ATD 2017 Bios

[ResilientBeast]

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[Dreakmur]

Ted Lindsay !!!

Okay, so I was cocky. I had the idea that I had to beat up everyone in the league, amd I'm still not convinced it wasn't a good idea. Probably I'd do it the same way if I did it over again. That's the way I am.

Awards and Achievements:
4 x Stanley Cup Champion (1950, 1952, 1954, 1955)

8 x First Team All-Star (1948, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1957)
Second Team All-Star (1949)

Hart voting - 4th(1949), 5th(1948), 6th(1947), 6th(1950), 7th(1959), 10th(1956)

All-Star voting - 1st(1948), 1st(1950), 1st(1951), 1st(1952), 1st(1953), 1st(1954), 1st(1956), 1st(1957), 2nd(1949), 3rd(1947)


Scoring Accomplishments:
Points - 1st(1950), 2nd(1952), 2nd(1953), 2nd(1957), 3rd(1949), 3rd(1954), 7th(1951), 9th(1948), 12th(1956), 13th(1959), 17th(1947)
Goals - 1st(1948), 2nd(1949), 2nd(1953), 3rd(1952), 5th(1954), 6th(1947), 6th(1951), 6th(1956), 6th(1957), 9th(1950), 14th(1955), 14th(1959)
Assists - 1st(1950), 1st(1957), 3rd(1952), 3rd(1953), 3rd(1954), 4th(1949), 7th(1951), 9th(1959)


Play-off Points - 1st(1952), 2nd(1949), 2nd(1955), 5th(1950), 6th(1953), 6th(1954), 7th(1956), 10th(1957)
Play-off Goals - 1st(1952), 3rd(1956), 4th(1950), 4th(1954), 4th(1955), 5th(1953), 6th(1948), 7th(1965), 9th(1957), 10th(1949)
Play-off Assists - 1st(1949), 1st(1955), 6th(1954), 8th(1950), 8th(1953), 9th(1957), 10th(1952)


5 Year Peak: 1948 to 1952
2nd in Points, 97% of 1st place Gordie Howe
3rd in Goals, 89% of 2nd place Maurice Richard
1st in Assists, 105% of 2nd place Gordie Howe

3rd in Play-off Points, 82% of 2nd place Ted Kennedy

10 Year Peak: 1948 to 1957
2nd in Points, 85% of 1st place Gordie Howe
3rd in Goals, 81% of 2nd place Maurice Richard
2nd in Assists, 91% of 1st place Gordie Howe

2nd in Play-off Points, 95% of 1st place Gordie Howe


Scoring Percentages:
Points - 116, 113, 110, 102, 100, 100, 89, 87, 70, 70, 67, 55, 51

Best 6 Seasons: 641
Next 6 Seasons: 438

His determination and will to win on the ice is a subject that can be described only in superlatives. Lindsay, Detroit's 5'8", 160-pound left winger, earned a reputation as one of the most competitive and fearsome individuals ever to lace on skates in the NHL.

Ted Lindsay of Detroit's flying Red Wing is a modern hockey player in every sense of the term. The leading scorer in the National Hockey League for 1950, he is the top exponent of our 1950 game. A left-winger on the greatest line in hockey, he spearheads the way to the enemy net in a blinding burst of speed, then back-checks the opposing forwards with a tireless parade of energy and drive. Not a big man, five-foot-eight, 163-pound Lindsay is as rough as necessary, even rougher at times. With his skill in stick-handling, his smooth skating speed, and his aggressive style of play, he would have been a stand-out in the game at any time in the history of hockey.

....

... Ted was placed on the Red Wing's regular front line with Sid Abel and Gordie Howe, with strict orders to check the right-winger facing him - and he did it as best he could. But he had a feeling of inadequacy, and gradually, almost without realizing it, he began to use a different style of check... steadying down to serious battle as he charged at them and hooked the puck away... in his mind, he was still back home in Kirkland Lake, charging, holding his own with all of them, asking no quarter. Instinctively, Ted Lindsay began to play as he had learned the game. Each time the Great Richard came through the line he hung on like a stubborn terrier, worried the dynamic Frenchman, and pulled his game to a halt. From that day on Ted Lindsay has played hockey in the way which suits him best.

He was an exceptional left wing who played with a fiery enthusiasm and, despite his small size, more than held his own with the hardrocks of the league. He was a great scorer, a fine defensive player and a leader.

Indeed, Lindsay packed a lot of punch into his 160-pound frame. He seems to be in a state of perpetual motion. In every aspect of the game the saucy little fellow seemed supernaturally charged. If Howe was the muscle behind the dynasty Wings, Lindsay was surely the spirit.

Ted Lindsay was Detroit's star portsider. A smallish player, he nevertheless had the killer instinct, giving 101 percent game in, game out. While Henri Richard was often referred to as the "French Canadian Lindsay", he was not a huge physical presence, nor was he a true winger.

Lindsay's blazing competitive spirit made him one of the toughest and most feared skaters in the NHL. He was one of the best left wingers of his generation, and one of the meanest of all time.

....

To say that he was rowdy and rambunctious would be putting it mildly. Ted accumulated over 760 stitches on his person, all mementos from the various battles he waged on the ice. The stitches earned him the moniker "Scarface". He had many other nicknames that attested to his style of aggressive play - names such as "Terrible Ted" and "Tempestuous Ted".

Ted was a little guy, and he resented players who thought they might take advantage of his small stature. He would not be intimidated.

Unlike some forwards, Lindsay and Howe also made a science of using the end and corner boards, firing the puck in at just the right angle to send it caroming out to the opposite wing.

Next, Ted Lindsay. Terrible Ted, they called him, because he rushed where angels feared to tread. Ted was a skilled, sinewy fellow, only five foot eight and 165 pounds, but he wouldn't back away from a cheetah.

Detroit made Harry Lumley its first-string goaltender had combative little Ted Lindsay playing forward.

....

... it's hard to imagine that any team employing Ted Lindsay needed to be any tougher.

Ten Best Little Men

....

3. Ted Lindsay: Notorious for his vicious use of the stick, Lindsay nevertheless could handle his dukes and was one of the most dangerous offensive left wings in the game. "Old Scarface" was never hampered by his size.

Ted Lindsay was one of the toughest players in NHL history. Although small in stature ay 5'8" and 163 pounds, "Terrible Ted" never was afraid to take on all comers, and thus became one of the most dangerous fighters in the NHL, as well as a top offensive threat.

Those that remember "Terrible Ted" Lindsay's bad-boy image on the ice may also remember that he played the game with a high degreee of skill.

Nicknames sometimes say a great deal about the person they are attached to. Ted Lindsay's moniker - "Terrible Ted" - tells only half of his story. Lindsay was indeed a rough, often mean competitor who spent more time in the penalty box than any player in his time. He was only 5'8" and 160 pounds but could hold his own in fights and in the corners with much larger opponents. But Lindsay was also a gifted offensive player, a natural goal scorer who set records for a left wing and made up one third of Detroit's famous Production Line in the 1940s and 1950s. Nine times he was an All-Star, eight of those selections to the First Team. Such a combination, in such a small, powerful package, hadn't been seen in the National Hockey League before the arrival of Terrible Ted Lindsay, and it hasn't been seen since.

No man on skates was ever too big or too tough for Ted Lindsay to challenge. At 5'8" and 160lbs he used his big stick and his fists to cut down some of the biggest meanest men in National Hockey League history.

He was known as Scarface or Terrible Ted. The scars on his rugged face represented his courage in his many on ice battles. How many scars he can't tell you, because he lost count after 400 stitches. The nickname "Terrible" only referred to his reputation, because his play was magnificent.

....

... Lindsay, though a small player, made his on-ice presence felt. He was full of moxie and never showed any hesitation in waging wars with the biggest and baddest men in the league. He was rough, often mean and occasionally dirty.

He was the leader of the Red Wings every night he went on the ice. Nobody else, he was the motivator, he was the leader, and he was not a big man. He might have been the best left winger of all time, complete. I mean, when you talk about greatness, you have to talk about people who absolutely hate to lose.

On any list of the greatest left wings to play, Ted Lindsay had to be right at the very top. With his leadership, his determination, his scoring stats, his toughness, his defensive ability, his ability to get under the skin of opponents... He was lucky he didn't have to face a lynch mob of the other players in the league!

Ted Lindsay was one of those guys who was a fiesty, fiesty player on the ice. He gave it 100% all the time, and likely one of the greatest, if not the best left winger of them all.

The reason why we had success - everybody could shoot and score, everybody could carry the puck, and everybody's full intent was, "if I had to hit somebody, I would do so." I didn't find it was fun to hide behind somebody, and all three of us had those particular ingredients, so nobody could concentrate on Ted Lindsay, or Gordie Howe, or Sid Abel, we all did it.

​

 

[Dreakmur]

Larry Robinson !!!


Awards and Achievements:

6 x Stanley Cup Champion (1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1986)

Conn Smythe Trophy (1978)

2 x Norris Trophy (1977, 1979)

3 x First Team All-Star (1977, 1979, 1980)
3 x Second Team All-Star - (1978, 1981, 1986)

Hart voting - 5th(1977), 6th(1981), 7th(1980), 12th(1978), 12th(1979)
Pearson voting - 4th(1977), 4th(1986)
Norris voting - 1st(1977), 1st(1980), 2nd(1979), 3rd(1978), 3rd(1981), 3rd(1986), 4th(1987), 5th(1982)
All-Star voting - 1st(1977), 1st(1980), 2nd(1979), 3rd(1978), 3rd(1981), 3rd(1986), 5th(1987), 6th(1982), 8th(1976), 11th(1983), 12th(1975), 14th(1985)

3 x Canada Cup Gold Medalist 1976, 1981, 1984
IIHF Best Defenseman (1981)
IIHF All-Star (1981)


Scoring Accomplishments:
Points among Defensemen - 1st(1977), 2nd(1980), 2nd(1986), 5th(1975), 5th(1978), 7th(1979), 11th(1983), 13th(1987), 14th(1982), 16th(1976)

Play-off Points among Defensemen - 1st(1978), 1st(1979), 1st(1987), 2nd(1977), 3rd(1986), 4th(1985), 6th(1973), 7th(1989), 9th(1976)


5 Year Peak: 1977 to 1981
3rd in Points among Defensemen, 92% of 2nd place Borje Salming
2nd in Play-off Points among Defensemen, 77% of Denis Potvin

10 Year Peak: 1977 to 1986
2nd in Points among Defensemen, 86% of 1st place Denis Potvin
3rd in Play-off Points among Defensemen, 90% of 2nd place Paul Coffey


Scoring Percentages:
Points among Defensemen - 106, 100, 100, 84, 84, 82, 80, 69, 66, 62, 62, 56, 51

Best 6 Seasons: 556
Next 6 Seasons: 395

1976 Coaches' Poll:
1st Best Defensive Defenseman
2nd Best Bodychecker

1979 Coaches' Poll:
1st Best Defensive Defenseman

1981 Players' Poll:
1st Best Defensive Defenseman
2nd Best Slapshot

The "Big Bird', whose game was all about skating, passing, and puck control, was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1978. This member of six Stanley Cup teams was smooth and fast on his blades, an imposing presence, and a quarterback of colossal ability. Robinson could use his dukes, too.

Most Canadiens' fans who had witnessed the fight came away convinced that head-knocking was Larry Robinson's destiny - being a policeman on th ice. But what was not as obvious at the time was that this big fellow was quite atalented as well as rugged defenseman and would soon become the cornerstone of the inpenetrable defense of the Canadiens' teams that captured five Stanley Cups in the 1970s.

Robinson, at 6'3", 210 pound, was exactly what the stylistic Canadiens' team needed. With the majority of their personnel being more artistic that overtly physical, the Habs needed a tough, no-nonsense type of rearguard, someone who could force the opposition to think twice before trying any intimidation tactics on their mitelike forwards and keep the Canadiens' crease clear of belligerant types who make life a bit too difficult for Kenny Dryden. After the Schultz incident, Robinson's reputation had been established. He would no longer have to drop his gloves to prove his point. He could now concentrate on the physical but clean game that was his natural style and spend more time on the ice thn in the sin bin, this helping his team's cause to the maximum.

Though not the prolific scorer that some of his contemporaries were, Robinson established his ability as a strong, rushing puck carrier. And his ability to lug the rubber and engineer the offense in clutch situations made his offensive contributions most timely

Robinson played 17 seasons for the Canadiens and then three more for the L.A. Kings, from 1989 to 1992. He won the Norris Trophy twice as the league's best defenseman in the 1976-77 and 1979-80 seasons and the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1977-78. Not only was Robinson a great defensive player, he was also very good with the puck. He held the NHL record for most playoff games at 227, until surpassed by Mark Messier, and the most consecutive years in the playoffs with 20. He also became a veritable regular in All-Star games, playing in 10 of them. His final NHL totals were impressive: 208 goals, 750 assists and 958 regular-season points as well as 144 points in 227 playoff games.
Internationally, Robinson represented Team Canada in the 1976, 1981 and 1984 Canada Cup tournaments. All three were Canadian victories. In 1981 he represented Canada in the World Championship and was named to the tournament All-Star team.

Robinson, at 6'4" and well over 200lbs, was exactly what the Canadiens needed to create the dynasty of the 1970s that many consider the greatest team of all time. The team was loaded with smaller and extremely talented skaters, but what they needed was a tough, no-nonsense blueliner who would force the opposition to think twice before taking any liberties on the Habs skilled stars, as well as to the keep the crease clear of giants, thus making Ken Dryden's job much easier. Robinson established himself in this position early in his career when he defeated infamous pugilist Dave "The Hammer" Schultz in front of a national TV audience. His reputation was quickly established, and he rarely had to drop the gloves again to prove it. Instead he played an intimidating and physical but clean game that was his natural style.

Big Bird, as he became known as, was always more than just a goon though. When he was drafted he was a bit of a diamond in the rough with great potential. I think even the biggest Robinson supporters were surprised that all of that potential was reached and then some.

Robinson became an almost flawless defender. Blessed with a near perfect understanding of positioning, an amazingly long reach, and physical prowess combined with a frequent mean streak, Robinson became the pre-eminent defenseman in the modern era. Every team covets a monster on the blue line who can control the games power forward by installing fear in the minds before the game even starts, yet add an offensive level that is well above average. Modern day warriors like Rob Blake, Chris Pronger, Scott Stevens and Derian Hatcher do their best to imitate Robinson, an intimidating devastator who almost never made a defensive mistake.

Robinson developed into an offensive threat as well. He was a catalyst on the power plays as he was a strong puck carrier and brilliant passer. In his younger days he was a frequent puck rusher. He finished his career with 208 goals, 750 assists for 958 points in 1384 games. He accumulated 793 minutes in penalties in 20 years, 17 with Montreal, the final three with Los Angeles.

Tall, round-shouldered and sporting a shock of curly blonde hair, Robinson bore an uncanny resemblance to a well-known television personality and was almost immediately tagged “Big Bird”, after the tall feathered Sesame Street character.

Playing a tough but clean brand of hockey, Robinson never went looking for trouble. When it found him, however, he met it head-on and very few men were willing to drop the gloves for a second bout with the young farm boy from the Ottawa Valley. He would also emerge as one of the most punishing hitters in the game.

....

Robinson sits atop the lists of every all-time offensive category for a Habs defensemen. No other Montreal blue-liner has scored or assisted on more goals than Larry Robinson and only Henri Richard has appeared in more regular season contests as a member of the Canadiens.

He was the rare player whose effect on a game was far greater than any statistical or concrete contribution he might make. When he came onto the ice, the attitude of the play seemed to change. Standing in back of him, I could feel it, I could see it change, growing more restrained, more respectful, as if it was waiting for him to see what he would do. Nowhere was this more clear, or more important, than against the Flyers or the Bruins. They held him in such awe, treating him with an embarrassing, almost fawning, respect, that they seemed even to abandon their style of play when he was around, and with it any hope of winning. Each time we played them, I knew that an outraged Fred Shero or Don Cherry would send out players to hunt him, to hammer him into the boards with elbows and sticks, to fight with him if he would let them until, bruised and sweating, his mystique could only come crashing down. But they never did.

When Larry arrived, he gave our team a whole new dimension. He was big, he was strong, he could skate, he could score goals and he could fight. When he arrived, I became more of a defensive defenseman. Offensively, with Larry around, I was able to pick my spots.

....

You could say Larry was a dream player: he had the size, the shot, the skating, the ability - and he was easy to manage. He was good for the team in every way. He made it easy to play with him.

There have been many tough guys in the NHL who could stamp out trouble but usually they had to beat up somebody to do it. In Larry's case, he would just skate into the middle of any trouble or confusion on the ice and things would straighten out automatically.

He's taken quite a few games I've seen and broken them up with an end-to-end rush. That's his biggest asset. As far as I'm concerned, Larry's far and away the Canadiens' MVP.

Scouting Reports:

Following in Savard-Lapointe mold of big, strong young defenseman... Won raves in first full NHL season for defensive poise and hitting...

... Larry Robinson is steady both offensively and defensively.

....

Contributes in Serge Savard and Guy Lapointe fashion, bolstering offense and playing tight defense...

Superb season prompted some observers to call him the finest all-around defenseman in hockey now... Big, rugged, smooth puck handler with hard, accurate shot...

Since realizing all his skills in the spring of 1976, he is now ranked among best defensemen in league... Probably could be heavyweight champion of the league but prefers hitting to fighting...

Robinson was third and fourth in team scoring the last two years and tied Lafleur for the playoff scoring championship in 1978 with 21 points.

....

Big, strong and very talented, he has become the team leader on the ice... The hardest hitter on the team, he intimidates simply by his presence... He is very fast, with the moves iof a forward, and has a strong shot...

Long skating stride and reach make everything look easy for this big, strong, gifted team leader... Brought up on farm and hard, long summers helped build him into a battering ram defender... Intimidated simply by his presence and, fortunately for foes, is slow to anger...

The prototype for the modern NHL defenseman: big, strong and mobile... Consummate team player, one of the NHL's most respected citizens...

Developed muscles pitching hay as a kid on his parents farm... Now uses them to bodycheck rival forwards skating down his side of ice or positioning themselves near the Canadiens' net... Has long reach and long stride ad can carry puck as well as stop opponents from carrying it into his zone... Doesn't start fights but knows how to finish them, so few rivals are willing to challenge him...

Strong, tough and mean if he has to be... Past his primebut remains one of best around... Looks lean and gangly, but is very muscular... Anchored defense for teams that won four straight Stanley Cups in 1970s... Still very much a team leader... Rattles opponents with checks... Rattles forwards with enterprising defense.

Ideal role model for NHL defenseman... Big, strong and aggressive... Knows how to defend against attacks in his team's defensive zone as well as make passes and rushes that start offensive attacks for his team...

Terrific all-around defenseman whose skills have eroded slightly in recent years... Silenced critics by playing magnificetly in last season's playoff conquests of Bruins and Quebec... Oustanding team leader who still gets job done well at both ends of rink... Seldom fails to clear puck or connect on passes to forwards...

Larry Robinson has slowed dow somewhat as a defenseman but still is a quality player and on-ice leader, at his best during pressure situations.

....

Not quite so dynamic a player as he once was but still ranks among leading defensemen in NHL... Doesn't fight much anymore because opponents know he's hard to handle... Gets most of his points on assists because of passing ability...

On defense, Robinson can still control the play...

​

 

[ResilientBeast]

Fred "Cyclone" Taylor
​

I'm hoping this bio overall helps change the perception of Taylor as a one way softie. There a several excerpts discussing defensive play which was most certainly overshadowed by his offensive skill. Taylor wasn't one to be pushed around...that is if the opposing team could actually catch him.

2x Stanley Cup Champion
2x 2nd in NHA Points Among Defensemen
2nd in ECAHA Points Among Defensemen, 06-07
3rd in ECAHA Points Among Defensemen, 07-08
36 points in 29 games in IHL as Forward
5x Led PCHA in Assists
5x Led PCHA in Points (Also led in PPG one more season having played half the season)
3x Led PCHA in Goals
1st all-time points in PCHA
1st all-time assists in PCHA
Inducted into the HHOF in 1947 (the first year they inducted still-living members)

Some info on Cyclone Taylor, interpret as you wish...

Top ten scores in PCHA history:

Name|GP|G|A|PTS|GPG|APG|PTSPG
Fred Taylor|135|160|103|263|1.185|0.763|1.948
Tom Dunderdale|242|194|59|253|0.802|0.244|1.045
Smokey Harris|253|155|90|245|0.613|0.356|0.968
Mickey MacKay|193|159|81|240|0.824|0.420|1.243
Bernie Morris|164|155|76|231|0.945|0.463|1.408
Frank Foyston|202|175|53|228|0.866|0.262|1.129
Eddie Oatman|194|124|80|204|0.639|0.412|1.051
Lloyd Cook|223|106|57|163|0.475|0.256|0.731
Frank Frederickson|105|93|47|140|0.886|0.448|1.333
Jack Walker|190|81|58|139|0.426|0.305|0.732

And for added flavour:

Name|GP|G|A|PTS|GPG|APG|PTSPG
Newsy Lalonde|15|27|N/A|27|1.8|N/A|1.8
Frank Nighbor|28|33|12|45|1.179|0.429|1.607
Didier Pitre|15|14|2|16|0.933|0.133|1.067

And for fairness sakes, Cyclone's best two seasons, two worst seasons and the 3 stars before and after seasons, making a more accurate comparisons to the NHA stars.

Name|GP|G|A|PTS|GPG|APG|PTSPG
Fred Taylor's Best|32|55|26|81|1.719|0.812|2.531
Fred Taylor's Worst|16|11|7|18|0.687|0.437|1.125
Newsy Lalonde Before|16|19|N/A|19|1.187|N/A|1.187
Newsy Lalonde After|18|25|N/A|25|1.388|N/A|1.388
Frank Nighbor Before|19|25|N/A|25|1.316|N/A|1.316
Frank Nighbor After*|23|19|5|24|0.826|0.217|1.043
Didier Pitre Before|17|24|N/A|24|1.412|N/A|1.412
Didier Pitre After|20|30|4|34|1.5|0.2|1.7

It would appear that Lalonde's stats are skewed, he played in the PCHA's 1st season, Taylor, Nighbor and Pitre came later, so the PCHA may be weaker, but other than that, there is no evidence that it was easier to score in the PCHA, and Taylor lit up the league in Gretzky like fashion.

Just a note, the year after, Nighbor absolutely destroyed the NHA with 41 goals in 19 games, I'm not sure if that's relevant, but, just HOLY ****!

Now how much more dominant was he in the PCHL season by season

Year|Age|GP|PTS|PTs/G|Finish|Nearest Teammate|Diff|Nearest League Wide|Diff
1912-13|28|16|18|1.125|6th|1.25 Pts|-0.125|1.933|-0.808
1913-14|29|16|39|2.4375|1st|1.25|+1.1875|1.9375|+0.5
1914-15|30|16|45|2.8125|1st|2.588 Pts|+0.22454|1.1875|+1.700
1915-16|31|18|35|1.9444|1st|1.294 Pts|+0.650|1.777|+0.16744
1916-17|32|12|29|2.4166|9th|2.30 Pts|+0.1166|2.25|+0.1666
1917-18|33|18|43|2.3888|1st|1.000 Pts|+1.3888|1.777|+0.6111
1918-19|34|20|36|1.8000|1st|1.25 Pts|+0.55|1.450|+0.35

Over the course of these seven seasons Taylor averaged 0.57 pts/game over his nearest teammate and 0.3838 pts/game over the nearest non teammate/league leading point scorer.

Just for completeness Vs2 of Dreakmurs consolidated finishes though I will give him credit for the season he only player half of since 1) It was an appendicitis and not due to age or style of play and 2) because the PPG of that season was in line with his career to date.

1913 - 2nd in Assists, 9th in Points - Score = 52.56
1914 - 6th in Goals, 1st in Assists, 4th in Points - Score = 95.17
1915 - 1st in Assists, 2nd in Points - Score = 100
1916 - 2nd in Goals, 1st in Assists. 1st in Points - Score = 109.38
1917 (Appendicitis) would be 3rd in Points = 99.65
1918 - 1st in Goals, 2nd in Assists, 1st in Points = 134.40
1919 - 1st in Goals, 1st in Assists, 1st in Points = 124.41

Goals - 1, 1, 2, 6 *This is missing the appendicitis season)
Assists - 1, 1, 1, 1, 2, 2 *This is missing the appendicitis season
Points - 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 9

So his best 6 season total is 663.01
Including his weak first PCHA season 715.57
Average over 7 seasons 102.224

From ages 28-34 is only accounted for


Just comparing for interest sake that puts him in a offence dead heat comparing this to standard VsX with Maurice Richard and Howie Morenz

I've added Harris and Walker to the table I made earlier, and added two columns for points per year and per game.

Here are the adjusted career numbers for some early era stars using a slight variation of the Ideal Points method from the Hockey Compendium. The earliest season included is 08-09

Player|Seasons|GP|G|A|Pts|Pts/Yr|Pts/GP
Frank Boucher|18|1345|431|939|1370|76.11|1.02
Bill Cook|15|1173|645|677|1322|88.13|1.13
Cy Denneny|15|1077|499|405|904|60.27|0.84
Tommy Dunderdale|15|1143|436|408|844|56.27|0.74
Frank Foyston|16|1168|457|438|895|55.94|0.77
Smokey Harris|14|1036|322|502|824|58.86|0.80
Duke Keats|10|685|350|531|881|88.10|1.29
Newsy Lalonde|18|1133|598|542|1140|63.33|1.01
Mickey MacKay|15|1118|489|570|1059|70.60|0.95
Joe Malone|15|1042|504|380|884|58.93|0.85
Howie Morenz|14|1066|542|626|1168|83.43|1.10
Bernie Morris|10|758|345|411|756|75.60|1.00
Frank Nighbor|18|1300|448|625|1073|59.61|0.83
Eddie Oatman|16|1162|346|546|892|55.75|0.77
Nels Stewart|15|1169|655|507|1162|77.47|0.99
Fred Taylor|13|813|385|717|1102|84.77|1.36
Jack Walker|16|1120|262|510|772|48.25|0.69

I gave Nighbor his career average of 37 assists (16 year average, not including the 29-30 season where he did not record an assist) for the 12-13 NHA season where assists were not awarded.
I don't have the numbers to include Taylor's 07-08 ECAHA season, and I gave him his average of 60 assists (9 year average, not including the 22-23 season where he did not record an assist) for the 3 ECHA/NHA seasons where assists were not awarded.
I gave Lalonde his average of 34 assists (12 year average, not including the 25-26 and 26-27 seasons where he did not record an assist) for the 4 NHA/PCHA seasons where assists were not awarded.
I gave Malone his average of 29 assists (9 year average, not including the 22-23 and 23-24 seasons where he did not record an assist) for the 4 NHA/ECHA seasons where assists were not awarded. His 09-10 season was left out, but his 08-09 season was included.
I gave Foyston his career average of 27 assists for the 12-13 NHA season where assists were not awarded.
I gave Oatman his average of 36 assists (13 year average, not including the 25-26 season where he did not record an assist) for the 2 NHA seasons where assists were not awarded.
I gave Dunderdale his average of 29 assists (11 year average, not including the 22-23 season where he did not record an assist) for the 3 NHA/PCHA seasons where assists were not awarded.
I gave Harris his career average of 36 assists for the 11-12 PCHA season where assists were not awarded.

Above the closest player to him, would be Keats but in the dishing the dirt thread it was discussed that the system incorrectly treats the WCHL, PCHA and NHL seasons equally and at the start of the WCHL it was weak inflating Keat's numbers. Taylor comes out ahead with the highest PPG beating Bill Cook by 0.23 Pts/Game. Assign whatever value you choose to these stats but it's clear that Taylor probably the most elite offensive player till Morenz.

Hockeyreference Data
In Stanley Cup Challenges, Taylor came to play
1914-15 - 10 Pts in 3 Games (Age 30)
1917-18 - 9 Pts in 5 Games (Age 33)
1920-21 - 1 Pt in 3 Games (Age 36)

1.818 Pts/Game after the age of 30

Compared to "rival" Mickey MacKay
1914-15 - 6 Pts in 3 Games (Age 20)
1917-18 - 10 Pts in 5 Games (Age 23)
1920-21 - 1 Pt in 5 Games (Age 26)

1.3076 Pts/game

Mickey MacKay was unable to even close the gap in Stanley cup challenge games over a smaller sample size that Taylor maintained in the regular season. This is even against stronger competition and with Taylor a decade older than MacKay.


In fact the only time MacKay came even close to duplicating Taylor's scoring feats were when the PCHA was at it's weakest with the emergence of the WCHL.

SIHR Data Overall Playoff Performance
Cyclone Taylor - 22 Points in 16 Games - 1.375 Pts/Game
Mickey MacKay - 33 Points in 52 Games - 0.6346 Pts/Game

Taylor is 31 in his first recorded playoff data, and MacKay is 21. It's not even close, the gap between the two is even wider than in just Stanley Cup Games and the regular season.

​

First hand sources

"Cyclone" Taylor, the star center of the Vancouver club of the Pacific Coast Hockey association, has been voted the all-around individual championship of the PCHA, for the 1917-18 season, according to an announcement by Frank Patrick, president of the organization.

The official scorers of Seattle, Vancouver and Portland voted on the most valuable player in the league and Taylor was the unanimous choice. "Cyclone" is far ahead of his nearest rival in scoring honors and will probably maintain an edge through the final series next week.

Taylor's defensive play was also exceptionally strong. Last season Frank Foyston of the Seattle club was voted the most valuable individual in the league. Another important point in Taylor's favor was the fact that not once during the season was the star sent from the ice for violation of rules.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...AIBAJ&sjid=QfQDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5317,6152753&hl=en

Five Original Coast League Players Left

In the intervening years many hockey players have flashed across the hockey horizon, there have been stars and near stars and fans have glimsed "Cyclone" Taylor greatest of all puckchasers...

Fred Taylor, the former Houghton cover point, has arrived in Montreal to report to the Wanderers Hockey Club, with whom he will play this winter in the cover point position. Taylor has been with several clubs and joined the Houghton team last winter, where he has been the best player in his position in the International league. Taylor the Wanders say has signed for the season..

Note Taylor is 33, Mackay is 23

Taylor is fast, a beautiful skater and handles the puck fairly well but it is extremely doubtful if he has any more speed than Noble or Cameron. McKay who played on the forward line is a much faster skater, carries the puck better and is much more persistent than "Cyclone"

In fact it was the consensus of the opinion after the game that McKay was much the faster man and more effective than Taylor. Cook and Griffis are both fast men, but the showing of Stanley was very disappointing. He was outclassed at times and resorted to questionable tactics on several occasions.

Taylor Loses His Head

The play on the whole however was fairly clean, on;y one incident marring the game. In the final period Taylor who was ineffective all night was checked by Meeking, the latter falling to the ice after he had blocked the Westerner. Taylor angered at the persistence of Meeking in checking turned raised his stick and struck the (word) player. Randall skated over quickly to intervene and Taylor and he exchanged several punches before they were separated...

The Ottawas were chagrined through their failure to get Taylor and their victory over the Canadiens did not remove the sting. Taylor would not only bolster the Ottawa team to a great extent, but he would serve as an immense drawing card and fill the local rink for the balance of the schedule.

Without Taylor a lot of the class would be missing from the coast organization/ The Cyclone is 31 years of age. He looks older, but he's still there with speed and stickhandling and knows all the tricks of the trade. He had been playing hockey for twenty years over half of which has been spent in senior company, and today he is without peer in the puck chasing sport.

Taylor was the best man on the Brantford team, though he showed a desire to circle around with the puck instead of going straight ahead.

I recently found some information on Cyclone Taylor that I don't think had been uncovered before. Some of us, including myself, have expressed certain doubts about Taylor's all-around game (specifically defense) due to a lack of primary sources which mention anything other than his dazzling offensive play. I had been curious about his all-around play and about the reasons for the games he missed in the PCHA, as I had never heard of his suffering any injury. Here is a bit on Taylor's all-around game:

9.3.1918 - Spokane Daily Chronicle:

"Cyclone" is far ahead of his nearest rival in scoring honors and will probably maintain an edge through the final series next week.

Taylor's defensive play was also exceptionally strong.

11.1.1913 - Ottawa Citizen:

Taylor was always in the limelight, and his clashes with Johnson, the star defenseman of the cup holders, were one of the most interesting features of the evening.

The [unreadable] an attack of appendicitis and under the care of a physician earlier in the evening, Taylor went on the ice and played one of his spectacular games, although the "Cyclone" was not taking any great chances in view of his condition. His skating and stickhandling, in fact, all-around playing, has become a feature in every match in which he participates.

11.11.1908 - The Pittsburgh Press:

He was counted a wonder before he went into those games, but still more so after they were over, and at the conclusion of the season was voted unanimously as the best all-around player in that league which contained many experts.

And finally, another mention of Taylor's appendicitis.

3.1.1917 - The Spokane Daily Chronicle:

Fred (Cyclone) Taylor, the star of the Vancouver hockey team who was operated on for appendicitis recently, is on the speedy road to recovery and may get back into a game again before the close of the present season. Taylor underwent his operation on December 11 and was discharged from the hospital December 22.

------------------------------------------------------

So it looks like Taylor suffered from some unusual form of long-term chronic appendicitis (a bit like Harry Houdini?) which eventually was operated on late in 1916, causing him to miss basically the entire season.

He does seem to have been a good two-way or "all-around" player, though his defensive efforts were clearly overshadowed by his offensive prowess. Single sources are of questionable value, but there are a few corroborating points of evidence here about Taylor's two-way play, and contemporary quotes like "exceptionally strong" carry a good deal of weight.

I think this is probably enough to move the needle on our perception of Taylor a bit. I am now quite uncertain as to who I would choose between he and Nighbor as the greatest player of the pre-Morenz era.

Instances of physical play

Taylor isn't remembered as a physical player, but here are three different instances of him playing "rough," two of them from earlier in his career when he played coverpoint (defenseman). I don't think these make Taylor particularly physical in an all-time sense, but he is definitely no softy.

Just one game, but it seems Taylor was a difference-maker defensively all game:

Taylor, who was on the line the night the team was beaten in Quebec (TDMM - I assume this means at forward), was in Moore's position at cover point, increasing the efficiency of the defence about 50 percent. He was ruled off 4 times in the game, twice for heavy bodychecking and twice for slashing Wanderer forwards over the arms. His play, while on the rough side, was very effective; he was a hard man to get by and towards the end he stirred up the crowd by lightning rushes from end to end of the rink. He scored Ottawa's sixth and seventh goal on such dashes and was also responsible for the twelth, although Phillips landed the disc in the twine.

With Taylor off, the Wanderer forwards found it easier to work in on the Otttawa defence...

Taylor made it 11 to 1 on an end to end run and a pretty shot. Taylor immediately after the face repeated the run and Phillips scored from the rebound of Taylor's shot.

Taylor brought the crowd to their feet by stealing the disc from Hooper at the Ottawa end and going through the whole Wanderer team for Ottawa's sixth goal. Taylor went in and out through Glass and Ross and taking his time picked out the open corner of the net.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AAIBAJ&pg=2925,1720686&dq=taylor+ottawa&hl=en

Taylor noted as particularly rough, even for the era. Again, just one game:

The trouble came after the referee had been obliged to order off the ice for palpably rough play Taylor, Walsh and Lake, all of the Ottawa team. Taylor had been particularly conspicuous for rough work, and Russell promptly ordered him out of the game for good.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AAIBAJ&pg=6836,1277382&dq=taylor+ottawa&hl=en

He supplied the only "rough stuff" of the game when he made a vicious attack with his stick on Meeking as the latter was lying on the ice. The Toronto boy in checking Taylor, fell and his stick caught "Cyclone" on the back. He left the puck and twice hit the fallen player with his stick. Randall went to Meeking's rescue and both he and Taylor exchanged jabs.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=1492,2115844&dq=cyclone+taylor&hl=en

Fred Taylor is out ahead of them all in the race for the scoring honors in the league. The "Cyclone" is going in great style just now. He was a little slow in rounding into shape, but now he is fit and will show the other forwards in the league what real Ontario speed is when it gets going strong. As we have said before Freddie is the daddy of them all in hockey.

Tommy Gorman lists his all-time team (in December of 1928):

Roy Worters, goalie
Hod Stuart and Sprague Cleghorn, defense
Frank McGee, center
Tom Phillips and Scotty Davidson, wings
Cyclone Fred Taylor, utility, greatest player ever.

Gorman appends a short list of honorable mentions: Newsey Lalonde, Lionel Conacher, Billy Burch and Les Patrick.

The New York Sun, Dec 22, 1928 (warning, long PDF)

Article contains a long description of Cyclone Taylor and shorter ones of the other guys Gorman picked.


The injury that cut his 1916-17 season short was an appendicitis

Taylor played a whirlwind game against the Spokane Club saturday night, and it was not until yesterday that he complained of illness, but the pain became so severe that a physician was called in and his immediate removal to the hospital was ordered.

"Of course we have certainly suffered some bad luck" observed Frank Patrick today. "The loss of Taylor is certainly going to affect our chances and it is extremely doubtful whether he will be able to play again, we will be up against it for a man to fill the vacancy, however, I am doing the best I can and have lines out for another player. You can rest assured that we are going to do our best.

Cyclone Taylor is headed for the individual scoring honors of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association. Vancouver's veteran center forward, who still has several years of hockey let in him and can still give the youngsters numerous pointers on how the game is played, is firmly entrenched in first place in the individual scoring column with a total of 18 points to his credit, having scored 13 goals and assisted in scoring 5 more. He boosted his average here monday night by scoring three of Vancouver's six goals and assisting Moynes in getting one. The "Cyclone" is playing bang up hockey this season if he keeps up his present form he should have no difficulty capturing the scoring honors.

"Cyclone" Taylor of Vancouver has carried off the all-round championship of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association according to President Frank Patrick following receipt of the ratings of three official scorers. Taylor was the unanimous choice of the scorers as being the most valuable man on the coast league circuit this season. This honor fell to Frank Foyston of Seattle last season. All the scorers agreed that the Vancouver star was the logical choice for this season's honors and he will shortly receive the championship trophy offered annually by the association to the player who proves the most valuable during the season. Clean playing, scoring ability, combination play, popularity with teammates are some of the qualifications which a player must possess in the all round championship competition. Taylor leads over all rivals in all respects.

Taylor for the first ten of twelve minutes of the game, gave one of his finest displays in the coast hockey, outplaying the entire Seattle team and having possession of the rubber for about three quarters of the time.

Vancouver missed Mickey MacKay its star who was crippled in a recent Seattle game. With MacKay out, Cyclone Taylor and his teammates could not stop the peppering Seattle game the Canadian basket. Taylor led his team in a great defensive fight. He had the puck for longer period than any of the visitors and helped the score.

Fred Taylor of the Renfrew team favors the six men idea, but this is only natural as the Listowel Cyclone requires big space of ice to get up to his speed and has always been in his element when one or two of the opposing seven were sitting in the penalty bench.

Art Ross, Didier Pitre and "Cyclone" Taylor, three of the the greatest players in Canadian hockey seem may be seen in the linup of the coast teams this season

Fred Taylor, the sensation of the NHA for many years, stood head and shoulders above every other player.

The Easterners scored three goals in this period and westerns one and with the scored tied in the final the excitement was intense. Shore (cover) was benched for tripping in the thd and Taylor, who took his place was mainly responsible for the victory. He came on the ice in time to stop a dangerous western rush and went right through the opposing defense single handily before passing back to Ross for the leading goal. Right after this he went down again and gave Darragh another chance which was accepted.

There is only one "Cyclone" Taylor for cleverness on skates and with the stick, though Tommy Dunderdale is giving him a close run for the high individual honors in the forward section. Fred is showing a disposition to be generous with the puck when combination proves profitable, a question upon which there was a diversity of opinions at the start off the season.

Taylor at times held the puck for several minutes towards the end of the game, skating all over the ice with the Ottawas in pursuit. He finally collided with Darragh and was knocked out. After a five minute rest Taylor jumped back and again began to play rings around his former teammates. The Ottawas handed out stiff punishment but Taylor was far too fast for them.

Excerpts from the Book, The Patricks, Hockey's Royal family discuss Taylor's star power and seem to indicate that it was significantly higher than the star power of Newsy Lalonde

Here are some excerts from the book The Patricks: Hockey's Royal Family . Brothers Lester and Frank Patrick were the founders of the PCHA, as well as players and managers of their respective teams.

From early in Taylor's career:

As usual, it was Taylor who stole the show and got raves such as "...Taylor's cyclonic rushes electrified the audience..." and "...the player they so aptly call 'Cyclone' almost literally explodes with excitement. There is nothing quite like him in American sport..."

The book then documents the Patrick's efforts at luring Taylor out west - to them, getting Taylor to join the PCHA was the key to the success of the fledgling league:

Attendance picked up a little as the season wore on, but Frank was resigned to the fact that he wouldn't fill his building until he had the game's greatest gate attraction, Cyclone Taylor.

Note that Newsy Lalonde was a member of Frank Patricks' Vancouver Millionaries for The PCHA's inaugural 1911-12 season and even led the league in scoring, but Frank was still desperate to sign Cyclone.

From an East vs West All-Star game, when Taylor was still in the East:

The story of the game is more fully told in my earlier book, "Cyclone Taylor: A Hockey Legend", so suffice to say here that Taylor came out just like his nickname and all but blew the West All-Stars off the ice with his blinding speed and hell-for-leather aggressiveness. The arena was in an uproar as he broke up a rush, stole the puck, and then split the defense before slipping a silk-slick pass to Art Ross for the go-ahead goal. The fans were on their feet minutes later when Taylor repeated the maneuver, this time setting up Jack Darragh for the score. He got a two-minute ovation for that little gambit.

Frank Patrick, who had been beaten badly in the second rush, must have had mixed emotions.

That offseason, Lalonde headed back East to Montreal, but Frank Patrick got his prize as Taylor signed with Vancouver. Taylor was to be paid $1800, the most money in hockey and $500 more than Lalonde had been paid the previous season.

Frank and Lester were delighted with the exchange, as their league now had hockey's number one prestige player, and he was cheap at the price

Attendance of Vancouver games skyrocketed with Taylor on the team.

At Taylor's peak, he was a bigger star than Lalonde was at the time:

On the ice, the two (Patrick) brothers, even as every other player in the league including the redoubtable Lalonde, had to get used to the idea of playing second fiddle to Taylor, the master showman who hogged the headlines wherever he played.

According to Frank Patrick, Cyclone Taylor's style of play inspired them to allow forward passing in the neutral zone, the first time forward passing was ever allowed in any way in any professional hockey league:

Of Taylor himself, Frank has written: "Taylor was the ultimate hockey player. There'll never be another like him. He was blessed with the complete skills, quite apart from a unique excitement he generated every time he stepped onto the ice. I watched him very closely, and some of our ideas, such as creating the two blue lines to open up the center-ice area for passing, were inspired by his marvelous style.

Other Secondary Sources (most via BillyShoe1721

Here's the HHOF profile on Taylor:
http://www.hhof.com/htmlSpotlight/spot_oneononep194706.shtml

During his time in Renfrew, fans declared that Taylor was such an amazing player that he actually scored a goal skating backwards. "That simply isn't true," Cyclone clarified. "Even though there were many people who would swear they saw it happen, it's just one of those stories that was blown up."

Taylor led the PCHA in scoring 5 times and may have won it a 6th time if it weren't for his damn appendix:

Taylor's prodigious scoring ability was him lead the league in scoring five times altogether. In 1915-16, he totalled 35 points, 43 in 1917-18 and 36 in 1918-19. It is possible that he would also have won the scoring title in 1916-17, but appendicitis kept him out of action for five weeks.

"Was regarded as a speedy rushing defender in the east. (Played rover and center upon moving west) He was a great goal scorer and inspirational leader. He was named many times to western all-star teams.

"When the O'Briens decided to pack the Renfrew team in the newly formed NHA, their plans to win the Cup were predicated on securing Taylor from Ottawa. Although Renfrew never got anywhere in their quest for the Cup, they put on a good show and Taylor was the star."

"Great players like Smokey Harris, Frank Nighbor, Mickey Mackay, Barney Stanley, and Gordon Roberts appeared on the Vancouver forward lines, but Mackay was the only one who seriously challenged Taylor."

Upon his arrival in Houghton/Portage Lakes in 1906 the local newspaper stated:

"Taylor is one of the fastest and most effective, if not the very best player that western Canada has ever produced." (I guess Ontario was considered Western Canada in those days.)

And also: "Taylor is a whirlwind, and has a superior on not any of the league teams."

The likes of Lalonde and several other Hall of Famers played in this league.

Legendary Pittsburgh shortstop Honus Wagner claimed Taylor "was as fine of an athlete as he has ever seen".

His blazing speed dazzled both players and fans alike, and when he used it to dominate the game, scoring five goals in his very first game in the league, it was reported that the governor general turned to his aide and commented, "They should call that man the Cyclone-his speed blew the other team out of the rink."

The rover's place on the ice wasn't clearly defined, but like a centreman, his responsibilities encompassed essentially the entire sheet of ice. Cyclone Taylor was truly one of the best. In fact, some long time sportswriters consider Taylor to be hockey's first superstar. From 1900 to 1918, he was named to the First All Star Team of every league in which he played.

http://books.google.com/books?id=ge...IQ6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=cyclone taylor&f=false

Hockey first national superstar, the superb skater and defecenman-turned-forward Cyclone Taylor, led Vancouver to its one and only Cup victory.

Taylor was famous from coast to coast for his hurricane speed and agility.

http://books.google.com/books?id=6j...0Q6AEwADgK#v=onepage&q=cyclone taylor&f=false

Taylor represented the best that the professional game had to offer. Although not a big man, he was a tenacious, skillful, speedy, and flamboyant player...Like Wayne Gretzky in the late 20th century, Taylor's fame and drawing power extended beyond Canada.

http://books.google.com/books?id=P4...gQ6AEwAjgU#v=onepage&q=cyclone taylor&f=false

'Cylone' Taylor, the Wayne Gretzky of professional hockey in the early decades of the 20th century. Well known for his stellar play, on-ice antics, and high salary...

http://books.google.com/books?id=BB...8Q6AEwBzgU#v=onepage&q=cyclone taylor&f=false

Other newspaper quotes (via BillyShoe1721)

Fred Taylor, the Renfrew star, over whom there was a long wrangle as to whether he should play or not, when Ottawa substituted him for Fred Lake, after the Wanderers had scored twice in the first period, was the most spectacular man on the ice. For cleverness in carrying the puck down the rink his equal has never been seen here. A giant almost in stature he brought the crowd to its feet whenever he started down the ice, Taylor captivated his audience and was warmly applauded after each rush.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AAAAIBAJ&pg=6653,1188124&dq=fred+taylor&hl=en

Cyclone Taylor, the rover of the Vancouver team, is credited with being the individual star of the league and the best scorer in the organization.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=6498,5101751&dq=cyclone+taylor&hl=en

Example of Taylor being expected to play while hurt:

"Cyclone" Taylor, Vancouver's star centre player and boss scorer of the PCHA, is on the hospital list. Playing for the past 2 weeks with a sore back, the scoring wizard suffered a further severe strain in the groin, in the game last Thursday in Seattle. While the veteran, who has been playing in wonderful form of late, is a mighty sick man, it is expected that he will be able to take his place on the lineup against Portland here tonight.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...IBAJ&pg=2778,376304&dq=taylor+vancouver&hl=en

As long as hockey is played the name Fred (Cylone) Taylor will be remembered, but the man who set the yardstick years ago for speed and for being spectacular on the ice is modest enough to believe professional hockey's new generation wouldn't recall him.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=4358,5554312&dq=cyclone+taylor&hl=en

There are many who say that Cyclone was faster than Morenz.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...AIBAJ&pg=1885,3550272&dq=taylor+renfrew&hl=en

 

[Dreakmur]

Martin Brodeur !!!


Awards and Achievements:
3 x Stanley Cup Champion (1995, 2000, 2003)
2 x Olympic Gold Medalist (2002, 2010)
World Cup Championship (2004)

4 x Vezina Winner (2003, 2004, 2007, 2008)
3 x First Team All-Star (2003, 2004 2007)
4 x Second Team All-Star (1997, 1998, 2006, 2008)

World Cup All-Star (2004)

9 x NHL All-Star (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007)
5 x William M. Jennings Winner (1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2010)


Hart voting – 3rd(2003), 3rd(2004), 3rd(2007), 4th(1997), 4th(1998), 5th(2001), 5th(2008), 8th(2010), 12th(1996), 12th(2000), 12th(2006)

Vezina voting – 1st(2003), 1st(2004), 1st(2007), 1st(2008), 2nd(1997), 2nd(1998), 2nd(2006), 3rd(2001), 3rd(2010), 4th(1996), 4th(1999), 5th(2000), 5th(2002), 7th(1994), 8th(1995)

All-Star voting – 1st(2003), 1st(2004), 1st(2007), 2nd(1997), 2nd(1998), 2nd(2006), 2nd(2008), 3rd(1996), 3rd(2000), 3rd(2001), 3rd(2010), 5th(2002), 6th(1994), 6th(1999), 8th(2009)

Statistics:
Save Percentage – 3rd(1997), 3rd(2007), 4th(1994), 5th(1998), 7th(1996), 8th(2008)

Play-off Save Percentage – 1st(1995), 2nd(2003), 3rd(1994), 3rd(2002), 3rd(2009), 4th(1997), 4th(1998), 4th(2006), 5th(2000)


Goals Against Average - 1st(1997), 2nd(1994), 2nd(1998), 3rd(2007), 3rd(010), 4th(2003), 4th(2004), 5th(1996), 5th(2008), 6th(2002), 8th(2000), 10th(1995), 10th(2006), 10th(2009)

Minutes Players - 1st(1996), 1st(1999), 1st(2002), 1st(2004), 1st(2007), 1st(2008), 1st(2010), 2nd(2003), 2nd(2006), 3rd(2000), 3rd(2001), 4th(1998), 7th(1997), 9th(1995)

Save Percantage vs. League Avergae

Season | Average | Brodeur | Difference
1994|0.895|0.915|+0.020
1995|0.901|0.902|+0.001
1996|0.898|0.911|+0.013
1997|0.905|0.927|+0.022
1998|0.906|0.917|+0.011
1999|0.908|0.906|-0.002
2000|0.904|0.910|+0.006
2001|0.903|0.906|+0.003
2002|0.908|0.906|-0.002
2003|0.909|0.914|+0.005
2004|0.911|0.917|+0.006
2006|0.901|0.911|+0.010
2007|0.905|0.922|+0.017
2008|0.909|0.920|+0.011
2009|0.908|0.916|+0.008
2010|0.911|0.916|+0.005
Average ||| +0.0085

He brought tremendous stability to the Devils. He played a standup style, challenged shooters, and had fantastic mobility from side to side and high crease-to-goal line. With positioning, he was so strong that he did not need to flop. he relied on being in the right place at the right time. Because of his early years as a forward, he was also among the very best skaters and stickhandlers in the league.

Voting Record without Dominik Hasek and Patrick Roy:
6 x Vezina Winner (1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008)
5 x First Team All-Star (1997, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2007)
3 x Second Team All-Star (2001, 2006, 2008)

Vezina voting – 1st(1997), 1st(1998), 1st(2003), 1st(2004), 1st(2007), 1st(2008), 2nd(2001), 2nd(2006), 3rd(1999), 3rd(2010), 4th(1996), 4th(2002), 5th(1994), 5th(2000), 7th(1995)

All-Star voting – 1st(1997), 1st(1998), 1st(2003), 1st(2004), 1st(2007), 2nd(2001), 2nd(2006), 2nd(2008), 3rd(2010), 3rd(1996), 3rd(2000), 3rd(2002), 4th(1994), 5th(1999), 8th(2009)


​

 

[BenchBrawl]

BERNARD GEOFFRION

Some information is taken from Velociraptor's biography of Geoffrion.

Basic Information

Position: Right Wing
HT/WT: 5'9", 170 lbs
Handedness: Right
Nickname(s): "Boom Boom", "Bernie"
Born: February 13th, 1931 in Montreal, QC

Top 10 Finishes

Goals: 1, 1, 3, 3, 5, 5, 8, 9
Assists: 6, 6, 6, 7, 10
Points: 1, 1, 4, 6, 6, 7, 7

Goals-Per-Game: 1, 1, 1, 2, 4, 4, 4, 5, 6, 6, 8
Assists-Per-Game: 2, 2, 4, 7, 8, 9
Points-Per-Game: 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8, 10

Link to Bernard Geoffrion's h-r page: http://www.hockey-reference.com/players/g/geoffbe01.html

7 Best Seasons VsX Scores:

Goals: 51.2
Points: 89.9

Awards
Calder Memorial Trophy (51-52)
Art Ross Trophy (54-55)
Art Ross Trophy (60-61)
Hart Memorial Trophy (60-61)

Playoffs:
Led playoffs in goals in 56-57 and 53-54.
Led playoffs in assists in 59-60.
Led playoffs in points in 56-57 and 59-60.

Bernie Geoffrion in the playoffs

Geoffrion was the leading playoff scorer of the dynasty that won 5 Cups in a row from 1956-1960

Leading playoff scorers 1956-1960, sorted by points, points-per-game also listed

player|GP|G|A|P|PPG
Geoffrion|49|29|39|68|1.39
Moore|49|21|36|57|1.16
Beliveau|41|28|27|55|1.34
H Richard|49|13|34|47|0.96
M Richard|42|25|19|44|1.05
Harvey|49|8|32|40|0.82
Olmstead|51|11|28|39|0.76
MacKell|29|12|23|35|1.21
McKenney|29|12|18|30|1.03
Howe|25|7|20|27|1.08

http://www.hockey-reference.com/pla...al=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&or der_by=points

In terms of individual seasons, Geoffrion led the playoffs in goals and points in 1957 (11 goals in 10 games!!!!) and in assists and points in 1960.

Geoffrion was a strong playoff scorer before the dynasty years

In the three years before the dynasty (1953-1955, Habs win 1 Cup, Detroit the other 2), Geoffrion was behind only Howe and Lindsay of the Red Wings dynasty in the playoffs. Only Alex Delvecchio of the Red Wings was close to these 3. (M Richard had an uncharacteristically weak playoffs in 1954 and was suspended for 1955). http://www.hockey-reference.com/pla...al=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&or der_by=points

Overall, Geoffrion scored 10+ points in the playoffs for 8 straight seasons from 1953-1960, back when the playoffs were only two rounds long (his team went to the finals in every year of this time frame). He scored 3 points in 4 playoff games in 1961 (not great, but not terrible) after winning his only Hart Trophy, then declined rapidly in both the regular season and the playoffs.

Geoffrion Playoff Finishes Among Montreal Players

In every season from 52-53 to 59-60, which is a span of 8 consecutive seasons including 6 championships, Bernard Geoffrion was Top 3 in playoff scoring on his team.


52-53

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS 1 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 12 | 6 | 4 | 10
2 | Maurice Richard* | 12 | 7 | 1 | 8
3 | Elmer Lach* | 12 | 1 | 6 | 7
4 | Dickie Moore* | 12 | 3 | 2 | 5
5 | Ken Mosdell | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5

53-54

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS
1 | Dickie Moore* | 11 | 5 | 8 | 13
2 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 11 | 6 | 5 | 11
3 | Jean Beliveau* | 10 | 2 | 8 | 10
4 | Floyd Curry | 11 | 4 | 0 | 4
5 | Paul Masnick | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4

54-55

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS 1 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 12 | 8 | 5 | 13
2 | Jean Beliveau* | 12 | 6 | 7 | 13
3 | Floyd Curry | 12 | 8 | 4 | 12
4 | Calum MacKay | 12 | 3 | 8 | 11
5 | Ken Mosdell | 12 | 2 | 7 | 9

55-56

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS
1 | Jean Beliveau* | 10 | 12 | 7 | 19
2 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 10 | 5 | 9 | 14
3 | Maurice Richard* | 10 | 5 | 9 | 14
4 | Bert Olmstead* | 10 | 4 | 10 | 14
5 | Dickie Moore* | 10 | 3 | 6 | 9

56-57 (Retro-Conn Smythe)

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS 1 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 10 | 11 | 7 | 18
2 | Jean Beliveau* | 10 | 6 | 6 | 12
3 | Maurice Richard* | 10 | 8 | 3 | 11
4 | Dickie Moore* | 10 | 3 | 7 | 10
5 | Bert Olmstead* | 10 | 0 | 9 | 9

57-58

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS
1 | Maurice Richard* | 10 | 11 | 4 | 15
2 | Jean Beliveau* | 10 | 4 | 8 | 12
3 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 10 | 6 | 5 | 11
4 | Dickie Moore* | 10 | 4 | 7 | 11
5 | Doug Harvey* | 10 | 2 | 9 | 11

58-59

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS
1 | Dickie Moore* | 11 | 5 | 12 | 17
2 | Marcel Bonin | 11 | 10 | 5 | 15
3 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 11 | 5 | 8 | 13
4 | Doug Harvey* | 11 | 1 | 11 | 12
5 | Henri Richard* | 11 | 3 | 8 | 11

59-60

Rk | Player | GP | G * | A * | PTS
1 | Henri Richard* | 8 | 3 | 9 | 12
2 | Bernie Geoffrion* | 8 | 2 | 10 | 12
3 | Dickie Moore* | 8 | 6 | 4 | 10
4 | Jean Beliveau* | | 5 | 2 | 7
5 | Marcel Bonin | | 1 | 4 | 5

NHL Playoff VsX (best 5 playoff runs)

Poster seventieslord implemented the VsX system on playoff scoring using the best 5 playoff runs for each player; Geoffrion ranked very high at 5th of all forwards from the period covered (1918-2016).

# | Name | VsX5P
1 | Wayne Gretzky | 37
2 | Gordie Howe | 31.5
3 | Maurice Richard | 31.1
4 | Jean Beliveau | 30.2
5 | Bernie Geoffrion | 29.7
6 | Phil Esposito | 29.6
7 | Joe Sakic | 29.3
8 | Guy Lafleur | 28.5
9 | Mario Lemieux | 28
10 | Ted Kennedy | 27.9
11 | Frank Boucher | 27.1
12 | Dickie Moore | 26.9
13 | Bobby Hull | 26.9
14 | Ted Lindsay | 26.8
15 | Mike Bossy | 26.7
16 | Mark Messier | 26.5
17 | Jacques Lemaire | 26.2
18 | Frank Mahovlich | 26.1
19 | Peter Forsberg | 26
20 | Sergei Fedorov | 26

Red Fisher's Top 10 Montreal Canadiens Skaters since the 50s

1.Jean Béliveau
2.Maurice Richard
3.Guy Lafleur
4.Doug Harvey
5.Henri Richard
6.Larry Robinson
7.Bernard Geoffrion
8.Bob Gainey
9.Dickie Moore
10.Serge Savard

http://www.montrealgazette.com/spor...s+bernard+geoffrion+boomer/2107326/story.html

Quotes

I was a natural as a stick-handler, I was a natural as a shooter, I could put the puck in the net, that's something I had as a talent. A lot of people are great hockey players but they cannot find the net. I could find the net every angle, I want to be humble when I say that. But I always did have confidence when somebody would score two goals, I would say to myself I'm gonna get three. I had to be not better, but I wanted to prove the public, my organization, my teammates that I can play this game of hockey, and you know what I think I did.

With Maurice Richard headlining a who's who of hockey, the Montreal Canadiens had an outstanding power play for years. But when Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion perfected his slap shot from the point, the NHL was forced to take action. With Richard, Jean Beliveau and Dickie Moore up front and Doug Harvey and Geoffrion on the points, the Canadiens often scored two or even three goals during a single minor penalty, so the rules were changed to allow the penalized player back on the ice after a power play goal was scored.

It was "Boom Boom's" dynamic shot that became his trademark. He perfected the now-common slap shot. Firing little discs of frozen rubber at speeds upwards of 100 mph put fear into the hearts of enemy goaltenders as never seen before.

Geoffrion was more than just a heavy shooter. His all-out style of play and unquenchable desire to win enabled him to win the Calder Trophy in 1952 and the Hart Trophy in 1961. He led the league in scoring twice and was name to the First All Star Team in 1961 and the Second in 1955 and 1960. The fact that he made three post-season All Star teams is actually quite amazing. Geoffrion was a right winger in the same era as Maurice Richard and Gordie Howe.

The number five holds a special place in the hearts of Montreal Canadiens fans who remember the late 1950s for two reasons: the number of consecutive Stanley Cup Championships and the flamboyant right winger with the thunderous shot who wore it on his back.

Drive and desire were the key elements of Geoffrion’s game. He played with his heart on his sleeve and thrived on pressure, coming up with highlight performances when the stakes were at their highest. Throwing caution to the wind, he played an “all-out, all the time†game, the only way he knew how.

While his legend was built around his nose for the net and his booming slap shot, Geoffrion was also a skilled passer and playmaker, usually picking up at least as many - if not more - assists as goals.

Bernie Geoffrion, nicknamed "Boom Boom," gained NHL fame for his hard shot and feisty temperament. Born and raised in Montreal, he played right wing for the Montreal Canadiens' dynasty teams in the 1950s and 1960s alongside Maurice "Rocket" Richard and Jean Beliveau. The powerful combination brought the Stanley Cup home to Montreal an amazing six times during Geoffrion's time there, and he also won the league scoring title twice and the Hart Trophy in 1961.

Many claim Geoffrion invented and perfected the slapshot - not bad for a kid who was once told by the assistant coach of a junior hockey team that he'd never make it in big-time hockey.

Geoffrion was almost voted captain (by his teammates) instead of Béliveau, indicating that he was seen as a leader.

"So I'm in a cast when the boys are having the vote. Toe's fedora is being passed around the room, and we're dropping the little papers into it. You could vote for Dickie, for Boom (Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion), for Tom Johnson or for me. By then, I had been 33 days in a cast. I never thought for a second anybody would vote for me. I voted for Dickie." (said Béliveau)

There was a tie for most votes into the fedora during the first ballot, a draw between Beliveau and Geoffrion. The next vote was just between those two Montreal greats.

Once again, the players tossed "little papers" into Blake's fedora. Minutes later, an exercised Geoffrion stormed out of the room and into my view.

"What's the problem?" I asked him.

"Those ******** picked Beliveau," he snapped.

"Yeah, Boom was a little upset," Beliveau said in his Longueuil home. "But ah, you know Boom. He was upset that day, but the next morning he was all right.

https://www.nhl.com/news/jean-beliveau-nobody-comes-close/c-405560

Newspapers

(french in red, translations are mine)

Bernard "Boom Boom" Geoffrion a joué en dépit d'un ''charlie horse''.Il a compté deux buts...

Bernard ''Boom Boom'' Geoffrion played despite suffering from a charley horse (muscle spasm).He scored two goals...

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...GAvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=z9wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1275,4359717

Titre: Bernard Geoffrion est la grande vedette des vainqueurs en participant à tous les buts de son club.

[...]

Bernard Geoffrion a [...] trompé la vigilence de Lorne Worsley sur un lancer du revers et donner une avance d'un but au bleu-blanc-rouge.

Title: Bernard Geoffrion is the great star of the winning team by participating to every goals

[...]

Bernard Geoffrion scored against Lorne Worsley with a backhand shot to give the lead to Montreal

...quand Geoffrion, après avoir accepté une passe de Doug Harvey, laissa partir un boulet d'une cinquantaine de pieds environ.

...when Geoffrion, who accepted a pass from Doug Harvey, made a big slapshot from approximately 50 feets

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...I4qAAAAIBAJ&sjid=alwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1560,2955489

Bernard Geoffrion continue d'être une constante menace pour les cerbères ennemis et il fabrique de très beaux jeux

Bernard Geoffrion continues to be a constant threat for goalies and he fabricates/makes some beautiful plays

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...wcvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=z1QEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2154,2647702

Bernie Geoffrion, who hasn't had a bad year since he hit the NHL, is heading for one of his greatest seasons in the game.He's scoring at the rate of a goal a game.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...0gvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=uioDAAAAIBAJ&pg=1877,1748020

Below is an opinion piece by a certain Roger Meloche about Geoffrion and Béliveau when they were playing in junior

Geoffrion perd son temps

L'an dernier nous avions écrit que Bernard Geoffrion perdait son temps dans la ligue junior.Nous le répétons encore! Il déclasse complètement les autres juniors sauf Jean Béliveau peut-être, et la preuve est qu'il a compté sept buts en une seule partie cette semaine.C'est ridicule de faire jouer un homme avec des enfants.

[...]

Bernard est un colosse; il est rapide, habile et ambitieux et il possède un des lancers les plus terribles du hockey tout entier.

Geoffrion is wasting his time

Last year we wrote that Bernard Geoffrion was wasting his time in the junior league.We're writing it again! He completely outclasses the other junior players except maybe Jean Béliveau, and the proof of that is that he scored seven goals in a single game this week.It's ridiculous to make a man play with children.

[...]

Geoffrion is a strong/big man; he is fast, skilled and ambitious and he possesses one of the scariest shot in all of hockey.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...fY0vAAAAIBAJ&sjid=lDcDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2001,886738

Geoffrion died on the exact same day his #5 jersey was retired by the Montreal Canadiens.The #5 was retired again about 8 years later by the Canadiens to honor defenseman Guy Lapointe.

Legendary Montreal Canadiens forward Bernie (Boom Boom) Geoffrion has died at the age of 75.

Word of his death came early Saturday, the exact date the Canadiens had set to raise Geoffrion's No. 5 to the rafters prior to their game against the New York Rangers at Bell Centre.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/bernie-geoffrion-dead-at-75-1.605615

Geoffrion VS Bathgate

Geoffrion vs Bathgate "per-game" finishes

I find the idea expressed by others in this thread that Geoffrion was a better per-game player than his season-end point totals indicate because he was regularly injured in the regular season to be worth looking at further, especially since he generally was healthy in the playoffs and performed well there.

Anyway, here are Geoffrion's "per-game" finishes compared to Bathgate

Geoffrion points-per-game: 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 8th, 10th
Bathgate points-per-game: 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd, 4th, 4th, 5th, 6th, 6th

*Their regular season points-per-game finishes are nearly identical*

Geoffrion goals-per-game: 1st, 1st, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 4th, 4th, 5th, 6th, 6th, 8th
Bathgate goals-per-game: 3rd, 4th, 5th, 7th, 9th, 9th, 10th

Geoffrion assists-per-game: 2nd, 2nd, 4th, 7th, 8th, 9th
Bathgate assists-per-game: 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 10th

_______________

Conclusion: Perhaps it is not accurate to say that Bathgate was better in the regular season and Geoffrion better in the playoffs. It looks more accurate to say that Bathgate was healthier in the regular season and Geoffrion was better in the playoffs.

2 additional points:

Of course Geoffrion shouldn't get credit for games not played, but I do think that the fact that he generally always brought it in the playoffs is supporting evidence that his "per game" rates in the regular season were a good indication of his actual talent.
Bathgate should get some credit for remaining remarkably healthy. He only missed 5 games total in 10 seasons between 1954-55 and 1963-64.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=90376931&postcount=170

Videos

Legends of Hockey



Highlights & Biography





The slapshot



Savage stick fight, Geoffrion had a short fuse.



Geoffrion attacks a Detroit player

 

[BenchBrawl]

work in progress

doug harvey

L'étoile défensive des Canadiens a été sans contredit Doug Harvey qui se trouvait partout sur la glace et toujours au bon moment pour briser l'attaque de l'ennemi

À deux reprises, les hommes de King Clancy envahirent en masse le territoire du Canadiens et sans un Doug Harvey efficace dans les situations critiques, Toronto aurait compté.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...GAvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=z9wFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1275,4359717

Titre: Partie très rude - Doug Harvey est sensationnel

[...]

Doug Harvey, qui a joué une partie merveilleuse à la ligne bleue fut le premier joueur à bombarder Wosrley dans le troisième engagement...

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...I4qAAAAIBAJ&sjid=alwEAAAAIBAJ&pg=1560,2955489

Colleague Red Fisher yesterday recalled a game in the late 50s against the Rangers in New York when the Candiens' defence was so decimated that they had to bring forwards back to the blue line. ''Doug played 51 minutes that game, and spent four more in the penalty box'', he said.''Ten days later they discovered he'd been playing on a cracked ankle... it had to be ranked as one of the great performances I've seen.''

Scotty Bowman, who coached him in his finals years at St. Louis, said only Harvey, Orr and Wayne Gretzky had the ability ''to see the action in slow-motion and all of the ice at once''.

Besides hockey, he was an superb, heavy-hitting outfielder for Ottawa Nationals baseball team; the star punter-halfback-line-backer for the Navy and Montreal Hornets football team, light heavyweight boxing champion of the Royal Canadian Navy; one of the best players in the Snowdon fastball league and a track and field star at West Hill High.

https://news.google.com/newspapers?...R8yAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1KUFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5064,1735333

 

[ResilientBeast]

Dit Clapper, D/RW

(credit to Nalyd's and Rob Scuderi's previous bios)

-Three time Stanley Cup Champion (1929, '39 & '41)
-Two time Captain of the Stanley Cup Champions (1939 & '41)
-Three time First Team All-Star (1939, '40 & '41 as a D)
-Highest vote-getter in Defenseman All-Star Team voting twice (1940, 1941)
-Three time Second Team All-Star (1931 & '35 as a RW, 1944 as a D)
-Second and Third in Hart Voting (1941, 1940)
-Four times Top 10 in NHL goal scoring (2nd: 1930, 5th: 1935, 8th: 1931 & 10th: 1937
-Two times Top 10 in NHL assist scoring (7th: 1932, 10th, 1930)
-Two times Top 10 in NHL scoring (3rd: 1930, 8th: 1932)
-Four times Top 5 in NHL scoring by a Defenceman (1st: 1941, 2nd: 1939 & '40, 5th: 1943)
-Captain of the Boston Bruins for 13 seasons, 4th longest for any player, held the record for approximately 50 years.
-Named to the Third Team of Red Horner's All-time team at right wing in 1938, behind Bill Cook and Charlie Conacher
-Spent 10 seasons at right wing to start his career, and 9 at defense to end his career

Clapper switched to defense full time starting in the 1937-38 season. After one season getting up to speed, he made the All-Star team in three consecutive years, finishing ahead of established All-Star Earl Seibert each year. Two of these years he led all defensemen in voting points for the equivalent of a retro Norris Trophy. In 1942 Clapper had his Achilles Tendon severed taking him out of AST consideration.

1938-39| Eddie Shore | Dit Clapper |Earl Seibert |Art Coulter
1939-40| Dit Clapper |Ebbie Goodfellow |Art Coulter |Earl Seibert
1940-41| Dit Clapper |Wally Stanowski |Earl Seibert |Ott Heller
1943-44| Babe Pratt| Earl Seibert |Emile Bouchard | Dit Clapper

While demonstrating a high level of skill both as a defenseman and as a forward, Aubrey "Dit" Clapper became one of the league's most versatile performers. In a career that lasted two decades, he forged a reputation as a tenacious yet honest competitor. He rarely looked for trouble on the ice, but if the game turned rough, he was one of the league's more accomplished pugilists. Throughout his pro tenure, Clapper was a respected leader on the ice and in the dressing room.

Clapper diagnosed the plays like a great infielder in baseball.He put himself where the puck had to come.

Called better defensively than Eddie Shore in 1938, praised for his working clearing rebounds

Aubrey "Dit" Clapper, of the Bruins, rates as the best "second goalkeeper" in the NHL since Lionel Conacher was stopping and smother shots in front of the Maroon netminders...Clapper is even better than Shore in this respect and between the two of them they contribute a lot to Frank Brimsek's amazing success, although nobody can take any credit away from the rookie phenomenon...Other goalkeepers, however, will tell you that the most useful support Brimsek gets from his defencemen is the manner in which they clear...Brimsek can take care of any shots that come his way, but he doesn't have to worry much about rebounds: Shore, Clapper and company look after them...

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...iIyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ZqgFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3145,2986610

Called the greatest of defensemen in 1942

Dit Clapper, rated as the greatest of defensemen, suffered a severed achilles tendon...

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...L80AAAAIBAJ&sjid=oHEFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2639,2522043

"Dit Clapper coasting with apparent ease, through his 20th big league season," noted The Toronto Star in December 1946. "has few if any peers, physically or mentally in the long history of hockey. "While Clapper's longevity isn't unheard of it it hadn't come with hard work...

In 1948 The Hockey News summed up Clapper's approach: "Clapper had a simple creed - he fought his heart out, bounced players around and took the same kind of punishment he dished out. Once the game was over he forgot it all and never held a grudge. That's what made him so popular with other players and fans throughout the entire NHL circuit."

He and Seibert were called the prototypical two-way defenseman for assembling a championship quality squad in 1942

Five men- one-third the numerical strength allowed a NHL team in action - are sufficient foundation on which to build a championship hockey team, if you get the right five men...And finally one pillar-of-strength two-way defenceman as your spark and rallying-point (an Earl Seibert or a Dit Clapper)...

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...78tAAAAIBAJ&sjid=QZkFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6714,5250586

Clapper's injury in 1942 made way for Seibert to come out as the big winner in AST voting

Seibert was returned to the first team for the first time since the 1934-35 season although he has made the alternate club every season since. This time, with the great Clapper injured the last six weeks of the season, there was no one to give Seibert much opposition and he polled 18 first-team ballots.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...3gtAAAAIBAJ&sjid=3JgFAAAAIBAJ&pg=4085,1111889

Strong praise from Frank Boucher, calling Clapper the greatest ice general he ever saw

Coach Frank Boucher of New York Rangers, in an interview tonight, said he believes Aubrey (Dit) Clapper, Boston Bruins defenceman, is the greatest player in present-day hockey.
...
The New York mentor termed Clapper "the greatest ice general" he ever saw. He has highly developed power of leadership and the ability to inspire and preserve balance among his associates. Clapper knows hockey perhaps better than anyone else in the business, Boucher said.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n..._kuAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BdwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3071,3778139

Called the most important player on a team of star players on a 16 game undefeated streak

Giving all due credit for Boston's remarkable streak-now 16 games without a loss-to such players as Bill Cowley, Milt Schmidt, and the other high-scoring forwards, and to the Bruins' fine goalie, Frank Brimsek, it's hard to imagine them achieving such a record without a big fellow named Aubrey Clapper in the lineup every game.

Clapper, better known as "Dit," is 34 years old, and he has been playing pro hockey in a Boston uniform 14 seasons, but he's still about the most important single individual on the Bruins' team. Once a star forward, he's now the mainstay of a defense that is one of the best in the National Hockey League. He still has the speed to go down and score a goal in an occasional "clutch."

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...4xAAAAAIBAJ&sjid=r6QMAAAAIBAJ&pg=6720,2494104

The Bruins defense was repeatedly praised, even after Shore retired and Clapper led the group

The Leafs cut loose with everything at the start of the third, but the Bruins "all-star" defense of Eddie Shore and Dit Clapper tightened in front of Brimsek.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...qlQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ECIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6511,5380587

...while the rearguard, built around those stout supports, Eddie Shore and Dit Clapper, afforded young Frankie Brimsek such protection that the cat-like kid won the Vezina Trophy for having least goals-against him in the league, 76, and also walked off with the shutout honors...

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...I38uAAAAIBAJ&sjid=75gFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3100,280183

[Stanowski] was a mainstay for the Leafs from start to finish just as the veteran Dit Clapper was for the Bruins. They form a solid combination with the smooth Mr. Clapper providing a steadying influence for the rushing Stanowski. Clapper, himself, passed the double-century mark in goals this season and could lend the puck-carriers on this all-star outfit considerable help.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...AMvAAAAIBAJ&sjid=1dsFAAAAIBAJ&pg=5318,3906388

Those sets of forwards, who can cut loose with terrific power and speed, canny stickhandling and youthful enthusiasm in turn, will operate in front of one of the league's strongest defensive squads, veteran Dit Clapper, the player-coach, Jack Crawford, Murray Henderson, Pat Egan and Jack Church.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...CQzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=BtwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=6099,4224947

More evidence he could pair well with a rushing defenceman

Capt. Dit Clapper appears to be the mainstay of the defense line and teams well with Flash Hollett.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...vZEAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qboMAAAAIBAJ&pg=5670,4591275

Clapper was a good fighter as well

Lester's husky son packs the kick of a mule in that lightning straight right of his and Eddie never will go anywhere but down throwing hooks a thim..Dit Clapper is the boy to handle the belting [Muzz] and all the latter has to do to get that 210-pounder on his neck is take a poke at his pal Frankie Brimsek, as a couple of the Rangers did Tuesday night in New York..

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...RIqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=J2oFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1327,7196568

The clubs staged a rough preview of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Twice, Dit Clapper and Art Coulter came to blows, and each drew major penalties for the second fisticuffs.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...7g0AAAAIBAJ&sjid=z20FAAAAIBAJ&pg=4337,3936104

Mariucci is fast and rugged but, he should be advised, not so much so that he can slug it out with Dit Clapper, as he was trying to do last until Referee King Clancy intervened, just when that burly Bruin was uncorking his Sunday punch.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...IDFkAAAAIBAJ&sjid=S_gMAAAAIBAJ&pg=3101,418845

Clapper won the award for Bruins MVP and finished runner up another year

By unanimous vote, Capt. Dit Clapper was adjudged the "most valuable" Boston Bruins player Wednesday by the Boston hockey writers and will be presented the Elizabeth Dufresne trophy. The other others who have been so honored were Goalie Tiny Thompson...and Eddie Shore...

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...7NQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=YCIEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5019,6058444

Tiny Thompson has been voted the most valuable player on the Boston team on home ice, in the opinion of Bruin writers for the second successive season...Dit Clapper was runner-up.

http://news.google.com/newspapers?n...38uAAAAIBAJ&sjid=CpkFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3751,4510966

 

[jarek]

Eddie Gerard, D/LW

Height: 5'9
Weight: 168 lbs.
Shoots: Right

Scoring Exploits (Defense)
2nd (1918), 2nd (1919), 4th (1920), 5th (1921), 5th (1923), 6th (1922)

Scoring Percentages (Defense, Vs1)
82, 76, 74, 61, 56, 51

seventieslord VsXD scores: 100, 100, 76, 75, 69, 67, avg. 6 years: 81.2*, 7 years: 69.6

*He only played 6 seasons as a defenseman, so I am including his 6 year score.

Ultimate Hockey
Best Defensive Defenseman of the 1920's
Retro Norris: 1920-21 Season

Legends of Hockey

Rarely in hockey history has a defenseman exhibited as high a level of play and gentlemanly conduct as Eddie Gerard. While playing a position that constantly required physical confrontation, he performed with superior efficiency but in sportsmanlike fashion. Gerard was a fine skater with superior puckhandling capabilities who was a fair match for any adversary at either end of the ice, while his leadership skills made him the ideal captain for the Stanley Cup-winning Ottawa Senators and a fine coach with the Cup champion Montreal Maroons in 1926.

Gerard first signed with hockey's Ottawa Senators in 1913-14, a transaction that reaped many benefits for the club. He began as a forward, playing on a line with Jack Darragh and Skene Ronan, and didn't switch to defense for another three years. Following this positional shift, Gerard established himself as a tower of strength on his squad's defense while serving as the team's inspirational heart. He formed an outstanding defensive partnership with George Boucher and was the natural choice for team captain.

Gerard captained the version of the Senators that was dubbed the "Super Six" as a tribute to their winning three Stanley Cups in four years between 1920 and 1923. During the 1920 Stanley Cup series against the Seattle Metropolitans, Gerard formed an impenetrable defensive wall with Sprague Cleghorn in his own zone and scored on a dramatic end-to-end rush in the deciding game. The Senators retained the Cup the following year in an emotionally charged series versus the PCHA champion Vancouver Millionaires. In one of the most keenly watched Stanley Cup encounters of the 1920s, Ottawa triumphed in the fifth and deciding game with a 2-1 score.

The Senators didn't fare as well during the 1921-22 schedule, finishing first overall but then falling to Toronto for the NHL championship. Oddly enough, Gerard also found himself competing for the Stanley Cup on behalf of the Toronto St. Patricks. The St. Pats were riddled with injuries during their Cup encounter with the Vancouver Millionaires, so Vancouver manager Lester Patrick agreed to allow the Toronto club to call on any defense player in eastern Canada for the remainder of the series. Gerard was quickly summoned and played a crucial part in the St. Pats' victory in the fourth game of the match-up. In fact, he was so impressive that Patrick balked at allowing Gerard to participate in the fifth and deciding contest. It mattered little, as Toronto won the final match 5-1, with much of the credit for the shift in momentum resting with Gerard's involvement in the previous game.

The 1922-23 season found Gerard on his fourth straight Stanley Cup-winning side. The Ottawa club defeated Vancouver three games to one, then vanquished Edmonton in two straight matches to claim hockey's ultimate prize. The final match against Edmonton on March 31, 1923, proved to be Gerard's swan song in pro hockey.

On retiring as a player, Gerard turned his attention to coaching. He became bench boss with the Montreal Maroons at the start of the 1925-26 schedule and promptly led that franchise to its first Stanley Cup championship. In 1930 he moved on to manage the New York Americans before returning to the Maroons two years later. Gerard ventured on to St. Louis to handle the Eagles in 1934-35 but was forced to step down due to his failing health. His career was one filled with a great deal of success both on and off the ice. A member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, Gerard was among the first 12 inductees when the Hockey Hall of Fame was founded in 1945.

Greatest Hockey Legends

This is Eddie Gerard, one of the early greats of the game. An inaugural member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, some writers back in the day claimed he was better than Eddie Shore.

He was born February 22nd, 1890. He would grow up to be a great athlete, also starring in football, paddling, cricket, tennis and lacrosse.

But it was hockey he loved most, and he excelled at his whole life. And he did it all in his hometown of Ottawa.

Gerard played his amateur hockey with Ottawa New Edinburghs before turning professional with the NHA's Ottawa Senators in 1913-14 as a left wing. It was far from an easy decision, as Gerard had a stable job with Geodetic Survey of Canada.

But the chance to play hockey against the best in the world proved to be too strong of a calling for Gerard. Well, that and money. The Senators offered Gerard a $400 signing bonus, a significant sum in those days. Gerard's father is said to have proclaimed that the hockey team were "a bunch of damned fools" for such a signing bonus.

It paid off for the Sens though, and quite handsomely at that. Gerard had 10 assists in 1914-15,which in those days was exceptional. He played in the Stanley Cup final that season, but Ottawa lost to the Vancouver Millionaires.

In 1917-18, the NHL was formed and he served as the Senators player-coach After a losing season he gave way to Alf Smith. It was in 1917-18 that Gerard moved back to defense for good, and this is where he would prove to be so great.

In 1918-19 Gerard was outstanding this year, both offensively and defensively as Ottawa gave up the fewest goals against for the next five years, largely in part due to Gerard's outstanding play. Gerard would be named captain of the Senators and the team would go on to win the Stanley Cup - the first of four championships for Eddie.

1920-21 was one of his best seasons. Not only did he score 11 goals in 24 games, but Ottawa continued to be the best defensive team in the NHL, and Gerard's great passing and stickhandling abilities left little room for rough play.

But he ran wild in the 1921 playoffs, getting 53 minutes in penalties in 7 games to lead all performers in that dubious distinction. The Senators also won their second straight Stanley Cup that year.

Gerard had another great year in 1921-22 with 7 goals 11 assists for 18 points in 21 games. Oddly, he would play on a Stanley Cup champion this year as well, but not with the Senators. The Toronto St. Patricks had beaten Ottawa and played Vancouver for the Cup. During one of the games Harry Cameron was injured and the St.Pats asked permission of the Patricks to use Eddie Gerard and were granted permission. He played well in that one game, and that prompted Frank Patrick to withdraw his permission for the final game. But it was too late as Toronto defeated Vancouver 5-1 to win the Cup.

Gerard was back with Ottawa for 1922-23, but misfortune struck him. He was struck in the throat by Sprague Cleghorn, damaging his vocal cords. He would only have a weak voice for the rest of his life. But he stuck it out and played 23 games for the Senators that season.

Despite injuries, he played well in the Stanley Cup classic and when the undermanned Senators won the Stanley Cup that year, Frank Patrick, president of the PCHA called them the greatest team he had ever seen.

But Gerard had enough as a player, as the asthma and the throat injury convinced him to retire.

He was a gentleman on and off the ice and played his defense position well and cleanly. He signed as an assistant coach of the Montreal Canadiens in 1923-24. During 1924-25, Hart was both manager and coach, but resigned as coach at mid-season, leaving the coaching to Gerard. When Hart was fired at season's end, Gerard was named general manager as well.

Gerard accompanied Cecil Hart to the new Montreal Professional Hockey Club which would be named the Maroons in 1925-26. Gerard was also instrumental in signing Babe Siebert and Nels Stewart. These two led the Maroons to win the Stanley Cup in 1925-26.

Gerard went to the finals yet again in 1928, but lost to the New York Rangers in that classic series where Gerard refused to lend Alex Connell or Hugh McCormick to the Rangers to replace the injured Lorne Chabot in goal. In an unsportsmanlike gesture, Gerard chuckled as he told the Rangers 44 year old coach Lester Patrick to take to the nets himself. Patrick did, and he unthinkably beat the Maroons in that game for one of the most famous moments in Stanley Cup history. Joe Miller finished the series for the Rangers as they defeated the Maroons for the Cup.

After a last place finish in 1928-29, Gerard's Maroons finished first for the first time in 1929-30, but they lost in the playoffs. Gerard received a lucrative contract offer from the New York Americans, though the stint would prove to be unsuccessful. He would return the Maroons and later coached the St. Louis Eagles, but his magic seemed to be lost.

Throat cancer claimed the life of Eddie Gerard in August of 1937. He was only 47 years old and all of those who knew him mourned.There had been another death that year of another great of the game, Howie Morenz, who also died too young.

For recognition of his great contributions to hockey, Gerard was one of the nine charter members elected to the brand new Hockey Hall of Fame in Kingston, which later moved to Toronto.

The 1923 Cup final (Gerard's final season, after which he was forced to retire on doctor's orders)

Gerard suffered a severe shoulder injury in this series, and George Boucher suffered a badly cut ankle and was out for the series. Gerard played in the Edmonton series with his shoulder bound up with adhesive tape. Although suffering intense pain, he refused to stay off the ice, and frequently escaped from the bench, where Tommy Gorman, manager, and Frank "Cosy" Dolan, trainer, tried to keep him.

Gerard was captain of the team that year and he played the greatest part of the two games with Edmonton.

Thoughts from contemporary sources:

King Clancy

Before I'm finished with this narrative, maybe you'll be thinking that far too often I say this player was great and that player was great; that I build too many pedestals for these stars of the past to stand on. But there's no question about Gerard being a fabulous hockey player. They talk about Doug Harvey and Eddie Shore and one or two other legendary defencemen. Gerard was in that class--a brilliant skater and a fine team man.

Tommy Gorman

I admired Eddie Gerard more than any athlete I ever handled. He always gave all he had, was a great organizer, an exceptional team captain, and a fine sport. He was courageous and possessed a fighting-spirit that was hard to beat. He was the spark-plug of the famous Super-Six, which I consider the greatest team of all time. Eddie Gerard and Sprague Cleghorn, were in my opinion, the greatest defence in hockey.

Sprague Cleghorn

In my estimation, there was none better. You can have all your Shores and Conachers, and the others, but Eddie Gerard was in a class by himself. He knew just what to do and no one ever needed to coach him.

Gerard on all time teams:

Cyclone Taylor (Hockey Pictorial, February 1956)

The second "dream team" dates from the start of the modern era to 1944. Tiny Thompson, goal. Eddie Shore and Eddie Gerard, defense. Howie Morenz, Syl Apps and Bill Cook, his forward line.

Cyclone picked two centers in Morenz and Apps but explained that by commenting "They would have been just as great playing wing as they were at center."

Red Dutton

Red Dutton...selects an all-star, all-time team, all-time only in the respect that he deals with players who have come and gone under the big toll of the NHL since he began to play. Dutton's team: Sprague Cleghorn, right defense; Eddie Gerard, left defense; Eddie Shore, No 2 right defense; Herb Gardiner, No 2 left defense...

Shorty Green

Goal: Georges Vezina
Defence: Sprague Cleghorn
Defence: Eddie Gerard
Centre: Frank Nighbor
Right wing: Bill Cook
Left wing: Aurel Joliat

Gerard and Cleghorn he regards as top defenceman for their ice generalship and thumping rearguard play.

Foster Hewitt

Goal: Charlie Gardiner, Chicago Black Hawks in the early thirties. "A colorful holler guy. If somebody threw a hat on the ice, Gardiner'd wear it the whole game."
Defence: Eddie Shore, Boston Bruins 25 years ago. "Colorful, high-handed and hotheaded. A bull moose when you got his goat."
Defence: Eddie Gerard: "Great ice-leader and traffic director."
Centre: Howie Morenz, Montreal Canadians circa 1930. "Reeked with color. He'd electrify a crowd the minute he got the puck. A regular sputnik on skates."
Left Wing: Ted Lindsay, lately of Chicago and Detroit. "He scored, checked, and needled. Play with him and you play with dynamite."
Right Wing: Rocket Richard, Montreal immortal. "Put people in the rink and pucks in the net. He was the Babe Ruth, the home-run hitter of hockey."

Jim Coleman, 10 best players all time

Howie Morenz
Eddie Shore
Gordon Howe
Maurice Richard
Bobby Orr
Bobby Hull
Jean Beliveau
Milt Schmidt
Dit Clapper
Eddie Gerard - One must defer to the opinion of King Clancy and hockey historian Charles L. Coleman who insist that Gerard was the best. On Wednesday of this week, Clancy said "You can put Gerard's name at the very top of your list."

Thoughts from HFBoards posters:

overpass commentary on the all-time teams

At the end of Vol. 1 of The Trail of the Stanley Cup the author, Charles L. Coleman, selected his all-star team for 1893-1926.

D: Harry Cameron, Sprague Cleghorn, Eddie Gerard, and Ernie Johnson

He selected Sprague Cleghorn and Ernie Johnson.

Gerard was also among the inaugural class of 12 players inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1945.

Taking a critical eye to the opinions above:

I'd put the least weight on Dutton's opinion. He was a very good friend of Gerard and gave the eulogy at Gerard's funeral.

The great hockey writer Jim Coleman admits he didn't see Gerard play, he's taking the word of Clancy and historian Charles Coleman. It probably means something that he bought what they were saying.

Cyclone Taylor, Shorty Green, and Foster Hewitt would all be independent sources who saw Gerard play.

Gorman and Cleghorn were being quoted just after Gerard's death, so take that into consideration.

Finally, it's also worth emphasizing Gerard's experience in the 1922 Stanley Cup Final, when Toronto was given the choice of any defenseman in hockey to replace the injured Harry Cameron in Game 4, and chose Gerard. Gerard played so well that Vancouver refused to allow him to play in Game 5.

Originally Posted by pitseleh
From what I've gathered reading old newspapers and the like, Eddie Gerard is generally held in much higher regard than Boucher and Cameron. His name is generally brought up in the discussion of the greatest defensemen (along with Hod Stuart and Lester Patrick) from people who saw them play, but Cameron and Boucher are not as mentioned.

ResilientBeast posted a list of all-time teams compiled by a number of different hockey people from the early 1900s, found here: link. The 4 big defensemen of the era showed up as such:

Stuart 8
Cleghorn 6
Gerard 4
Boucher 2

 

[BenchBrawl]

BRYAN TROTTIER

Some information was taken from poster BraveCanadian's bio.

Basic Information

Born: July 17, 1956
Position: C
Height: 5-11
Weight: 195 lbs

Top 10 Finishes

Goals: 5, 5, 8
Assists: 1, 1, 4, 5, 5, 5, 5, 8
Points: 1, 2, 5, 6, 8, 10

Goals-Per-Game: 5, 6
Assists-Per-Game: 1, 1, 3, 4, 5, 9, 9, 10
Points-Per-Game: 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 9

Link to Bryan Trottier's h-r page: http://www.hockey-reference.com/players/t/trottbr01.html

7 Best Seasons VsX Score:

93.7

Awards

Won the Art Ross Trophy in 78-79
Won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 79-80
Won the Stanley Cup in 79-80, 80-81, 81-82, 82-83, 90-91 and 91-92
Won the Hart Memorial Trophy in 78-79

Hart Memorial Trophy Finishes: 1, 2, 2, 3, 5
Frank J. Selke Trophy Finishes: 2, 8, 8, 10

All-Star Team Selections

1st, 1st, 2nd, 2nd, 3rd, 4th

New York Islanders Top Playoff Scorers in the Dynasty Years

Rk | Player | GP | G | A | PTS
1 | Mike Bossy* | 72 | 61 | 50 | 111
2 | Bryan Trottier* | 75 | 37 | 70 | 107
3 | Denis Potvin* | 78 | 27 | 58 | 85
4 | Bob Bourne | 74 | 31 | 43 | 74
5 | John Tonelli | 76 | 25 | 38 | 63
6 | Butch Goring | 78 | 27 | 35 | 62
7 | Bob Nystrom | 73 | 27 | 26 | 53
8 | Clark Gillies* | 66 | 20 | 27 | 47
9 | Duane Sutter | 72 | 20 | 25 | 45
10 | Stefan Persson | 59 | 7 | 34 | 41

Bryan Trottier led the playoffs in scoring two times.

