North Stars

Does Lorne “Gump” Worsley Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

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Gump Worsley spent half his career playing for bad teams.

But then he got traded to the Habs, won some Vezinas, and could have won at least one Conn Smythe if the votes had gone differently.

The big question about Worsley is which part of his career should we take seriously: the regular season goalie without a winning record or the goalie who was among the best in the world for a time?

Listen to us talk about Gump Worsley’s Hall of Fame case here:

Does Leo Boivin Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

With the exception of a strong playoff run in 1957, Leo Boivin had a decent career that sure doesn’t look like a Hall of Fame one.

He never won an individual award or the Stanley Cup and he only ever finished Top 5 in Norris voting once. (And he played most of his career during the Norris-trophy era.)

He is among the most controversial Hockey Hall of Fame inductees ever. And so in this episode we ask whether or not Leo Boivin belongs in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Listen to us talk about his Hall of Fame case here:

Does Mike Gartner Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Mike Gartner retired with the 5th most Goals of All Time. Yet he was never a star player and is derided in some corners of the internet as a “compiler”, i.e. a guy who was just very good and very healthy.

Does Mike Gartner actually belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Listen to us discuss his case 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 Jean-Guy Talbot Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Now that Kevin Lowe is in the Hockey Hall of Fame, we decided to look at someone else with a lot of Cups who isn’t in yet: Jean-Guy Talbot.

Listen to us discuss his case here:

Does Bobby Smith Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Bobby Smith was a star for the North Stars and then the Habs. But he has pretty mediocre offensive numbers given when he played. But then he has remarkably high playoff point totals.

So does he belong or not?

Listen to us talk about Bobby Smith here:

Does Dino Ciccarelli Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Infamously, Dino Ciccarelli was the sole NHL player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2010. Why was he deserving of a year to himself? What makes him so special? Or did the HOF make a mistake?

Listen to us talk about Ciccarelli’s case here:

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Ciccarelli’s stats:

Does Mike Modano Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Mike Modano never scored more than 93 points in a single season and yet some people regard him as one of the greatest American-born hockey players ever, if not the absolute greatest.

Others look at his offensive output and think he’s horribly overrated.

Which is it? Does he belong or has he been horribly overrated?

Listen here:

Does Kent Nilsson Belong in the Hockey Hall of Fame?

Kent Nilsson has the highest APG and PPG of any eligible NHL player not yet in the Hockey Hall of Fame, he is the only eligible player in the Top 10 in APG and PPG not in the Hall.

Why is a player with Top 10 career rate stats not in the Hall of Fame? Does it have to do with how he left the NHL? Does it have to do with his games played and inflated ’80s stats?

Listen to us discuss Kent Nilsson’s Hockey Hall of Fame case: