Who really belongs in the Hall of Fame?
Every NHL player's case analyzed
Sid Abel won the Hart and made a number of end-of-season All Star teams. But he was often not the best player on his team – especially in the playoffs – and a lot of his regular season success came centering Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay.
Did Sid Abel deserve his Hart trophy? And does he belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame? Listen to us discuss his case here:
Continue reading “Does Sid Abel Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”Bill Gadsby was one of the great pre-Orr offensive D, scoring more points than any other pure defender at his retirement. (Only Red Kelly had more and he’d bee playing centre for years when Gadsby retired.) He also has plenty of end-of-season All Star Team appearances and a number of Norris nominations.
But his teams never won and the Plus/Minus stats we have for the end of his career are flat out bad.
Does Bill Gadsby belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame? Listen to us talk about his case here:
Continue reading “Does Bill Gadsby 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:
Hap Holmes appears to have some pretty mediocre regular season numbers – pedestrian GAAs and losing records in two of the four professional leagues he played in.
However, Holmes won a Stanley Cup in four professional leagues he played in. He is the only player in Stanley Cup history to win a Cup with four different teams. (Which makes him the only one to do it in four different leagues.) He was the starter on all four of those teams. Between 1917 and 1920 he was in the Stanley Cup final every single year, regardless of what team he was on.
Was he just lucky? Listen to us talk about Hap Holmes’ Hall of Fame case here.
Continue reading “Does Harry “Hap” Holmes Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”Until Bobby Orr, nobody had more Norris trophies than Doug Harvey. And, arguably, only other NHL defenceman could claim similar acclaim, Eddie Shore.
But things have changed. There have been numerous D who have eclipsed Harvey’s offensive accomplishments and Lidstrom tied him for the second most Norris trophies ever.
So where does Harvey rank now? Is he Top 3? Top 5? Top 10?
Listen to us talk about his Hall of Fame case here:
Continue reading “Is Doug Harvey the Greatest Defenceman of All Time?”Bill Quackenbush played D for the Red Wings and Bruins for 14 years. He never won a Cup and he was not much of a scorer. (D didn’t score much before Red Kelly and Doug Harvey.)
But his career mostly predates the Norris. And he made three 1st All Star Teams and five total. That puts him in elite company.
So, does Bill Quackenbush belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame? Listen here:
Continue reading “Does Bill Quackenbush Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”Alex Delvecchio was 2nd All time in Assists and Points at his retirement and won three Stanley Cups. But he never led the league in any category, nor did he ever lead his team in scoring.
Why? Because he played on the same line as Gordie Howe.
So the big question is, how much of Delvecchio’s incredible production comes from laying next to the greatest winger of all time?
Listen to us discuss Alex Delvecchio’s Hall of Fame case here:
Continue reading “Does Alex Delvecchio Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”Marcel Pronovost played a long time, had some Norris nominations and won multiple Stanley Cups.
But was he ever the #1 D on his team? We don’t have ice time so we don’t know. On some of the Cup winners he was on, there are 8 Hall of Famers. Should we be inducting middle 6 and 2nd pair players of Cup winners?
In this episode, we discuss Marcel Provnost’s complicated case for the Hall of Fame:
Continue reading “Does Marcel Pronovost Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?”