NHL Coaches Survey

Best defensive forward | 5th | 1984
Best on faceoffs | 1st | 1984
Best passer | 1st | 1979
Best playmaker | 1st | 1979
Best stickhandler | 2nd | 1979
First player to build team around | 2nd | 1979
First player to build team around | 3rd | 1981
Hardest worker | 5th | 1984
Smartest player | 2nd | 1979
Smartest player | 4th | 1984

http://hfboards.com/showthread.php?p=30627114 From Hockey Outsider

The Players Tribune

Letter to my younger self - piece written by Bryan Trottier in 2015 reflecting on his career

Quotes

I think history will remember Trots as a great hockey player and me as a great goal scorer, not a great hockey player. I can't say who's better because we were so different

http://nyislanderslegends.blogspot.ca/2006/09/bryan-trottier.html

Bryan was an overall player.He could do anything and everything.He could adapt his game to any kind of game

"Gretzky is an offensive genius for sure," said the slightly biased Islanders bench boss. "But at this stage Trots gives you more things. Defensively, he's outstanding. And he's physically tough. He comes up with his 100 points a year, automatically, along with everything else!"

http://nyislanderslegends.blogspot.ca/2006/09/bryan-trottier.html

The one thing that always struck me about Bryan was the sheer power of his body.I don't think many people realized how big and strong he was until they got run over.

Trottier is the most complete player in the game

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1121353/index.htm#ixzz1CisYjyIF

What you don't realize is that Trottier weighs over 200 pounds. You can't budge the guy or knock the puck off of his stick. And he hands out a lot of punishment at close quarters.

http://nyislanderslegends.blogspot.ca/2006/09/bryan-trottier.html

"Its his poise that really stands out," said teammate Billy Harris during Trots rookie year. "He's always calm, regardless of the situation. And he's got tremendous hockey sense. He is, if there is such a thing, a natural born center."

http://nyislanderslegends.blogspot.ca/2006/09/bryan-trottier.html

Trottier has ripened into the most effective total forward since Gordie Howe

http://nyislanderslegends.blogspot.ca/2006/09/bryan-trottier.html

I wore No. 19 because of Bryan Trottier. I liked the overall aspect of his game. I liked the way he conducted himself on the ice. He was a quiet guy. He played really hard; just a good all-around, prototypical center man who could do everything.

brainyquote.com

He's rugged like Howe. Gordie liked to play a physical game and so does Bryan.

http://nyislanderslegends.blogspot.ca/2006/09/bryan-trottier.html

"Bryan brings a lot of confidence to a team," said Jiri Hrdina, a member of the 1988-89 Calgary Flames Stanley Cup champions. "It's an important thing to have players that know what to do this time of year."

http://www.lighthousehockey.com/201...pion-and-career-penguin-its-a-joke-lighten-up

Bryan Trottier was a modern-day player with old-fashioned attributes. At a time when specialists were beginning to take over from the all-round player, Trottier was a throwback. He was a defensively sound centerman with the vision and instincts of a pure scorer.

http://www.legendsofhockey.net/Lege...?mem=p199702&type=Player&page=bio&list=#photo

He was still a dedicated and effective defensive player, however, and in 1990 the Pittsburgh Penguins signed the veteran to bolster their playoff chances. Trottier was an important part of the Penguin team that won two straight titles after he joined the squad. Stars such as Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr attributed much of the team's success to the aging star's leadership, his drive and desire. Trottier retired following the Penguins' second Cup victory and spent one year in the Islanders' front office.

http://www.legendsofhockey.net/Lege...?mem=p199702&type=Player&page=bio&list=#photo

He's a joker among his teammates in the locker room, but he masks his feelings in public

https://books.google.ca/books?id=eGYEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA28&ots=EitP3YRAFg&pg=PA28#v=onepage&q&f=false

When Trottier and Gretzky went head-to-head in the 1983 Stanley Cup finals, it was the Islander star who emerged with the glory.And the Islanders won the cup.

[...]

Trottier himself scored only one goal and added three assists, but he played the whole set with a painful knee injury that hampered his offense.However, breadth of Bryan's talent extends far beyond his scoring ability.He was dominant in all other phases of the game from play-making to penalty killing.In addition, he took every critical face-off for his team.

Trottier also played a vital role in the Islanders' defensive scheme to throttle down the amazing Great One from Edmonton.

https://books.google.ca/books?id=eGYEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA28&ots=EitP3YRAFg&pg=PA28#v=onepage&q&f=false

It was here that Bryan Trottier, the rookie, took charge.He pursued the puck, forechecked, crashed the boards and controlled the puck for long periods.Then, when he lost the puck, he harried the Sabres so ferociously that they could not form an attack.

https://books.google.ca/books?id=eGYEAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PA28&ots=EitP3YRAFg&pg=PA28#v=onepage&q&f=false

Brent Sutter, though, fondly remembers a time when another squadron ruled the dots.

During the 1980s, New York Islanders head coach Al Arbour, with great success, would platoon Bryan Trottier (a lefty) and Sutter (a righty).

"Trots and I took all the faceoffs in our zone".

He'd take' em on one side of the ice and I'd take 'em on the other side of the ice.Al put us out there at the same time.

https://www.pressreader.com/canada/calgary-herald/20091205/283008280869662

 

[Dreakmur]

Jean-Claude Tremblay !!!

Awards and Achievements:
5 x Stanley Cup Champion (1965, 1966, 1968, 1969, 1971)
Avco Cup Champion (1977)

First Team All-Star (1971)
Second Team All-Star (1968)

2 x Dennis A. Murphy Trophy Winner (1973, 1975)
3 x First Team WHA All-Star (1973, 1975, 1976)
Second Team WHA All-Star (1974)


Norris voting - 2nd(1968), 3rd(1971), 4th(1966), 5th(1967), 5th(1972), 8th(1969)
All-Star voting - 2nd(1971), 3rd(1968), 5th(1966), 5th(1967), 5th(1972), 8th(1969), 10th(1964), 10th(1965), 12th(1963)


Offensive Accomplishments:
Assists - 6th(1971), 8th(1972)
Play-off Points - 2nd(1966), 6th(1965), 7th(1971)
Play-off Assists - 1st(1965), 2nd(1966), 2nd(1971), 10th(1968)

Points among Defensemen - 2nd(1966), 2nd(1971), 3rd(1972), 5th(1967), 6th(1969), 11th(1965), 11th(1968), 12th(1964), 14th(1962), 16th(1963)
Play-off Points among Defensemen - 1st(1965), 1st(1966), 1st(1971), 2nd(1967), 2nd(1968), 5th(1969), 7th(1964), 8th(1962)


WHA Points - 11th(1973), 17th(1976)
WHA Assists - 1st(1973), 1st(1976), 11th(1975), 19th(1974)

WHA Points among Defensemen - 1st(1973), 1st(1975), 1st(1976), 3rd(1974)
WHA Play-off Points among Defensemen - 1st(1977), 2nd(1975)


Summit Series Points - 9th(1974)
Summit Series Points among Defensemen - 1st(1974)


5 Year Peak: 1965 to 1969
3rd in Points among Defensemen, 98% of 2nd place Pat Stapleton
1st in Play-off Points among Defensemen, 205% of 2nd place Pierre Pilote

10 Year Peak: 1963 to 1972
2nd in Points among Defensemen, 66% of 1st place Bobby Orr
2nd in Play-off Points among Defensemen, 95% of 1st place Bobby Orr

Scoring Percentages:
Points among Defensemen - 100, 100, 83, 78, 71, 70, 60, 58, 57

Best 6 Seasons: 502

Ultimate Hockey's Best Poke-Checker of the 1970s


Time on Ice:
(based on goals for and against numbers)
1968 - 1st Pair, 1st PP, 1st PK
1969 - #1 Defenseman, 1st PP, 1st PK
1970 - injured, though based on per game average, 1st Pair, 1st PP, 1st PK
1971 - #1 Defenseman, 1st PP, 1st PK
1972 - #1 Defenseman, 1st PP, 1st PK

Although never a high-scoring defenseman, he always managed a substantial number of assists, evidence of his playmaking abilities.

Never a physical defenseman, Tremblay relied on his skating and puck control to play a finesse game.

The great Red Fisher called Jean-Claude Tremblay the finest stick-handler of his era. The flashy defenseman's style was all about timing and control and he was at his very best when left alone to doodle with the puck as his forwards got in position to take a feed. Unfortunately, he played like a scared little girl against aggressive, hard-checking teams.

A superb skater – fast, mobile and blessed with innate hockey smarts – Tremblay was an offensive threat able to make precise passes through traffic to teammates in full flight. On December 29, 1962, he picked up four assists in a single period.

Forgoing the more robust style of play preferred by most defensemen, Tremblay rarely lay on the body, going about things with a bit more finesse than most of his peers. A magician with his stick, Tremblay effortlessly stripped enemy forwards of the puck, turning it back up the ice to begin the counter attack.

Agile and elusive, once Tremblay had the puck, rarely did opponents get it back. He quarterbacked the most potent power play in the league and often seemed to kill entire penalties on his own, weaving his way through whole teams for the duration of his team’s penalty.

Dedicated to his craft, Tremblay spent countless hours refining his skills and adding to his bag of tricks. He developed a long lob that he occasionally released from centre ice, sometimes embarrassing unsuspecting goalies.

Claude (J.C.) Tremblay is one of the most intelligent, two-way defenders of all time. Yet very few give him recognition as such. Tremblay's departure in 1972 to the World Hockey Association on one hand helped to establish the WHA as a true alternative to the National Hockey League, but on the other hand appears to have hurt his shot at eternal fame.

J.C. starred for years with the Montreal Canadiens. He became a regular in 1961 and played for 794 games until 1972. Tremblay was an excellent all around performer during this time, and saved his best performances for the playoffs.

He never was a true offensive force during his first 11 regular seasons. His highest offensive output was 39 points. He was tremendously responsible defensively and a great two way defenseman, often headmanning the puck to the speedy Montreal forwards, but never put up great numbers until 1970-71.

Defensively Tremblay was efficient and heady, relying on his intelligent stick to break up plays rather than bones. He never really had an obvious physical game, something that his critics pointed out regularly. But he was so smart, it did not really matter.

Tremblay established his reputation as a great in the playoffs, where he was a tremendous performer, seemingly able to turn up his game like flicking a switch. He scored 14 goals, 51 assists and 65 points in 108 games, helping the Montreal Canadiens to 5 Stanley Cup championships.

During his time, there was nobody better, in terms of taking care of business in his own end of the ice.

He didn't have the size, but few had a better understanding of what was needed to win. Tremblay's colleagues during his years with the team were people such as Jacques Laperrière, Ted Harris and Terry Harper, but when a lead had to be protected or an important goal was needed, Tremblay was your man.

Scouting Reports:

Tremblay's career has already peaked and he's now looking down the other side of the hill. But speed and muscle, long suits of younger men, were never among Tremblay's strong points. He is a thiniking man's defenseman, probably the smartest in the WHA, if not the NHL, too. His greatest enemy is excess weight which can diminish his maneuverability.

....

Had what he described as a "miserable" season last winter... Vows it will never happen again... Still his "miserable" season meant third highest number of assists by a defenseman, selection to the second all-star team and an appearance in the 1974 All-Star Game...

J.C. Tremblay had a great first half, stripped of the weight and worry that bogged him down the previous two years. A shoulder bothered him through the final 30 games, but he played masterfully, gearing games to his pace. He made mistakes, some of them at home where he was booed lustily.

But Tremblay's greatest fault is simply setting his standards to high in people's minds that they expect nothing less than excellence from him all the time.

He didn't have many off nights. By a margin of more than 2-to-1 he was named the WHA's Defenseman-of-the-Year. He was an all-star, polling just under 100 more votes than the man who joined him on the first team, Kevin Morrison of San Diego.

....

Naturally, he was an easy winner of the Dennis A. Murphy Award, presented annually to the WHA's top defenseman... A master of puck control who has uncanny ability of governing most games to a pace that suits him...

J.C. Tremblay, the perennial All-Star, is still clever and quick on the ice 30 minutes a game, or more. He is predictably steady and undeniably great.

....

An All-Star again for the third time in four years... Creeping age has only made him wiser... Often used 40 minutes a game... Led WHA defensemen in points... Rarely takes a penalty...

On the blue line there is concern for the health of 38-year-old J.C. Tremblay. Despite the removal of a kidney, J.C. is determined to resume his career.

....

Called a leader without being one... Highly respected by his teammates...

And certainly J.C. Tremblay was sorely missed. The master puckhandler of defensemen suffered a broken ankle and could not play the final two months of the season and only one game of the playoffs.

Tremblay is a steadying influence...

....

Truly, one of hockey's greatest defensemen, a veritable artist... A master puckhandler...

 

[Sprague Cleghorn]

Tim Horton

Top-10 Scoring finishes among defensemen in the regular season:
3rd (1962), 3rd (1965), 4th (1954), 4th (1960), 5th (1964), 6th (1959), 6th (1966), 6th (1969), 7th (1957), 7th (1958), 7th (1963), 8th (1967), 10th (1961)

Top-10 Scoring finishes among all skaters in the playoffs:
2nd (1962), 7th (1967)

Norris voting:
2nd (1964), 2nd (1969), 3rd (1963), 3rd (1968), 4th (1954), 4th (1965), 4th (1967), 5th (1962), 6th (1955), 6th (1961), 9th (1966), 9th (1973), 10th (1960)​

NHL 1st All-Star Team: 1964, 1968, 1969
NHL 2nd All-Star Team: 1954, 1963, 1967

Credit to ImporterExporter for some of the quotes

On Tim Horton's defensive skillset​

He was better known for his defensive play where his physical strength and intelligent play made him a joy to watch for 24 seasons.

He was so strong that he was known as a policeman on the ice, although not in the fashion that Ferguson was noted for. Instead of dropping his gloves and pounding a poor opposition member into next week, Tim was famous for using the "Horton Bear Hug." Whenever there was trouble, Tim would enter the melee and wrap his tree-trunk-like arms around a troublemaker and firmly squeeze the helpless opponent until everything had calmed down.

As a junior, Horton quickly became known for his Herculean strength, a trait he carried with him to the NHL.

"I figured I was a pretty strong guy after a summer of work on my farm. Then I'd go against Horton. Tim would be in my path, nothing dirty, no stickwork, and would stay there, no matter what I did. If I tried to bull between him and the boards, forget it, because he would just close the gate. Cut to the middle of the ice and he'd be there, too, crowding me, forcing me to shoot long-range or pass."

Tim Horton was called "Superman" by goaltender Johnny Bower, who believed the defenseman and longtime teammate with the Toronto Maple Leafs could lift a filled 40-gallon oil drum

"Tim Horton would take you in the corner and put a bear hug on you and you couldn't get away, and he'd just say, 'Stay right where you are.

"He'd get down really low, and he was really powerful. Guys would be in forechecking him and he could bring the puck into his feet and, all of a sudden, burst out of there. He'd go over the first guy, or around, and he'd be gone."

"the anchor of Toronto's defense."

The toughest guy to get the puck away from. He'd get that big body of his between you and the puck and you couldn't move him, you couldn't reach around him, and he'd make the play."

"When he hit you, you knew you were hit, so any time he was out there you knew you had to try to keep your head up, make sure you had your head up and find out where the brush cut is."

"Positioning was what made him so good defensively, and to throw a body check could mean getting caught out of position."

Horton broke his leg and jaw in a thunderous collision with the New York Rangers' Bill Gadsby. When he returned to the ice after missing almost half of the 1955-56 season, he was slow to regain his form

Gordie Howe, hockey's most physical hockey hero, called Horton "hockey's strongest man."

Tim was as hard-nosed a defenseman as hard-nosed gets

Montreal Canadiens tough guy John Ferguson said "Horton's the hardest body-checker I've ever come up against. He's as strong as an ox and hits with terrific force."

His stamina and strength are amazing. At 43, he's playing as well as he performed 10 years ago when he was helping Toronto win Stanley Cups.

He was strong, moved everybody away from the net.

Horton was not simply a stay at home defenseman. Two-way D would be the more appropriate term​

An excellent skater, Tim had good rushing ability

Horton was paired with Allan Stanley on defense through the sixties. In the case of Stanley and Horton, Stanley was the more defensive-minded of the duo, while Tim had more offensive prowess.

Stanley's solid play allowed Horton to take a few more chances carrying the puck, knowing he had the speed to recover should he lose possession and that Stanley would be there to back him up.

Not only could Horton stop opponents, he could also lead the rush, something unusual for a defenseman at that time.

Coach Punch Imlach moved Horton to the right wing on a line with George Armstron and Red Kelly, another defenseman turned forward.

He was a great defensive defenceman but he could also carry the puck up the ice.

With three goals and 13 assists in 12 postseason games, he led the Maple Leafs in scoring and set a record for most points by a defenseman in one playoff year.

Horton had a booming shot​

Goalie Jacques Plante said that Horton had "probably the toughest slap shot in the league."

"He had a great shot at a time when defensemen didn't have great shots. I remember his coming in and you'd start to take it waist-high and it comes up a little higher, a little higher and finally at the end, you'd duck out."

"I've spent hours working on it," Horton said of his shot, "and a few hard drives seem to unnerve goalies. I like to try to scare them a bit," although he acknowledged most of his goals came off wrist shots; the slappers were often tipped into the net or turned into rebounds that were converted by teammates.

A powerful slap shot

Horton scored 12 goals, many of them with his huge slapshot from close range.

Horton is typical of the new type of defenseman who must be equally adept on attack and defense

Horton put the Maple Leafs on the scoreboard when a screened slap shot from the blue line went between Binkley's legs

I was spread eagled on the ice. I didn't know where the puck was and I looked up and I could see Tim. He had the puck at the blue line and he was winding up to slap it. I was down on the ice thinking what am I going to do - he's gonna kill me. He was going to shoot at the net, and I was in front of the net, and he didn't see me. But God must have been on my side because he missed the shot.

On Horton's intangibles and etc.​

So good was Horton that a Russian hockey coach in 1964 claimed that Horton was the most fantastic hockey player he had ever seen.

A natural leader in the Leafs dressing room

Teammate Frank Mahovlich perhaps sums Tim Horton up best: "I never knew a player so steady. No flash, no polish, all hard work."

Schoenfeld, a Horton protégé in Buffalo and a standout defenseman in his own right, is very fond of Horton for helping him along as a youngster. "I always remember him saying 'Jimmy, the hard way is the easy way,' because he felt practicing the difficult things made it easier under game conditions. He was right. It's a guideline I still follow to this day."

I think Horton, more than any other one player, was the key to those glory days.

He was the finest man I knew on or off the ice. He was a great leader without a mean streak in him. Playing with him was a wonderful experience.

The defense was the foundation of a Toronto team that won... Stanley Cups

As the team's elder statesman, anchored a young defense corps

We had young, green defensemen and I knew there was no player to set an example better than Horton

 

[jarek]

Full credit to BillyShoe for the following bio, I will be expanding on it to include recent seasons!

C Joe Thornton

Boston Bruins Captain, 2002-2005
San Jose Sharks Captain, 2010-2014
2010 Olympic Gold Medalist
6x NHL All Star Game Participant

Award Recognition
All-Star Voting: 1st (2006), 2nd (2003), 2nd (2008), 2nd (2016), 3rd (2004), 3rd (2007), 5th (2009), 5th (2010), 9th (2014)
Hart Voting: 1st (2006), 4th (2003), 5th (2007), 5th (2016), 6th (2008), 9th (2009)
Selke Voting: 5th (2016), also 14th (40 votes), 19th (27 votes), 21st (27 votes), also received 3, 2, and 1 vote in 2011, 2009, and 2008 respectively

Scoring Accomplishments
Points: 1st (2006), 2nd (2007), 3rd (2003), 4th (2010), 5th (2008), 8th (2016)
Assists: 1st (2006), 1st (2007), 1st (2008), 2nd (2003), 2nd (2010), 2nd (2014), 2nd (2016), 3rd (2012), 7th (2009), 7th (2015), 8th (2004), 10th (2011)

Ranks 22nd in VsX7 through 2016 with a score of 95.6.

Thornton's on-ice vision, strength on the puck, deft passing ability, and power forward style of play have led to him becoming one of the league's premier top line centres.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Thornton

"Players like Joe Thornton don't come available very often," Wilson said. "He's a big, physical guy with a lot of ability. He also knows a lot of our players very well. He should fit in well with our group.

"He's a special guy. The combination of he and [Patrick] Marleau down the middle should be very strong for us," Wilson said.

"He's one of the top 10 players in the league. He's a big, powerful forward. I expect him to be a giant on special teams."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=2242875

Thornton squared off with Lindros in the second period of a chippy game with the Rangers. After a faceoff in the Rangers' zone, Lindros cross-checked Thornton in the head area and the behemoths traded punches. As they grappled to find punching room, Lindros (6 feet 5 inches, 237 pounds) wrestled Thornton (6-4, 223) into a vulnerable position, then dropped him with a powerful right hand.

Thornton doesn't fight much, but he has a short fuse, his rage often responding to defensive tactics to slow him down. Lindros received a five-minute major for fighting, as did Thornton.

http://www.boston.com/sports/articles/2004/01/22/thornton_to_have_surgery/?camp=pm

Thornton is probably best known for his play as a playmaker, setting up Jonathon Cheechoo for several goals and open shots. His size allows him to create lots of space and his uncanny ability to find open players with a soft pass and with great hands makes him an asset to any NHL team. Thornton instantly raises the levels of the players around him, like Crosby, and has a vicious streak that strikes fear into most opponents.

http://hockeydraft.ca/players/joe-thornton.aspx

Sharks captain Joe Thornton, among the game's best passers—as well as, at 6'4" and 230 pounds, one of its toughest skaters to knock off the puck—acknowledges the Wings' influence on his own play. "My game totally changed," says Thornton, who entered the league as a Bruin in 1997 with a dump-and-chase mandate. "Watch this series [with Vancouver]. We do a middle drive, where the center drives to the net [with the puck]. I never used to do that. I'd be in the corner."

"When Joe has the puck," Kesler says, "he's so strong on his skates, it's pretty useless to play him; I have to play his stick. We really have to start with the puck because then we play at our pace and they have to play our game—and Joe can't have the puck.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1186567/2/index.htm

Thornton has made others better throughout his career—linemate Sergei Samsonov in Boston; Team Canada when he cheerfully accepted a third-line checking role in the 2004 World Cup; the Sharks in the season of the trade

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1150933/3/index.htm

. "I sensed a little different Joe in the playoffs last year, and more important, Joe did too," Ron Wilson says. "There was a fire and a hunger. Maybe in the past he'd more readily accept a poor performance from a teammate as long as he did well himself. Now you saw a little more urgency."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1113099/2/index.htm

Soft Hands
JOE THORNTON, Sharks

He can feather a pass at any distance and can settle a puck arriving at any speed. "Soft hands--for a big man" is how he's often praised, but Thornton's mitts are more supple than any little guy's.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1113089/2/index.htm

Indeed, he has done some of his best work as an ordinary Joe, the shutdown checking center for Canada in the 2004 World Cup.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1105740/2/index.htm

So who better to build around than the 24-year-old Thornton, a 6'4", 220-pound monster near the net and a Hart Trophy winner in the making.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1030067/index.htm

One other factor has favored Murray since his return to Boston: His development coincided with that of linemate Joe Thornton, who often dominates when he's on the ice. "The kicker for [ Murray] is the emergence of Thornton," says Panthers G.M. Rick Dudley. "When a player like Thornton emerges, then a player with the ability to score, like Murray, will get more opportunities."

