Does Craig Janney Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Craig Janney is 14th All Time in Assists Per Game, one of only two players in the Top 15 who are not in the Hall of Fame or still active.

The big knocks against Janney are his minus, the length of his career and his lack of a truly dominant season.

We talk about Janney’s Hockey Hall of Fame case here:

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Does Cy Denneny Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

If consistency is what matters, Denneny was one of the best, if not the best, wingers of the NHL’s first decade and a half. Though only briefly dominant, he played and scored longer than most players. So we wonder where he ranks all time.

Listen to us talk about Cy Denneny here:

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Sprague Cleghorn

Sprague Cleghorn has one of the all time great hockey names. But was he good enough to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

In this episode, we talk about Sprague and where he ranks among the old timer D of his era. Listen here:

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Does Sergei Gonchar Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

We doubt Sergei Gonchar is a name many would have considered for induction to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

But he had a rather great career despite his lack of accolades.

In our latest episode, we debate whether or not Sergei Gonchar deserves to be in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Listen here:

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Does Dave Andreychuk Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

One of the more controversial recent inductions was Dave Andreychuk, a player whose case is based nearly entirely on longevity.

Does he belong? Listen here:

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Does Jarome Iginla Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Though he’s technically still active, we decided there was no way he was going to improve his case if he ever did manage to make an NHL comeback, so we decided to talk about Jarome Iginla’s Hall of Fame case.

You can listen to the episode here:

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Does Mark Recchi Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

In this episode we consider whether or not Mark Recchi should have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. You can listen here:

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Does Jaromir Jagr Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

In this episode of The Back Check, we debate whether or not Jaromir Jagr is one of the greatest Right Wings in the history of the NHL.

Listen to the show here:

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Aubrey Dit Clapper

Dit Clapper’s Career

  • NHL: 1927-47; 20 seasons, 8 out of 10 quality as a forward (by modern standards of PPG) and at least 8 out of 10 quality as a D (by Defensive Point Shares)
  • Totals:
    • 228G (8th All Time at his retirement),
    • 246A (6th) for
    • 474P (6th) in
    • 833 games (1st) – Clapper held the record for games played until the 1956-57 season
    • 94.3 PS (5th)
  • At his retirement, Clapper was 18th All Time in GPG and PPG, and 20th in APG (minimum 500 games, since Clapper doesn’t meet the qualifiers for APG or PPG)
  • At his retirement, Clapper was 6th All Time in Offensive Point Shares and 11th All time in Defensive Point Shares
  • Era: Of the 7 players to play in at least 600 games between 1927 and 1947, Clapper is
    • 3rd in Goals, GPG, Points and DPS,
    • 2nd in Assists,
    • 4th in APG and PPG,
    • 1st in OPS, PS and Games
  • 82-game average: 22G, 25A for 47P; 9.2 PS
  • 3-year peak (1929-32): 44-game average of 26G, 16A for 43P (as a forward)
  • Playoffs: 13G, 17A for 30 points in 82 games
  • Adjusted: 382G, 508A for 890P
  • Adjusted 82-game average: 38G, 50A for 88P
  • Never Traded.
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Milt Schmidt

Milt Schmidt’s Career

  • NHL: 1936-42, 1945-55; 16 seasons, 14 quality
  • Totals:
    • 229G (14th All Time at his retirement),
    • 346A (3rd) for
    • 575P (4th) in
    • 776 games (2nd),
    • 63.3 PS (22nd)
    • At his retirement, Schmidt was 13th All time in OPS
  • Per game: At his retirement, Schmidt was
    • 25th All Time in GPG
    • 7th in APG (out of 8 qualifying players)
    • 13th in PPG (out of 13 qualifying players)
  • Era: Of the 6 players to play it at least 700 games between 1936 and 1955, Schmidt is
    • 3rd in Goals, GPG, PPG and PS,
    • 1st in Assists, APG and Games,
    • 2nd in Points and OPS
  • 82-game average: 25G, 37A for 61P
  • 3-year peak (1939-42): 48-game average of 18G, 28A for 46P
  • Playoffs:
    • 24G,
    • 25A for
    • 49P in 86 games
  • Adjusted:
    • Hockey-Reference:
      • 305G, 540A for 845P
      • Adjusted 82-game average: 32G, 57A for 89P
      • Schmidt is not on any PG leader-boards
    • VsX:
      • 423G
      • 782A
      • 1,030P
      • Schmidt is 18th All Time in VsX Adjusted APG
  • Never traded.

Milt Schmidt’s Accomplishments

  • Hart (’51)
  • Top 5 in Hart voting a further four times (’40, ’47, ’50, ’52)
  • Back Check Best Player (’40)
  • Back Check MVP (’40)
  • Top Player:
    • Top 5 Player (by Point Shares) once (’40),
    • Top 10 twice (’47)
    • Best Offensive Player (by Offensive Point Shares) once (’40),
    • Top 5 thrice (’47, ’51)
  • Goals:
    • Leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in Goals once,
      • Top 10 three times
    • GPG leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in GPG once,
      • Top 10 four times
    • Single-season totals:
      • 25 goals once, 20
      • goals four times
  • Assists:
    • Leader-boards:
      • Led the league in Assists once,
      • Top 5 four times
    • APG leader-boards:
      • Led the league in APG once,
      • Top 5 four times
  • Points:
    • Leader-boards:
      • Led the league in Points once,
      • Top 5 thrice,
      • Top 10 five times
    • PPG leader-boards:
      • Top 5 in PPG thrice,
      • Top 10 five times
    • Single-season totals:
      • 60 points twice (1 of only 12 players to do so at his retirement)
      • 50 points four times (1 of only 13 players at his retirement)
  • All Star:
    • 1st Team All Star thrice,
    • 2nd Team once
    • 4 All Star Games
  • VsX:
    • Best 7 Seasons:
      • Goals: 123rd All Time
      • Assists: 43rd All Time
      • Points: 56th All Time
    • Best 10 Seasons:
      • Goals: 113th All Time
      • Assists: 51st All Time
      • Points: 68th All Time

Great Teams

  • NHL:
    • Best Player (by points) on one Runner Up (’46 Bruins) and two Final Fours (’47, ’48 Bruins),
    • Best Skater (led playoffs in points) on one Champion (’41 Bruins),
    • Top 6 Forward (by points) on one Champion (’39 Bruins), one Runner Up (’53 Bruins) and three Final Fours (’49, ’52, ’54 Bruins),
    • Top 9 Forward (by points) on one Final Four (’51 Bruins),
    • Role Player (by points) on two Final Fours (’38, ’40 Bruins)
  • Senior:
    • Best Player (by points) on one Allan Cup Champion (’42 RCAF Flyers)

Schmidt didn’t deserve his Hart the one year he won it, but might have deserved it another year. And he wasn’t as offensively dominant as long as some of the greats of his era. And, despite some strong playoffs, he also had many weak playoffs. But I can’t shake the feeling he belongs.