all time leader in adjusted GPG.
But he also played relatively few games, his career was basically over by age 29 and he only ever won one Cup.
Listen to us talk about Babe Dye’s Hall of Fame case here:
Continue reading “Does Babe Dye Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”From 1962 until 2000, nearly 40 years, Terry Sawchuk was the All Time leader in Wins. From 1964 until 2007, Sawchuk was the All Time leader in Shutouts, a record many thought was unbreakable. From 1961 until 2001, a half century, no other goalie had more Point Shares.
These metrics make it seem like Terry Sawchuk was one of the greatest goalies of all time. But the bloom is off the rose and now a lot of people think that’s not true; that, aside from a stretch at the beginning of his career when he was truly great, he was more of a compiler.
Listen to us talk about Sawchuk’s case for goalie GOAT status here:
Continue reading “Is Terry Sawchuk one of the Greatest Goalies of All Time?”
Cooney Weiland set the single-season points record in 1930, but it was a banner year for the league and multiple other players could have broken the record if he didn’t. He led the playoffs in points twice, too. Seems like maybe a slam dunk.
However, these were the only great years of Weiland’s career and his career was pretty middling otherwise. Does someone like this belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame? Listen to us talk about Cooney Weiland’s Hall of Fame case here:
Continue reading “Does Ralph Cooney Weiland Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”Prior to Bobby Orr‘s arrival, there was a consensus hockey GOAT (Greatest of All Time), Gordie Howe. That was due both to Howe’s dominance but, more importantly, his unprecedented longevity. Howe may have only been the best player in the NHL for six or so seasons, but he was one of the 10 best players in the NHL for over two decades.
Since then, there are a few other contenders for the throne. And the biggest knock against Howe is his Stanley Cups. Gordie Howe made the playoffs in 20 of his 26 NHL seasons. And he made the Stanley Cup Finals a remarkable 11 times. But he only won four Stanley Cups. One can make the LeBron James argument here: If Gordie Howe really is the GOAT, how come his finals record is 4-7?
Listen to us talk about Gordie Howe here:
Though he only won one Stanley Cup, and the Vezinas he won were before it was a “Best Goalie” or “Most Valuable Goalie” award, Glenn Hall was one of the greatest goalies in NHL history. Just look at all the black ink on his Hockey Reference page. There’s one name on more goalie leader-boards than just about any other, and it’s Glenn Hall’s.
So the question isn’t, “Does Glenn Hall belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?” The question is, “where does Glenn Hall rank among the greatest goalies of all time?”
Listen to us talk about Glenn Hall:
Continue reading “Is Glenn Hall one of the Greatest Goalies of All Time?”Jacques Plante is one of the best regular season goalies in NHL history. However, unlike someone like Tony Esposito, he is also one of the greatest playoff goalies in NHL history.
This is a far rarer combination than we might think.
So, we ask, is Jacques Plante one of the greatest goalies of all time? Is he, perhaps, the GOAT?
Listen here:
Continue reading “Is Jacques Plante the Greatest Goalie of All Time?”Djcz, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
There is a never-ending debate among hockey fans as to which player of Gretzky, Lemieux and Orr was the greatest. There are certain areas where each stands supreme.
Our vote is for Orr because we think he played the more difficult and more important position and because he revolutionized the position as well. (Also, the skating.) But at least one of us thinks there’s room for debate.
Listen to us talk about Bobby Orr:
Continue reading “Is Bobby Orr the Greatest Hockey Player of All Time?”
Harry Lumley belongs in the Hockey Hall of Fame because he was the All Time Wins Leader at his retirement. But, was he really that good?
Most of his career, the league didn’t track shots. Once, they did, Lumley’s numbers started not looking so good (though he was getting old).
We discuss his career here:
Continue reading “Does Harry Lumley Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”
Ken Dryden played for only 8 seasons.
But in those 8 seasons, he won six Stanley Cups as a starter (playing in nearly every game when they won those cups), five Vezina trophies, the Conn Smythe and the Calder. He was a 1st Team All Star six times and only missed the end-of-season All Star teams his first season, when he played in six games.
To play devil’s advocate, he played for the Greatest Hockey Team of All Time. And he might not have deserved his Conn Smythe.
So, is Ken Dryden the Greatest Goalie of All Time?
Listen here:
Continue reading “Is Ken Dryden the Greatest Goalie of All Time?”Why is it that we (our generation anyway) have trouble thinking of Esposito as one of the greatest hockey players of all time? Is it because he was on the same team as Bobby Orr, whose legend has endured far better? Is it because of Esposito’s extraordinarily unathletic physique? Is it because everything he did has since been done multiple times by multiple players so those records feel less important?
We have no idea, but Espo was the most dominant offensive player between Howe and Gretzky. (We read somewhere that Lafleur was the most dominant offensive player between Howe and Gretzky, but we don’t see evidence to back that up.)
Sure, Espo benefited from playing more games per season in the newly expanded league (someone was going to set records) and, yes, he benefited from playing with the Greatest of All Time, but lesser players wouldn’t have excelled the way he did, over such a long period of time.
Listen to us talk about Esposito here:
Continue reading “Is Phil Esposito one of the Greatest Centres of All Time?”