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1028161/1/index.htm

He can impose himself on a game in myriad ways, the puck seems to follow him...

Though his long curls have been trimmed and styled, though he packs 220 pounds on a 6'4" frame, though he plays with a jagged edge that twice earned him two-game suspensions last season

Thornton has emerged as the Bruins' central player. He's a rare composite. He has some of Modano's ability to dangle without the flash, some of Lemieux's reach without the leverage, some of Brendan Shanahan's toughness without the reputation. Plus, his hands are soft. This is Joe's world now—"Over the summer I told people that in two or three years, Joe would be the best player in the game," says New York Islanders assistant coach Jacques Laperriere, who was a Bruins assistant from 1997-98 through '00-01

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1024843/2/index.htm

Bruins forward Joe Thornton, who has been dominant for the last couple of weeks (17 points in his last 10 games), was pulled aside by coach Mike Keenan recently and told to stop taking unnecessary stick-related penalties. Keenan, who likes Thornton's aggressive play, is concerned Thornton may develop a rep with referees as a dirty player....

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1021979/index.htm

. Thornton is a center with the size, speed and boundless potential that left the Bruins no choice but to use the No. 1 overall draft pick on him in 1997

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1014564/index.htm

Jumbo Joe executed his game, looked for passes, made passes, threaded them through crowds, and even scored a goal.

http://www.boston.com/sports/hockey...r_failure_thornton_got_the_last_laugh/?page=2

When single-elimination play began in the World Cup of Hockey, Joe Thornton was converted by Team Canada coach Pat Quinn from a high-scoring pivotman to a checking center. His assignment was to shut down the other teams' top combinations. With his size, strength, and hockey sense, Thornton parlayed his new role into a crucial one that helped Canada enjoy success in this international event. There was no better example of that than last night.

In the championship game against Finland, Thornton proved that good defense can lead to opportunistic offense.

http://www.boston.com/sports/hockey...ornton_has_big_assist_in_finishing_the_finns/

"Joe Thornton is among the top group of elite players in the National Hockey League," Sharks general manager Doug Wilson said in a statement.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2007/07/01/thornton-extension.html

In an ornery mood from the outset of Game 5, Thornton finished with one hit and a 61 per cent success rate in the faceoff circle. He also excelled by staying away from Pronger, who made it his priority to keep Thornton away from the Ducks' net, but at times was caught out of position.

The six-foot-four, 235-pound Thornton drove the net with regularity and skated to the opposite side of the ice as Pronger to open the scoring with a power-play goal at 7:25 of the first period.

"He's thinking so much about where Joe is and Joe is having success getting away from Pronger," Hockey Night in Canada analyst P.J. Stock said of Thornton. "The second [Sharks goal] he picked up an assist and Pronger wasn't on the ice."

"I don't think it's in Joe's nature to be mean, but when he is mean, he's unstoppable," San Jose forward Jeremy Roenick told reporters. "When you're intense, you're a hard person to play against.

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/stanleycup/W1vW8/story/2009/04/27/sp-sharks-ducks-preview.html

A power forward at six-foot-four and 223 pounds, the burly center possesses unbelievable skill as he posted a 101 point season in 2002-03.

Thornton will also provide strength for Team Teal in the faceoff circle as he is successful 52.2 percent of the time and his even plus/minus rating was one of the best on the struggling Bruins.

http://www.sootoday.com/content/news/full_story.asp?StoryNumber=14587

SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) -- Although Joe Thornton usually does his finest work helping others, the Sharks superstar threw himself quite an anniversary party Friday night.

Thornton had two goals and an assist in a dominant two-way performance exactly two years after his arrival from Boston, and San Jose snapped a three-game winless streak with a 3-2 victory over the Colorado Avalanche.

"Joe played unbelievable," Wilson said. "He was a force out there. He's physical, making plays. He made a decision he's going to shoot more, that he's going to score and not just look to pass. That will open up some of his playmaking abilities, because now they have to worry about him shooting."

"I should have stopped that second goal," Budaj said. "Joe made a great play. He's playing great right now, and he made us pay. He had a hand in all three goals. You want to excel against great players like him, but he beat us tonight."

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/recap?gameId=271130018

The Boston Bruins probably figured they would need Joe Thornton to deliver solid two-way play and Andrew Raycroft to perform as he did during a strong rookie campaign if they were to be successful this season.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/preview.htm?id=2005020798

3. No matter how much Marleau and Cheechoo might be struggling, the amazing Thornton invariably is there to bail out the Sharks offensively.

It only underlines the MVP-type campaign Thornton is turning in. Almost 46 percent of San Jose's attack goes through him. He has 66 points, tied for 10th overall in the NHL. The next-highest ranking Shark is Milan Michalek, 91st, with 33 points.

The Sharks are circling. They are big, deep and committed defensively, in an aggressive, hard, forechecking way. They own arguably the best two-way player and passer in the game. Only the Detroit Red Wings have posted more road victories.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/columns/story?columnist=johnson_george&id=3225696

1 draft pick (likely 6-foot-4 center Joe Thornton) and possibly two lottery picks, ... "He's a good two-way player. He's an excellent skater for a guy 6-4. ...

https://www.google.com/search?q=joe...86,d.dmQ&fp=e469ce35d35c107d&biw=1366&bih=611

"Joe works so hard out there," San Jose captain Patrick Marleau, who spent part of Game 4 on the top line with Thornton, told Cassie Campbell of Hockey Night in Canada. "He's drawing double coverage sometimes and he handles it.

"He's a big horse out there for us. To have him going and everyone follow him, it helps everybody."

"He continues to make smart plays and finding a way to get his stick on the puck [for the winning goal]."

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/hockey/story/2008/04/17/thornton-sharks-flames.html

The selection of Joe Thornton, a physical forward with linebacker-like size...

http://news.google.com/newspapers?i...g=4739,3510117&dq=joe+thornton+physical&hl=en

-- Joe Thornton sometimes seems to be playing a one-man game of keep-away in the playoffs -- and the Nashville Predators are losing it.

Both coaches agree the San Jose center's physical presence is the defining difference in the clubs' first-round playoff series

"People are fearing him now, and that's what you want to see with Joe," Sharks coach Ron Wilson said Wednesday. "He's a man on a mission, and people are picking up on that. ... Even though he's not getting points, he's totally controlling the game.

"When he's on the ice making plays, it's just unbelievable how he competes and is so strong. It's got to be frustrating to play against. He's almost like a beast out there. When he puts his mind to it, you can't take [the puck] from him," he said.

But Thornton drew four penalties in Game 3, holding onto the puck with his strength and control until the Predators tried something illegal to separate him. Though the Predators agree Thornton has impressive puck-possession skills, they're growing frustrated by their inability to slow him legally.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs2006/news/story?id=2423272

Here's Joe Thornton feeding left wing Milan Michalek for a shot that goes just wide of the Detroit goal. There's Joe Thornton taking a perfect pass and lifting a backhand shot that barely misses the top corner of the net. Here's Joe Thornton drawing a penalty. There's Joe Thornton crushing Detroit defenseman Chris Chelios. And that was just the third period. ''He was easily the best...

http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we...page=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM

And the poster boy for these Sharks has been Thornton, maligned by media around the league for past playoff performances, sometimes fairly, most recently unfairly. If anyone in the East has been watching Western Conference hockey, they have seen a transformed Thornton, one whose two-way play has been dominant. He raised his game Wednesday night in the third period and overtime when his team needed him most.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs/2011/columns/story?columnist=lebrun_pierre&id=6482567

Thornton has played an excellent two-way game, working hard in his defensive zone, and making an impact on offense, something he failed to do in San Jose's opening round series against the Colorado Avalanche.

http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/37044822/ns/sports-player_news

On the flip side, the evolution of the captain this season was hugely encouraging. Thornton took his game to new heights, especially in the playoffs, playing both sides of the puck like never before. His willingness to sacrifice offense for two-way play is reminiscent of the great Steve Yzerman. So is Thornton's willingness to play through pain, the star center revealing afterward he separated his shoulder in Game 4 but played through it Tuesday night.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/playoffs/2011/columns/story?columnist=lebrun_pierre&id=6586178

Thornton's defensive game has clearly improved and his offensive game has not necessarily suffered either. He has 2 goals and 9 assists in the playoffs, but he's being recognized more for the little plays he's making with his stick and his body that either bump players off the puck or knock the puck away from them to start the Sharks' offense going the other way.

http://www.foxnews.com/sports/2011/05/15/questions-western-conference-finals/

 

[BenchBrawl]

SHEA WEBER

Basic Information
Position: Defenseman
Height: 6-4
Weight: 232 lbs
Born: August 14, 1985
Handedness: Right

Norris Record
2, 2, 3, 4, 4, 7, 8, 10

All-Star Teams
1, 1, 2, 2

Olympics
Won Medal Gold in 2010 and 2014.
Olympic All-Star Team in 2010.
Led Team Canada in points in 2014.

Hardest Shot Competition
Won in 2015 (108.5 mph), 2016 (108.1 mph) and 2017 (102.8 mph).

QUOTES

He's one of the best at his position plain and simple [...] He's our building block, and he's a difference maker in this business. There aren't too many guys at his level

"I don't play my best players penalty killing when we play Nashville," Babcock said. "Just flat out because I'm scared to break their leg or their ankle. He just shoots it that hard."

Physically, (Weber is a) man-mountain.He's as good a human being as I've ever been around.He doesn't have to say much.He just has to look at you and you snap into shape.

[...]

“If you haven’t been cross-checked in the ribs by him you find out what that is, too. He cuts a big swath out there. He shoots it so hard no one wants to stand in his lane.
.

http://www.torontosun.com/2016/09/06/canadas-babcock-gushes-over-canadiens-shea-weber

What I like about him best, when he walks in the dressing room, you know it’s business. He’s a cultured type person. He makes your franchise better when he walks in the door

https://www.thestar.com/sports/hock...singing-praises-of-defenceman-shea-weber.html

He's been the face of the franchise (Nashville) for a long time.Great person, great player, great leader.

https://www.nhl.com/predators/video/peter-laviolette-on-shea-weber/t-277437416/c-47987903



After Weber was traded out of Toews' division:

There is relief about finally getting away from a guy (Weber, who was traded out of the division) you can’t get away from on the ice, a guy whose shot could part the red sea. There’s not really a part of the rink where he’s not a threat, not a force

http://www.torontosun.com/2016/09/06/canadas-babcock-gushes-over-canadiens-shea-weber

Size, strength, defence, physicality, can score, does it all at an elite level,†said Cammalleri, ticking boxes. “It’s also the personality. There’s a calm, humble confidence there

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/spor...aise-from-fellow-nhl-players/article33468860/

He plays an honest game, he doesn’t forget there’s a puck there, but he’ll get you. You have to have an awareness of where he is

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/spor...aise-from-fellow-nhl-players/article33468860/

“He had that presence, and had that respect from all of his teammates,†said Rinne."Some of the younger guys—anything he said they’d listen. He’s also a guy you don’t want to upset; you want to earn his respect and be loyal to him as your leader".

http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/nhl/shea-webers-legacy-celebrated-return-nashville/

It was obviously a big honor to play with him. As a young defenseman, to be able to play with a guy like him, to study a guy like him, was unbelievable

http://www.nashvillepost.com/sports...4944/josi-says-facing-weber-will-be-different

He doesn't hesitate to express himself in the lockerroom.

http://www.lapresse.ca/sports/hocke...rship-de-shea-weber-epate-michel-therrien.php

“He’s added a presence to our locker room that’s hard to miss,†Habs captain Max Pacioretty told FanRag Sports Network. “He had instant respect from the team because of his past, but even more so now because of the way he carries himself and the way he works.â€

http://nhl.nbcsports.com/2017/02/12/shea-weber-gained-instant-respect-with-habs/

 

[Dreakmur]

Bill Cowley !!!


Awards and Achievements:
2 x Stanley Cup Champion (1939, 1941)

2 x Hart Trophy Winner (1941, 1943)
Retro Conn Smythe Trophy (1939)

4 x First Team All-Star (1938, 1941, 1943, 1944)
Second Team All-Star (1945)

Hart voting - 1st(1941), 1st(1943), 2nd(1944), 3rd(1945), 6th(1942)
All-Star voting - 1st(1938), 1st(1941), 1st(1943), 1st(1944), 2nd(1945), 3rd(1940), 4th(1937)


Offensive Achievements:
Points - 1st(1941), 2nd(1943), 3rd(1939), 4th(1940), 4th(1945), 5th(1938), 7th(1944), 8th(1937)
Goals - 5th(1943), 8th(1945), 9th(1944), 10th(1938), 10th(1941), 13th(1940)
Assists - 1st(1939), 1st(1941), 1st(1943), 2nd(1945), 3rd(1940), 5th(1944), 6th(1937), 7th(1938), 12th(1947), 14th(1942)

Play-off Points - 1st(1939), 7th(1943), 10th(1945)
Play-off Goals - 4th(1939), 9th(1945), 10th(1936)
Play-off Assists - 1st(1939), 4th(1943), 5th(1937), 8th(1945), 8th(1946)


5 Year Peak: 1939 to 1943
1st in Points, 104% of 2nd place Bryan Hextall
10th in Goals, 61% of 2nd place Gordie Drillon
1st in Assists, 185% of 2nd place Phil Watson
7th in Play-off Points, 79% of 2nd place Gordie Drillon

10 Year Peak: 1936 to 1945
1st in Points, 117% of 2nd place Syd Howe
5th in Goals, 94% of 2nd place Syd Howe
1st in Assists, 136% of 2nd place Syd Howe
3rd in Play-off Points, 98% of 2nd place Gordie Drillon

Scoring Percentages:
Points - 141, 100, 95, 93, 89, 83, 78, 75, 60, 53, 50

6 Best Seasons: 601

Team Scoring:
Points - 1st(1937), 1st(1938), 1st(1939), 1st(1941), 1st(1943), 1st(1945), 2nd(1944)
1st in PPG in 1942

Percentage - 155(1941), 144(1945), 136(1943), 115(1938), 114(1939), 113(1937), 87(1944)


Ultimate Hockey's Best Passer of the 1940s.

Bill "Cowboy" Cowley was one of the top playmaking forwards in NHL history - three times in his 13-year career he led the NHL in assists. He always seemed to know where his linemates were positioned. An unselfish player who always aimed to set up a colleague for a goal before taking a shot himself, and he rarely jeopardized his team's fortunes by taking a penalty. Because of his ability to see the whole ice, he was arguably the Wayne Gretzky of his era.

....

.... The Bruins, a team stacked with experienced forwards, originally used him as a left winger, but his swift skating and precise passes forced them to move him to center.

Cowley broke through in 1937-38 with 39 points and selection to the NHL First All-Star Team. The following season, he recorded a league-high 34 assists. His passing and puck-handling wizardry helped the powerful Bruins squad win the second Stanley Cup in franchise history that year. He formed a lethal combination with Mel "Sudden Death" Hill, who scored an NHL-record three overtime game-winners in the semifinals against the Rangers. Each tally was the result of Cowley's playmaking artistry.

Bill Cowley was very much an early day Wayne Gretzky. He is considered to be the greatest playmaker in hockey while he graced the ice surfaces of the NHL.

....


Cowley never really got the notoriety such a fine player should have received. Despite his breathtaking play he was somewhat overlooked by playing for the Bruins at the time he did. In fact, on many nights Cowley was centering the second line as the famous Kraut Line of Milt Schmidt, Bobby Bauer and Woody Dumart remained Boston's key to success for much of Cowley's tenure.

Cowley was a terrific stickhandle and a past master of setting up plays for his wings. He was a very clean but nevertheless an aggressive player.

Possessing a fine turn of speed now, young Cowley used his natural stickhndling ability to drive his way through the opposing defence with a style of distinctively as his friendly scowl.

Bill Cowley was a passer, pure and simple, and that gift would carry him to two Hart Trophies and his long-time team, the Boston Bruins, to Stanley Cups in 1939 and 1941.

....

A dependable play-off scorer, Cowley contributed 12 goals and 34 assists in 64 playoff games, including a 14-point performance in 1939.

... Bill Cowley, who was an eel-like in his ability to slither away from opponents...

According to Cowley's teammates, he was about as fast an an anchored rowboat. Nevertheless, the crafty pivot always found a way to set up his wingers. He quietly became the NHL's all-time career scoring leader...

The are of stickhandling has undergone many changes over the years, and some of those alterations were directly affected by the speed of the game. But few players were as clearly superior at the art of puckhandling at any time than Bill Cowley, who starred for the Bruins both before and after World War II.

During the pre-1943 era, Cowley commanded the most attention. It was before the introduction of the center red line in 1943, at a time when hockey's tempo was slower than it would later be.

Not that it would matter to Bill, whose stick skills would have enabled him to excel at any tempo...

Elmer Lach and Bill Cowley were masters of finding the open man. Lach was a physical player, setting up many of his plays while digging in the corner, while Cowley's style was more polished.

Cowley's problem - if it can be called a problem - was the fact that he played on the same team with the formidable and infinitely more colorful Kraut Line of Milt Schmidt, Bobby Bauer, and Woody Dumart. The trio's exploits frequently overshadowed the effortless grace and subtlety of Cowley, who was every bit as good as his more illustrious line mates.

The extremely smooth and accurate passing center was said to have "made more wings than Boeing".

That kid can fly. Put him at center and he'll rattle in the goals.

As for the smaller men, Stan Mikita of the Black Hawks is a little guy who can shoot the way Doug Bentley used to and make plays like Bill Cowley did for Boston. However, little Stan is a hundred percent himself whereas these other guys were more team men.

​

 

[Voight]

Peter Stastny


Awards and Achievements:
Calder Memorial Trophy – 1981
Played in 6 NHL All-Star Games – 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1986, 1988
World Championships Best Forward Award – 1995
Inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame – 1998
Ranked number 56 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players, the highest-ranking Slovak-trained (or Czechoslovak-trained) player – 1998
Inducted into IIHF Hall of Fame – 2000
34th All Time - Points

Hart voting - 4th(1982), 7th(1983), 7th(1986), 11th(1981), 11th (1984)

All-Star voting - 3rd(1982), 3rd(1983), 3rd(1986), 4th(1984), 5th(1988), 6th(1981)

Offensive Achievements:
Points - 2nd(1983), 3rd(1982), 4th(1984), 5th(1988), 6th(1981), 6th(1986)

Assists - 2nd(1982), 3rd(1983), 4th(1984), 4th(1986), 6th(1981), 6th(1985), 9th(1988)


5 Year Peak: 1981 to 1986
3rd in Points, 96% of 2nd place Mike Bossy
9th in Goals, 72% of 2nd place Mike Bossy
2nd in Assists, 101% of 3rd place Paul Coffey


10 Year Peak: 1980 to 1990
2nd in Points, 101% of 2nd place Jarri Kurri
8th in Goals, 81% of 2nd place Jarri Kurri
2nd in Assists, 100.7% of 3rd place Paul Coffey

Without Gretzky
1983 Art Ross Trophy
Leads the 1980s in Points & Assists

Although most Europeans grew up with the bigger ice surface and hated the smaller ice of the NHL, Stastny had just the opposite reaction to playing in North America. "The small ice made for a more physical game because you don't have much room to move. But I never minded. I could take a hit and keep the puck. But I liked the small ice. In fact, my favourite rink was the Boston Garden, where all of my teammates hated. But the way I saw it, you make one good move and you've got a great scoring chance. And if your teammates are skilled and well-positioned, you'll always get more chances than on the big ice."

Playing on a team that emphasizes team defense, Stastny has arguably been the most effective two-way forward for the Devils (10-6-0), who were third in the league on defense going into tonight's games.

He had such a pressence on the ice, you know, what he could do offensively, defensively, and physical game, speed game, he could play any kind of game. So there was no question that from there on we had a good team.

Peter Stastny was, to me, the toughest guy I ever played against, because...he was big, he was strong, he was fearless, etrodinarily talented and had a will to win that was as good as any player I ever played against.

After Wayne Gretzky, Peter Stastny was the most prolific scorer in the NHL in the 1980s, and the terrific backup he had in Quebec included his brothers Anton and Marian. In fact, Peter Stastny often went out on the ice as forward on two different attack lines.

Shortly after his 24th birthday, Peter Stastny joined the Quebec Nordiques. In the first match the brothers played together, Peter and Anton lined up against Calgary on October 9, 1980. Five days later Anton scored his first goal and 12 days later Peter scored one into Tony Esposito's net in a game against Chicago. Peter and Anton became the hub of the team. They did whatever was necessary to get points. Over a two-day period in February, something happened that had probably never happened before in the NHL and will probably never happen again. On February 20, 1981, each of the brothers got a hat-trick to lead their team to a 9-3 win in Vancouver. And less than 48 hours later, that feat was improved upon. Peter scored four goals and Anton three and Quebec won the game 11-7. And a third hat-trick was scored in the game by the top scorer on the Nordiques team at the time, Jacques Richard, who scored 52 goals that season.

Peter Stastny got 39 goals in his first season in the NHL and registered 70 assists. This was a record among rookies until the arrival of another European, Finn Teemu Selanne. A year later Stastny registered the most points overall on the team with 139. Peter Stastny, along with Michel Goulet, who topped the list in 1983-84 and again in 1986-87, took over the top scoring positions with Quebec at the time. But Peter clearly reigned as the best passer. In third place behind these two greats during this era was Peter Stastny's younger brother, Anton.

At age 24 Peter defected from Czechoslovakia in 1980 and instantly dominated the NHL. He finished his career 1239 points in only 977 games, and is the second highest scoring player of the 1980s, behind some guy named Wayne Gretzky.

Stastny became first NHL rookie to score 100 points in a season, completely eliminating any doubts about the Slovak hockey great.

Proving his first season was no fluke, Peter would go on to score 7 more 100 point seasons, including six consecutive seasons to start his career. His best season was his sophomore year when he racked up 46 goals and 93 assists for 139 points.

....it is Peter Stastny that goes down in history as the best. He was a very shifty skater, not necessarily blessed with great speed but more with a tremendous sense of balance. Combine that with his equally incredible vision and puck handling skills and Peter Stastny ranks as one of the great playmakers ever. He was the lead conductor of his on-ice orchestra. He shared an uncanny connection with his brothers, particularly with Anton on give and go plays. An old school hockeyist, Peter relied almost strictly on his accurate wrist shot. He was especially dangerous on the power play.

 

[Dreakmur]

Mark Recchi !!!


Awards and Achievements:
3 x Stanley Cup Champion (1991, 2006, 2011)
World Championship Gold Medalist (1997)

Second Team All-Star (1992)

Hart voting - 6th(2000), 9th(1991)
All-star - 2nd(1992), 4th(1993), 4th(1994), 4th(2000) 5th(1991), 7th(2001)


Offensive Accomplishments:
Points - 3rd(2000), 4th(1991), 5th(1994), 10th(1993), 12th(1992), 12th(2004), 14th(1998), 19th(1995)
Goals - 9th(1992), 11th(1993), 14th(1998), 16th(1991), 19th(1994), 20th(1997)
Assists - 1st(2000), 4th(1991), 7th(1994), 9th(2004), 12th(1993), 15th(1995), 17th(2001), 18th(1998)

ES Goals - 8th(1993), 8th(1994), 11th(1991), 13th(1997), 15th(1998)

Play-off Points - 2nd(1991), 5th(2000)
Play-off Goals - 7th(2006), 8th(1991), 10th(2000)
Play-off Assists - 2nd(1991), 4th(2000)


5 Year Peak: 1991 to 1995
3rd in Points, 94% of 2nd place Adam Oates
7th in Goals, 88% of 2nd place Luc Robataille
7th in Assists, 76% of 2nd place Adam Oates
4th in Play-off Points per Game

10 Year Peak: 1991 to 2000
7th in Points, 96% of 2nd place Adam Oates
13th in Goals, 85% of 2nd place Jaromir Jagr
7th in Assists, 81% of 2nd place Wayne Gretzky
8th in Play-off Points per Game


Scoring Percentages:
98, 97, 89, 86, 84, 83, 81, 80, 73, 71, 69, 65, 60, 60, 55, 52, 50, 50

Best 6 Seasons: 537
Next 6 Seasons: 439

Team Scoring:
1st(1993), 1st(1994), 1st(1995), 1st(1998), 1st(1999), 1st(2000), 1st(2001), 1st(2004), 2nd(1997), 2nd(2003), 2nd(2006), 3rd(1996), 3rd(2002)

Percentages - 143, 110, 120, 125, 120, 118, 105, 129

With his speed and his quick and accurate wrist shot, right-winger Mark Recchi brought Canadiens fans to their feet at the Forum and the Molson Centre on countless occasions during his stay with Montreal.

The pint-sized right wing won the hearts of Philadelphians because of his tenacity, teamsmanship and tendency to be in the right place at the right time when a big goal was required... His play featured a doggedness that reminded Philadelphians of Bobby Clarke before him.

Recchi was coming off a 40-goal, 113-point season and had established himself as one of the premier right wingers in the NHL. He was neither tall nor large, but played with a controlled fury that earned him the nickname "The Wrecking Ball". There clearly was a market for a player of such caliber... Recchi repeatedly expressed his desire to remain in Pittsburgh... The snag was obviously monetary, but Recchi's frustration was compounded by being kept away from the game he loved. Few people go about their jobs with an exuberance such as his.

....

... No one ever questioned Recchi's work ethic...

....

Recchi was caught completely off-guard by word that he was being transplanted to the other side of Pennsylvania. He cried openly as he said goodbye to the men who had just become his ex-teammates, and in the words of Ulf Samuelsson, "was just destroyed". Recchi's reaction was not unexpected. He had dedicated every speck of energy, every fiber of his being to the Penguins from the time he joined the team.

Has relentless energy on the ice and is one of the most durable forwards in the league. Is smart with the puck and a capable playmaker from the wing.

The way [Recchi] plays it's amazing he's out there every night. He finishes checks, he battles off the face-off, he goes into the corners. He does things you don't usually see star players do.

He competes as fiercely as anyone.

Mark was unbelieveable. He did everything I asked of him and showed real leadership qualities. He had become a complete hockey player in Philadelphia.

Rex has carried this team. You watch his play - it's inspiring.

He works hard, and if you keep working hard, it's bound to turn. And Recchs isn't a kid who stops working.

...Mark Recchi emerged as a hustling, two-way player with a scoring touch.

Mark Recchi: Penguins' best all-around forward. Equally effective at even strength, short-handed and on powerplay. Wrist shot is among the NHL's best. Comfortable in any style game and plays bigger than his size...

Helping the team? Recchi, a 22-year-old right winger who plays a relentless two-way style, is second among NHL rookies with 25 goals and fourth with 53 points. He leads all Penguins forwards with a plus-minus rating of plus-11...

Lack of scoring, however, was not the reason Recchi was demoted. He has scored points in 47 of the Flyers' 63 games. It was more his lack of defense. Some fans said it was harder to ascertain than The Invisible Man.

Recchi acknowledged his less than stellar defensive skills and plans to do something about it.
...
"No, I've had little bit of a wakeup call. I'm really concentrating on playing tenacious at both ends of the ice. I think I was always in position early on, but I was never tenacious.

If I'm going to be an effective player in this league and be a respected player, I've got to play really hard at both ends of the rink. I can do it. It's just a matter of putting your mind to it. I'm gonna do it. I'm still going to make mistakes. Believe me, I'm not going to say I'm the greatest defensive player in the world, but I'm going to work hard at it.

I was working at it, but not like you really should work. I was always in position, but you've got to be tenacious. In the offensive zone, if there's a puck there, I always seem to get it. Why can't I do it in my own end? That's what I've got to concentrate on."
...

Recchi has also shown a knack for winning faceoffs since the switch.

Recchi spent the bulk of his career in Philadelphia, where he was traded a few months before the Penguins won their second Cup, and solidified a reputation for steady production and reliable two-way play during his time with the Flyers and Montreal.

Mark Recchi of the Penguins has eight goals in his past 12 games. Nine assists, too. He's versatile -- able to play all three forward positions and contribute on both special teams -- and a proven winner with established leadership skills.

Scouting Reports:

Recchi is a very talented player who brings a high level of skating, puckhandling, shooting and hockey sense to his game. He is a very dynamic skater with great mobility, the root of which is his quickness and balance. Those qualities combine to give him excellent agility and lateral ability, allowing him to change direction within a step, and his skating makes him very dangerous from the blueline in. Complementing his foot skills are his hand skills. Mark can operate with the puck at his top speed, whether that means carrying it himself or passing it to an open teammate. He uses his teammates well because of his hockey sense - he sees the holes and leads his wingers to them (he is just as able to exploit those holes himself because of his quickness) His shot is very quick released and accurate; his shot creates opportunities... has a scorer's sense of positioning and timing... A consistent defensive player, attentive to his assignments.

Considering his size, Recchi is a pretty tough player. He'll take the poundings necessary to make his plays, and he's unafraid of contact. That's good, because that physical willingness will open space for the finesse game... Has already demonstrated an ability to contribute in all situations.

Recchi thinks like a choreographer, which makes him such a first rate playmaker. He opens up ice, by drawing defenders to him, then spots the openings and directs linemates to them. He has the footwork to get himself into the holes. Recchi has great agility and quickness, and is able to shift in mid-stride to another direction entirely, leaving his checker baffled. He has excellent hockey sense and vision. he is good under pressure with the puck and doesn't seem to notice if the game is in the first or last five seconds - he works regardless.

He will build up some speed and get a good shot off while in motion... His best weapon is a strong wrist shot from the circle. Recchi is not big, but he steps into his shot and puts everything he has into it. He is a very accurate shooter, picks his best spots and passes when a teammate has the better percentage play. Recchi pursues the puck and maintains the pursuit even if he loses control... Recchi is a strong forechecker who anticipates well. He plays well positionally on defense and always comes back for the puck.

Recchi is a spunky player, with a fireplug build, who plays pinball hockey in the corners. He has a huge heart and works hard every night... Recchi is an intense competitor and a gamer, as he showed in the playoffs.

Recchi is a give-and-go player. He makes a sharp first pass, then jumps for the hole, ready to receive the return. Sometimes, when he gets the puck back, he'll move to his left across the high slot and catch goalies by surprise with a sharp snap shot back against the grain to his right. Other times he'll hold the puck and look for the late man coming into the rush, which keeps the defense honest because they can't always play him to shoot... Recchi also uses the spring in his legs to beat defensemen to the outside. It isn't great looking - Recchi has short legs and uses a short, choppy stride - but it is effective... He is a marksman in close, an expert finisher because he has good scoring instincts and quick hands and he pulls the trigger quickly.

Recchi gets whacked around pretty much every night. He accepts being hit... has added a layer of scrap to his attitude.

A powerful skater, Recchi uses a mixed bag of scoring skills and excellent playmaking creativity to spearhead the attack of the Philadelphia Flyers. While not a big man, he is extremely strong and uses his low center of gravity as a defenseive weapon to thwart bigger players trying to knock him off the puck. After helping Pittsburgh to the Stanley Cup, he was traded, but showed no diminuition of his scoring pace and effort... Recchi's only problem has been finding players who can play up to his grinding, full-out standard. Recchi isn't the dynamic gamebreaker who can do it all by himself... Recchi is a terrific team player, the kind who always looks for teammates to get involved - as opposed to thinking he can do it all himself. He is the Flyers' MVP, Eric Lindros notwithstanding.

WILL - Lead by example
CAN'T - Be underestimated
EXPECT - Many points
DON'T EXPECT - A quitter

A great playmaker, Recchi is a good skater, solid on his feet although not blessed with blazing speed. He is smart and has great anticipation. A natural goal-scorer... He is tough but not physical, and an adequate defensive player, but no Selke candidate... Recchi continued to prove why he, not Eric Lindros, is the Flyers' most valuable player - by staying healthy, leading the attack, and playing a steady (often very spectacular) game and providing a balanced offensive spark.

WILL - Be a scoring ace
EXPECT - A team leader
DON'T EXPECT - An ounce of quit

He excels at the give and go, and is versatile enough to play alongside Eric Lindros, or help out in the middle, as he did when Lindros was injured...

One of the five or so guys in the league that I would build a team around... Hasn't missed a game in three seasons and does all this as a small man in a big man's sport. He's got a huge heart and he's a money player... If you took a poll among players, Recchi would show up on a lot of top five lists.

Smart and confident, he makes the most of acute anticipation on the ice. He is able to make plays out of broken patterns.

WILL - Jump-start any offense
EXPECT - Lots of points

Recchi is a tremendous playmaker, using his passing ability and his anticipation to know just when, and to whom, to release the puck... He is smart and confident. A workaholic, Recchi is always among the best-prepared players on the ice, physically and mentally... Following his trade to Montreal, Recchi took it upon himself to carry the taem on his shoulders. An overachiever, he worked almost too hard... He has changed his nutrition and physical training regimen to help him stay at a higher level.

A little package with a lot of firepower... He's feisty and a relentless worker in the offensive zone. He busts into open ice, finding the holes almost before they open, and excels at the give-and-go... Recchi has a dangerous shot from the off-wing... He follows his shot to the net for a rebound and can make a play as well. He has excellent hands, vision and anticipation for any scoring opportunity... Recchi has worked hard to improve his defensive play. He kills penalties because he hounds the point men aggressively and knocks the puck out of the zone. Then he heads off on a breakaway or forces the defender to pull him down... While other players are coasting, Recchi's blades are in motion, and he draws penalties. He is ready to step into any play. He resembles a puck magnet because he is always going where the puck is. He protects the puck well, keeping it close to his feet... Recchi gets chopped at because he doesn't hang around the perimeter. He accepts the punishment to get the job done. He is a solid player with a low centre of gravity, and he is tough to knock off the puck.

Easily the Flyers' MVP... Whatever the Flyers asked of him, Recchi delivered... He is dangerous off the right wing half-boards with his unerring ability to find John Leclair at the left side of the crease... recchi is an unselfish player. The benefit is that defenders have a tougher time playing him and he makes the players around him better. His work ethic just continues to intensify.

One of the game's smartest players... an unselfish player and a team leader.

At the ripe young age of 42, Recchi still gives his all every shift and can still dole it out as good as he takes it. No time was that more prevalent than his Game 3 tête-à-tête with the Sabres’ Tim Kennedy (by no means a Goliath at 5-foot-9, but still, at 23, he’s almost half Recchi’s age) that led to ******* ********'s game-winner. That play distinctly and abruptly turned this series on its head, giving the B’s all the momentum.

A hardly earth-shattering, but an interesting tidbit of info that illustrates how rare it is for a 40-plus player to contribute the way Recchi has: when he scored Boston's lone goal in a 2-1 Game 1 loss, he became the third-oldest player in Stanley Cup playoffs history to find the back of the net (behind only a 52-year-old Gordie Howe and a 45-year-old Chris Chelios.

A consistent and sturdy contributor with 18 goals and 43 points, while playing 81 regular season games for the injury-plagued Bruins, Recchi has continued to chip in offensively in the post-season with a pair of goals and a trio of points in the five games.

His gritty, give-it-all style leads by example and is exactly the package of traits that at least a handful of a roster must possess if a team is going to make a deep playoff run. As Recchi’s five February or later trades would attest, he is a valuable commodity.

And if he chooses to have one last kick at the can next season, contending teams would be well advised to ignore the number on his birth certificate in lieu of his two Stanley Cups.

 

[tony d]

This guy didn't have a bio so here goes.

Marian Hossa

Hossa's reaction when he found out he was being drafted to Toledo.

Personal Info and stats courtesy of hockeyreference.com:

Position: RW • Shoots: Left
6-1, 207lb (185cm, 93kg)
Team: Chicago Blackhawks
Born: January 12, 1979 (Age: 38-019d) in Stara Lubovna, Czechoslovakia cs
Draft: Ottawa, 1st round (12th overall), 1997 NHL Entry

Stats:

- 149 points in 201 career games
- 517 career goals
- 83 career game winning goals (24th all time)
- Led NHL in Hat Tricks in 2002-2003 with 3
- 5 time all star

Legends of hockey:

In his first season in Atlanta, Hossa tallied 39 goals and added 53 assists for 92 points, easily surpassing his previous point total set in Canada's capital. The following year Hossa made history in Atlanta by becoming the first Thrasher to score 100 points in one season, finishing his year with 43 goals, and 57 assists.

As a member of the Penguins, Hossa's 12 goals and 14 assists in the playoffs helped lead the club to the Stanley Cup Final. The Penguins and Hossa were beat in six games by the Detroit Red Wings, leaving Hossa set to become an unrestricted free agent in the summer.

There was no shortage of suitors for the sniper upon reaching free agency on July 1st, 2008 Hossa was offered numerous long-term contracts from various NHL clubs so it was a huge to surprise when Hossa decided to sign a one-year deal with the Stanley Cup Champion, Detroit Red Wings. His assertion being that the club gave him the best chance at winning the Cup in 2008-09.

final thoughts:

Glad to get Hossa finally. Feel he fits a need for my team. Glad to have him.

 

[jarek]

Drew Doughty, D

Height: 6'1
Weight: 195 lbs.
Shoots: Right

Award Recognition
Norris Voting: 1st (2016), 2nd (2015), 3rd (2010), 6th (2014), 9th (2013), 10th (2011)
All Star Voting: 1st (2016), 3rd (2010), 3rd (2015), 6th (2014), 9th (2013), 12th (2011)
Olympic All-Star Team (2014)

Time On Ice
Since start of 2009 season, 3rd in TOI/GP. source
NHL TOI/GP: 2nd (2015), 3rd (2016), 4th (2013), 5th (2011), 7th (2014), 12th (2010), 12th (2012)
Team TOI/GP: 1st (2009) (+2:51), 1st (2010) (+2:22), 1st (2011) (+2:27), 1st (2012) (+2:23), 1st (2013) (+4:05), 1st (2014) (+3:25), 1st (2015) (+5:48), 1st (2016) (+4:58)

Offensive Accomplishments
Points among defensemen: 3rd (2010)
Vs2: 86 (2010), 77 (2015), 68 (2012), 68 (2016), 65 (2011), 61 (2014), 58 (2013)

Playoff Points: 5th (2012) (1st among defensemen), 6th (2014) (1st among defensemen)
Playoff Assists: 1st (2012), 4th (2014) (1st among defensemen)

Olympic Points: 5th (2014) (T-1st on team, T-2nd among D)

seventieslord VsXD best 7 scores: 100, 84, 77, 69, 68, 65, 58, avg: 74.4

Since start of 2009 season, 8th in corsi for % among all players with at least 4000 minutes played (3rd on team) source

The Hockey News

Assets:
Oozes all-round brilliance and loves to join the rush, often acting like a fourth forward on the ice. Plays with poise and composure under pressure. Has excellent instincts in all three zones and is a great passer. Can log huge minutes.
Flaws:
Does not always kick his physical play up a notch at the highest level and lacks consistency in that area. Is also prone to a few careless mistakes on occasion, with and without the puck, which he must curb to maximize production.

not many teenage defensemen can play in the NHL, let alone anchor and lead their team in icetime. But that's exactly what Doughty accomplished last year, charting a course to join the game's elite before too long. He plays an all-around game that could dent his offensive production, but should be able to reach 30-40 points.

Went from emerging prospect to star over the course of the season. He did it all, from playing well enough to be nominated for the Norris trophy, to helping Canada to the gold medal in Vancouver, to dominating as a PP QB in the playoffs. Doughty's 59 points were the most by a 20-year old defenseman since Brian Leetch in 1988-89.

After just two NHL seasons, Doughty is an elite player. Last year, he finished 3rd among all rearguards in points, while pacing LA in average icetime and finishing 2nd in +/-. He also piles up hits and blocked shots. This 20-year old is simply amazing.

soared to stardom during a landmark season... recorded just two points for team Canada yet arguably made the greatest impact with his calm outlet abilities... innovative, highly-skilled workhorse with great hands and a sizzling wristshot... guided by superior offensive instincts, yet also equipped with the bravado to improvise and take chances... waits until the last second before making decisions, sporting exceptional control and passing precision... a good, solid skater with long, deceiving stride and the capacity to summon bursts of quickness... came into his own last season orchestrating the PP from the top of the umbrella... steadily upgrading his defensive postures and techniques... increasingly more proactive using his body to box out opponents in front of the net and win battles... levels off the odd night - gets static and takes poor angles defending, however those efforts are becoming less frequent... flashed an even higher level during the playoffs and led the Kings in scoring.

Superficially, Doughty suffered through a dropoff in performance in 2010-11. Overwhelmingly, that dropoff came on the PP. He scored just three fewer points at ES, but went from 31 to 15 with the man advantage. Aside from that one small area of regression, Doughty played like a franchise defenseman, which is precisely what he is.

Fell back to earth a little in '10-11. An early concussion contributed, but so did a slow finish... still one of the NHL's most well-rounded rearguards and a big-minute regular.

crashed back to earth with a disappointing follow-up to a landmark sophomore year... struggled with conditioning... missed that dynamic attacking flair... frequently just blending into the scenery while serving up a steady diet of defensive errors...

The Hockey Writers

When Stevie Y made known his selection for the Canadian Olympic team on December 30, 2009, one name, Drew Doughty, created some real controversy. Who was Doughty and how was he picked over Mike Green, Jay Bouwmeester or even Dion Phaneuf? The answer was simple. Yzerman had seen in Doughty the kind of defenseman he believed he needed on the team to bring home another Olympic medal. Quick, skilled, feisty – Drew Doughty was his man. His belief in the twenty-year-old rearguard was totally vindicated when the puck dropped in Vancouver in February and he became a force to be reckoned with on the Team Canada blueline.

Considered a late-bloomer by the Pro scouts, his path to glory was not that easy. Doughty was not drafted until June 2008 when the Los Angeles Kings, much to his delight, chose him in the first round, second overall. Having grown up a Kings Fan and a Wayne Gretzky worshipper (he still sleeps on a Kings pillow case and wore the number 99 until it was retired in The Great One’s honor), Drew’s lifetime dream came true. That summer he went to the Kings training camp and, at eighteen years old, made the jump to the big team in his first try.

So his rise to the top was more rapid than most. While playing for the London Knights AAA Midget team, he was drafted by the Guelph Storm. Playing for the Storm in the OHL Junior league, his offensive abilities were unquestioned. However, until he was chosen for the Canadian World Junior Team, his defensive prowess was missing. A nose-to-the-grindstone type individual, Drew worked hard in those camps and in the buildup to the World Junior Championships in 2008 to improve those particular skills.

The results were spectacular. Eventually he led the Canada Junior World Cup team to a Gold medal in the Czech Republic that year, being named a Tournament All-Star as well as winning the Directorate Award for Best Defenseman. In 2009 he won a silver medal in the Men’s World’s Ice Hockey Championships in Switzerland when his team lost to Russia 2-1 in the Gold Medal game. His performance caught the eye of Team Canada and he was invited to the tryout camp for the 2010 Olympic Team.
Related: Recap: Capitals Score Five, Grubauer Blanks Kings

What has excited the hockey world is the high level of Doughty’s skills. Don Cherry has compared his spin-a-rama move to that of Bobby Orr’s, who Cherry coached in both his and Bobby’s heydays.

Other analysts compare his stickhandling and his ability to “see the ice†to that of Doug Harvey, the legendary captain of the Montreal Canadiens. He has both a pinpoint wrist shot and a hard accurate slapper. As the quarterback of the Power Play, his quiet confidence commands the respect of his fellow players. His skating is first class and his anticipation of the developing play can at times amaze the Kings faithful. His moves on defense are as creative as any you can see in the league. Sprawling, lunging, fighting in corners, pounding an oncoming forward who tries to squeeze by him, he is a whirlwind of action. Essentially, he can do it all.

This year, 2009 – 2010, was his career year. His presence on the Kings has been a contributing factor to the re-emergence of a team that had not made the playoffs in a few years. At 6’1â€, 203 pounds he loves taking the body and making the big hits on opposing forwards.. His nine PP goals and five game-winning goals attest to his scoring touch. In 82 games he scored 16 goals, had 43 assists and had 142 shots on goal. His outstanding play in the Vancouver Olympics, teamed with the Blackhawks Duncan Keith, raised the profile of both these talented young men to the world-class level.

The icing on the cake came this week when the NHL named Drew, Mike Green of the Washington Capitols and Keith Duncan of the Hawks as the three finalists for the Norris Trophy, awarded each year to the Best Defenseman in the League, . Should he win the trophy in June, he would be the youngest defensemen ever to win that honor with the one exception of Bobby Orr, who was three months younger than him when he won his first of eight. “To be younger than any other winner than Orr is a thrill,†said Doughty at Friday’s practice. “It’s pretty cool. Bobby Orr was one of the best defensemen to play the game. To be close to doing the same thing he did is kind of surprising, I guess, to me, but it is very humbling as well.â€

The Player's Tribune

Drew Doughty
The first name that comes to mind when I think of elite defensemen is Drew Doughty. Drew plays with a confidence and almost an arrogance (I mean that in a good way) that allows him to try things on the ice that other defensemen wouldn’t. He’s obviously a great skater — the way he can weave through defenders in the neutral zone while keeping his head up at the same time is something that’s hard to coach. But his real superpower is his intuition.

Nowadays, teams have a tendency to over-backcheck. It’s very rare for forwards to get a 3-on-2 rush because defensive responsibility is preached so much. So that’s why you’re starting to see this new breed of active defensemen coming up as a second wave and joining the play. It’s easy to stay back and be a positionally-sound defenseman, but the trickiest decision you make on the ice is when to take a risk and join the rush. Drew is the best in the world at anticipating the right moment to pick his spot and jump into the play. This goal against the Rangers in the Stanley Cup Finals shows exactly what makes him so special.

To have the confidence to jump into the play and then go between the legs in such a big moment? Wow. Obviously, you need to have a coach who is willing to give you a long leash so credit to Darryl Sutter for handling Drew the right way.

National Post

Logan Couture shook his head and smiled. The Team Canada forward had just been asked how Drew Doughty had changed since the two London, Ont., area players began competing against each other as children. Coming up with an answer was proving to be a difficult task.

Changed? This is Drew Doughty we’re talking about.

The full-of-life defenceman, who used to go by the nickname Doughnuts, is far less pudgy these days. And he no longer has every single one of his teeth. But when it comes to his sense of humour and off the charts skill-set, not a whole lot is different than when they were kids.

“Still acts like he did when he was 14,†Couture said laughing. “My dad and I were talking, we were just saying it’s pretty crazy that a kid I played with so long ago is probably the best defenceman in the world. It’s pretty crazy.â€

Up until this year, Couture’s comment about Doughty was just an opinion. But after finally winning his first Norris Trophy in his eighth season in the league and starring for Canada at the World Cup of Hockey, there is no debate.

Doughty, who was won two Olympic gold medals with Canada and two Stanley Cups with the Los Angeles Kings, is the best defenceman in the world. And based on how he has played at the World Cup of Hockey, few expect that will change in the coming years.

“He’s one of the most complete defencemen in the league,†said Team Europe defenceman Andrej Sekera, who played briefly with Doughty during the 2014-15 season. “That’s why he won the award. He does everything right. He’s got the whole package. He’s been proving for years that he belongs with the top D in the league.â€

Sometimes all it takes is one.

We forget that Nicklas Lidstrom was 31 years old and playing in his 10th season in the NHL when he won his first Norris Trophy. He then won six more in the following nine years. A similar thing happened to Paul Coffey, who waited five years before winning his first of three awards, and Ray Bourque, who won the first of five awards in his eighth season.

So maybe this is the start of something special for the 26-year-old Doughty, whose Norris Trophy win last season was the equivalent Marin Scorsese finally winning an Oscar for directing The Departed. It wasn’t necessarily Doughty’s best individual season — he tied for ninth with 51 points — but most agreed that he was long overdue.

“Honestly, I think he should have had a couple already — not just the one,†said Team Europe captain Anze Kopitar, who has been Doughty’s teammate in Los Angeles for the past eight years. “I’m sure that’s going to be a springboard for many more for him. He’s got a little bit of a disadvantage playing in the West, because people aren’t paying too much attention to him. But in my mind, he’s definitely top three, if not the best defenceman in the league.â€

That has certainly been true at the World Cup. With Duncan Keith missing the tournament to rehab a knee injury, Doughty stepped up as the go-to guy on Team Canada’s defence. After leading the exhibition schedule with four points in three games, Doughty entered Game 2 of the final series with two assists, a plus-six rating and a team-high in minutes played.

It shouldn’t be a surprise. Doughty was only 20 years old when he not only earned a spot on Canada’s 2010 Olympic team but also was one of the top defencemen. Four years later, he led the team with four goals and six points to win gold again in Sochi.

“An elite, elite talent to say the least,†said Team Canada head coach Mike Babcock, who coached Doughty at the last two Olympics. “The ability to play with and without the puck. He’s not as heavy as he used to be, but he still plays a real heavy game. Knows what we’re doing before we even do it.â€

For example, check out the highlight-reel hit that Doughty delivered on Frans Nielsen in the dying minutes of Game 1. It ended with the Team Europe forward on his butt and searching for his hockey stick. But the thing that most people missed was that it began with Doughty breaking up a 3-on-1 rush to preserve the lead.

As Couture said, “He’s a leader on our back end.â€

Indeed, like Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews and Carey Price, Doughty has become a core player for Team Canada. At his age, he should be eligible to play in two or three more Olympics.

By then, chances are his trophy case will be full of Norris trophies.

The Toronto Sun

On the largest stage, with the world watching, the best hockey player in the Olympic tournament was Drew Doughty.

And through three rounds of the Stanley Cup playoffs — if the Conn Smythe Trophy was given out today — the most deserving player in the post-season has been Doughty.

Which raises a question never really contemplated before, a matter being discussed informally as the Stanley Cup final is about to begin: Is Drew Doughty now the best player in hockey?

He has never really been in this kind of conversation before, the type normally reserved for Sidney Crosby or Alexander Ovechkin, maybe a Jonathan Toews. Doughty’s not the best scorer, he hasn’t won a Norris Trophy, isn’t sure he’ll ever win one. (Which, by the way, makes him angry.) He won’t win the Hart Trophy: Crosby, who had a crummy playoffs in Pittsburgh, will claim the most valuable player award.

But the game is first and foremost about victories. It’s about making plays. It’s about being physical. It’s about seeing people others can’t see. It’s about decision making. It’s about protecting the puck. It’s about not being scored on. It’s about leadership. It’s about adapting to circumstances. It’s about reading the play and the clock.

“That’s Drew Doughty,†said his teammate Matt Greene. “Nobody does what he does. He does so many things extremely well. He’s a two-way defenceman. He shuts down the other team’s best line. He scores big goals for us. He makes plays. He’s physical, He takes hits, gives hits. And if you watch him, sometimes it seems like he has eyes in the back of his head. He sees things nobody else sees.

“I don’t know if he’s the best player in hockey but he’s certainly the best defenceman.’

Maybe the most confident defenceman. Maybe the defenceman who puts the most pressure on himself to be great. He doesn’t care much if he scores but never wants to be scored on. He loves big games, lives for big games, changes them.

“I like the pressure,†said Doughty, just 24, just 24 dammit. “I just step up on these occasions. I want to be the guy who makes a difference for my team to win. My ultimate thing is just winning, that’s all I care about. It’s being a winner and helping this team win. I’ll do anything it takes. Anything.â€

He wasn’t great in the first period of Game 7 against Chicago. He knew that. He was just OK in the second period when coach Darryl Sutter called him in for a chat between periods. In the third period and OT, he was awesome.

You sit and listen to Doughty at the podium on Stanley Cup media day and there seems to be no challenge he doesn’t welcome. He only compares himself to the best players in hockey. That’s not ego speaking, that’s reality and expectation, his own.

“I want to be the best defenceman in the world,†said the best defenceman in the world. Duncan Keith will win the Norris. Doughty was better in the Western Conference final and throughout the entire playoffs. Zdeno Chara is a Norris candidate. He looked a touch slow in the series against Montreal. The great Shea Weber didn’t make the post-season, again.

Which makes it hard for Doughty to trust the Norris voting, to accept not being a final three candidate. “I kind of ignore what people say about me and about other guys and how they’re better than me."

“At the end of the day, people will judge me not by how many Norris Trophy’s I win, if I win any at all, (but) by how many Stanley Cups I win.â€

He has one now, should have two by best week. Two Olympic gold medals and two Stanley Cups and he doesn’t turn 25 until December.

He thought he had a great regular season, although even Kings management will tell you he had a little post-Sochi slump of sorts. He thought he was lucky in Sochi. He likes his game in this post-season. “I don’t have the points that other guys get but I don’t play in the East and I don’t play a full two minutes on the power play. My team uses me in every situation. My name may never be on that trophy. I would like it to be. That’s not my ultimate goal. My ultimate goal is winning Stanley Cups.

“I’m so competitive and I want to win so bad. And I’ll do anything it takes and that’s what separates me from others.â€

Denis Potvin played a game somewhat similar to Doughty’s, with more offence on a more complete team. He won four Cups. The best player in those days was Wayne Gretzky, the best goal-scorer, Mike Bossy.

There are no Bossy’s in today’s NHL and there will never be another Gretzky and the change in coaching and defence and goaltending means no one will score like that again. And with that change, the role of the No. 1 defenceman, the kind who can combine offence and defence, puck-moving and scoring, has grown exponentially. Duncan Keith has won two Cups. Nicklas Lidstrom won four in Detroit. Scott Niedermayer won four. And Chris Pronger won one Cup, lost twice in the final in a five-year period.

Now it’s Doughty’s tu. At 24, he’s getting older and better.

“I was fortunate enough to make the NHL right out of junior,†he said. “When you’re doing that you’re kind of forced to grow up. I was 18, living on my own, already, paying my own bills, doing those kind of things, having to do my own laundry, you’re forced to grow up right away. It’s not like it’s a bad thing. Being around older guys, knowing you’re now looked up to by little kids. That’s forces you to grow up. I guess I grew up quickly.â€

Grown up into the best player in hockey.

 

[Voight]

Patrick Kane


Awards and Achievements:
NHL All-Rookie Team 2008
Calder Memorial Trophy 2008
Winter Olympics Silver Medal 2010
Stanley Cup Champion 2010, 2013, 2015
First NHL All-Star Team 2009–10, 2015-16
NHL All-Star 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017
Conn Smythe Trophy (Playoff MVP) 2013
Art Ross Trophy 2015–16
Ted Lindsay Award 2015–16
Hart Memorial Trophy 2015–16

Hart voting - 1st(2016), 6th(2013)

All-Star voting - 1st(2016), 1st(2010), 3rd(2013), 4th(2014), 4th(2015), 9th(2008), 9th(2011), 18th(2009)

Offensive Achievements:
Points - 1st(2016), 5th(2013), 9th(2010)

Goals - 2nd(2016), 5th(2013)

Assists - 3rd(2016), 8th(2010)


Playoff Points - 1st(2015), 2nd(2013), 3rd(2010), 5th(2014), 9th(2009)
Playoff Goals - 2nd(2013), 2nd(2015), 4th(2010), 4th(2014), 6th(2009)
Playoff Assists - 2nd(2010), 4th(2015), 5th(2013), 5th(2014)


5 Year Peak: 2011 to 2016
3rd in Points, 98% of 1st place Claude Giroux
8th in Goals, 90% of 3rd place Joe Pavelski
9th in Assists, 84% of 2nd place Claude Giroux


10 Year Peak: 2007 to 2017
5th in Points, 87% of 1st place Alex Ovechkin
12th in Goals, 82% of 2nd place Steven Stamkos
6th in Assists, 81% of 1st place Joe Thornton

Kane may not be the largest player in the game, but he’s got good leg strength, tremendous vision and playmaking instincts, prodigious puck-handling skills, and a nose for the net. All of this made him the first overall selection in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.

Has exceptional hockey sense. Is as good as it gets in the playmaking department from a wing position. Makes his teammates around him better. Is supremely confident in his abilities.

Career Potential - Elite playmaking winger.

Brian Leetch's name came up during our "players we wish could have played past 40" conversation on today's Puck Daddy Radio. He ended his career as a Boston Bruins defenseman, but earned his fame with the New York Rangers. He is, without question, one of the greatest U.S.-born players in NHL history.

In 2009, John Grigg of The Hockey News ranked Leetch second among U.S.-born players, behind Chris Chelios and ahead of Pat LaFontaine. Three years earlier, Tom Layberger of SI.com had LaFontaine over Leetch and Joe Mullen.

Current Detroit Red Wings center Mike Modano was fourth on the THN list and fifth on the SI list; John Beattie of NESN considered him a might bit better, seeing Modano as the type of American star the magnitude of "Canada's Sidney Crosby, Russia's Alex Ovechkin, Sweden's Nicklas Lidstrom or Finland's Teemu Selanne."

As Modano's career nears its sunset, Beattie makes the case today that Patrick Kane of the Chicago Blackhawks is the next American hockey hero.

Kane has the "goals, assists, mischief and partying" that should endear him to fans, along with other intangibles

..................

Beattie also makes the case that Kane is dangerously on pace with Modano, who had 309 points in his first 317 games while Kane has 297 in 310 — the argument being that Modano had the benefit of starting his career in the offensively buoyant early 1990s.

The Blackhawks' 7-4 win put them a game away from winning the Stanley Cup -- think about that for the next two days -- and it was Kane, the jazzy improviser, who hit the right notes.
He scored the Blackhawks' fourth goal as he and Andrew Ladd all but embarrassed Hawks' bogeyman Chris Pronger and assisted on their sixth. Basically, he played like himself, a freewheeling scoring machine who racked up 88 points this season, the most by any American.

It was only Kane's second goal of this series, but unlike the first, this time it was in a win. Kane stepped up like he did late in the Olympics.

Kaner has been great for us all year and that's why he's one of the most special players in the world. His game has become more well-rounded. Last year you never quite knew if he was going to get his butt back, but he definitely does it now. He knows what it takes to be good at both ends.

But for Kane, the cheeky first-liner who maneuvers over the ice like a Maserati, "business in the front, party in the back" doesn't describe just his hair; it's always been his head-to-toe style. Kane is as determined a scorer as there is in the NHL. He's also one of the flashiest. He led Chicago with 30 goals and 88 points this season and finished second on the team to captain Jonathan Toews in postseason-point scoring. Since Kane arrived as the first pick in the 2007 draft, the Buffalo native has won over the city with his skills and approachability. He is the razzle-dazzle counterpoint to the gritty, earnest leadership of Toews, forming a pair that not only led the way to the Blackhawks' first Stanley Cup in 49 years but also should be the foundation for years to come. In December, Kane and Toews were signed to identical five-year, $31.5 million contract extensions that could keep them in Chicago through the 2014-15 season.

The 5' 10" Kane may still be a child at heart—he is as playful as he is self-confident—but seeing how easily he shakes off defensemen, Fast and nifty, he's known to his teammates as the Doctor for his precision with a hockey stick. In Chicago's clinching 5-1 win over the Canucks in Game 6 of the second round, he took a cross-ice pass from Toews on his right skate just outside the offensive zone and in one move kicked the puck onto his stick and cut inside, blowing past befuddled Vancouver blueliner Kevin Bieksa and wristing a shot past goaltender Roberto Luongo.

He's a tough guy to [check] or make a good play against, just because when the puck's on his stick, he can do a lot of great things with it.

"He's greasy, even when he's in the corner, he manages to sidestep most of the impact when guys go to hit him. I think his biggest gift is that he has no panic threshold at all with the puck. Most guys, when a player from the opposing team gets close to him, they think, O.K., I've got to do something now. This kid waits until he can feel their breath on his neck, and then he makes a move

CHICAGO -- Though maybe it wasn't the way he intended, Patrick Kane saved his best for last. With the lights brightest, it was Showtime's time to shine and shine he did.
After registering only one assist in the Stanley Cup Final after a brilliant postseason up to that point, Kane delivered an assist on the Chicago Blackhawks' first goal in Game 6 and provided the dagger to make it 2-0 late in the third period. That goal took the life out of the Tampa Bay Lightning and started the party early in Chicago.
It was another superb clinching performance from one of the game's most exciting players. It came once again on the biggest stage available, and it helped Chicago earn its third Stanley Cup in six years.

After scoring the overtime goal that ended the 2010 Final and gave Chicago its first Stanley Cup in 49 years, late-game heroics have been a staple of Kane's postseason repertoire. That he hadn't scored coming into the series was surprising, but it always seemed like it was only a matter of time.
Despite posting only three points in the Stanley Cup Final, Kane finished the postseason tied with Tyler Johnson with 23 points.

Kane now has 114 points in 116 career playoff games. His 23 points represented the second-most productive postseason of his career. During his past three trips to the Stanley Cup Playoffs, Kane has 62 points.
At 26 years old, Kane has already racked up a career's worth of accolades and now three Stanley Cups. He doesn't look ready to stop anytime soon, either. As long as there's a big stage, there will always be Showtime.

Ten Hawks were deemed to be among the 100 greatest players in NHL history. The Hawks’ contingent spanned 70 years, from center Max Bentley (1940-1947) to current stars Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane and Duncan Keith.

Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane will be the first U.S.-born player to win the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL regular-season scoring champion.

Kane is the first U.S.-born player to score 100 points since Doug Weight of the Edmonton Oilers had 104 in 1995-96, and the first Blackhawks player to do so since Jeremy Roenick had 107 in 1993-94. Kane had 40 points during a 26-game point streak from Oct. 22 to Dec. 15 that was the longest in Blackhawks history and the longest by an American-born NHL player.

BOSTON - Patrick Kane didn't have to score the Stanley Cup-winning goal this time to earn the Conn Smythe Trophy. His performance throughout the playoffs, and especially the final, did the trick.

Kane, whose overtime goal in 2010 gave the Blackhawks their first championship since 1961, led Chicago in scoring in the 2013 playoffs. He finished with 19 points on nine goals and 10 assists, including nine points in his final 10 games.

"It's much deserved," said captain Jonathan Toews, who won the Conn Smythe three years ago. "There's a lot of guys in that room that could have won that. I don't think there's anyone better than him. They way he played down the stretch, we wouldn't be here without him. He's a hell of a player. I'm very happy for him."

Nothing about those performances surprised Dale Hunter, who coached Kane with the Ontario Hockey League's London Knights in 2006-07.

Hunter recalled on Monday when his brother and Knights general manager, Mark, called Kane into his office 10 games into a season that began with six or seven goals and a few assists.

"(Mark) said, 'OK, Pat, you're playing outstanding and adjusting to junior-A fine, and you're doing really good,'" Dale Hunter said. "(Kane) goes, 'No, no, you haven't seen me yet. I'm better than that.'"

"When he's playing with the puck, he's so dynamic and skilled and fun to watch," Sharp said. "Sometimes we watch him a little bit too much. But he's a great player and once he started to get it into gear he was going to be lights out. He was lights out in this series and the last couple games against L.A."

 

[ResilientBeast]

Sylvio Mantha​

Statistics
1928-29 - 4th in Hart Voting (only 2 points back from Eddie Shore who is the only other D on the list)
1930-31 - 3rd in First Team All Star Voting, named to the second All Star Team
1931-32 - 4th in First Team All Star Voting, named to the second All Star Team

Bun Cook went off for a tripping Sylvio Mantha as Sylvio and Frank Boucher parted from a brief wrestling match that the officials missed

The first two New York goals came while Sylvio Mantha was off the ice

Five minutes of rather slow hockey was featured only by a combination rush of Sylvio Mantha and Howie Morenz, which brought them right to Beverlge's door.

Strange as it may seem, Clancy and Shore are tied with 78 points each counting the games played in the seasons of 1927-28, 1928-29, 1929-1930 and all the games in the current season up to and including last sunday night's. Clancy has 41 goals and 37 assists over that period. Shore has 38 goals and 40 assists. They are some distance ahead of all other defense men in the matter of getting goals. Their next nearest rivals being Sylvio Mantha of the Canadiens with 55. (4th is Clancy and he's 10 points back)

Morenz, Leduc, Sylvio Mantha all took turns in thrilling the onlookers with masterful all round work.

The veteran players of both teams held the leading role in the game. Morenz, Joliat, Burke and Sylvio Mantha doing the heavy work for the Canadiens...

Canadiens put Sylvio Mantha on for the last two minutes in an effort to tie the score, but they failed to get even a shot on Gardiner before the bell rang.

Mantha a clean cut gentlemanly type of player was a star defenseman for Montreal Canadiens. Mantha was a familiar figure with his famous rushes and was twice selected for the second all star team and was on two Stanley Cup winning teams

Canadiens showed no outstanding stars other than Chabot, Marty Burke, Sylvio Mantha and Bouregault were the pick of the defense...

Some second hand quotes on Sylvio Mantha:

Legends Of Hockey:

One of the best two-way defensemen of his era, Sylvio Mantha enjoyed plenty of individual and team success in 14 stellar NHL seasons. He spent most of his big-league tenure with the Montreal Canadiens, with whom he was an important component of three Stanley Cup teams.

Born and bred in the St. Henri district of Montreal, Mantha first made a name for himself as a right wing with the Notre Dame de Grace juniors in 1918-19. That was followed by apprenticeships with Verdun in the Intermediate Mount Royal Hockey League, Montreal Imperial Tobacco and Montreal Northern Electric in the city's industrial league and a short stint with the Montreal Nationales of the Quebec senior amateur league. Well-known coach Arthur Therrien made an indelible impression on Mantha while coaching him at Verdun.

Mantha's four goals in nine games with the Nationales impressed the Montreal Canadiens enough to sign him in December 1923. Although he broke into the Canadiens lineup as a forward, he was soon moved back to fill a void on the right side of the team's blue line. Montreal was also trying to add youth to their defense corps, as veterans Sprague Cleghorn and Billy Coutu were on the downside of their careers.

Later that season, Mantha gained his first exposure to Stanley Cup glory when he helped Montreal vanquish the Vancouver Maroons and the Calgary Tigers. Then Cleghorn was traded prior to the 1925-26 season, paving the way for Mantha to take a more prominent role on the team. Mantha became a fixture on the Habs defense, pairing with Western Canada Hockey League veteran Herb Gardiner. On November 20, 1928, Mantha scored the first-ever goal in Boston Garden in a 1-0 Canadiens triumph over the Bruins.

Arguably, Mantha's two most rewarding seasons were 1929-30 and 1930-31. He contributed to consecutive Stanley Cup triumphs and was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team both years. By this time, Mantha was entrenched as one of the most revered defensive defensemen in the game. Further satisfaction came from sharing this success with his younger brother Georges, who was a defenseman and left wing for the Canadiens from 1928 to 1941.

In 1935-36, Mantha took on a greater challenge by serving as the Canadiens' player-coach. Unfortunately, the club didn't fare well and missed out on post-season play for the first time in a decade. Late in the 1936-37 season, he was signed by the Boston Bruins, for whom he played his last four regular-season games as defensive insurance.

After retiring, Mantha tried his hand as a linesman and referee in the American Hockey League and the NHL. However, the grueling travel schedule of an on-ice official proved to be too much. Mantha decided to stay in Montreal and ply his trade as an amateur coach. He guided the Montreal Concordias until 1943, when he switched to the junior ranks. Mantha passed his wealth of experience on to young players on the Laval Nationales from 1943 to 1945, the Verdun Maple Leafs from 1945 to 1947 and the St. Jerome Eagles from 1947 to 1948.

By the end of the 1940s, Mantha was ready to make a clean break from the game. In 1960 he was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame and he died in August 1974 in Montreal, scene of many of his fondest memories, on or off the ice.

Joe Pelletier:

Sylvio Mantha almost could have been remembered as the man who forever misplaced the Stanley Cup.

Following the 1924 Stanley Cup victory, Sylvio and his Montreal Canadiens teammates were honored by the University of Montreal. Following the reception, Mantha and some teammates headed for owner Leo Dandurand's home to continue the celebrations. However the Model T Ford that Sylvio was driving stalled on a hill. All the players got out to give it a push until the car was started once again.

When the Model T was back in commission, the players jumped back in and headed for Dandurand's house. However they forgot that they placed Lord Stanley's Mug on the curb by the roadside while they were busy trying to revive the vehicle!! It wasn't until they arrived at Dandurand's house that they realized they misplaced the silverware. The players sped back to that hill and much to their relief found the Cup in all its shining majesty sitting exactly where they had left it.

Born in Montreal in 1902, Mantha became a Canadien when he was only 21 years old. He was a fine defenseman as is reflected by his team's successes - five first place finishes and three Stanley Cup championships. A physical player, Mantha, who played forward until he turned pro with the Habs, was paired with Herb Gardiner and the two formed a fantastic defensive partnership. Mantha, one of the all time best defensive blue liners, was twice named to the Second All Star team.

Mantha was named as the player-coach of the Canadiens in 1935-36, but following a poor finish was fired as coach. Mantha moved on Boston to play one final season in the NHL.
In 542 NHL games, Mantha scored 63 goals and 135 points - impressive numbers for a defenseman in the mid 1920s and 1930s. Following his NHL career, he turned to officiating, first as an NHL lineseman and later as a referee in the American Hockey League. He would later turn to coaching amateur teams in his native Montreal.

Sylvio Mantha was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1960.

From ourhistory.canadiens.com:

A native Montrealer, Sylvio Mantha grew up in St. Henri, a working class neighbourhood a stone’s throw from the Forum. Playing right wing in local amateur and industrial leagues, he attracted the attention of Canadiens General Manager Leo Dandurand, who snapped him up and had the strapping 5-foot-10, 180-pounder in uniform to start the 1923-24 NHL season.

The young forward was converted into a defenseman shortly after breaking in with the Habs. He went on to enjoy a long successful career, establishing the standard of excellence for stay-at-home defensemen for generations to come.

Mantha’s rookie season ended on the best possible note imaginable. He adapted to his new position with ease, thriving in his environment and ended the year as a Stanley Cup Champion.

A tough, strong and mobile defenseman, opposing forwards had no easy way to get around Mantha. Among the NHL’s bigger men, the fiercely competitive Mantha made good use of his size, able to eliminate oncoming threats with a solid hip check. The versatile rearguard also made frequent use of both his fists and stick in the heat of battle.

Mantha played his rock-ribbed game for 13 complete seasons with the Canadiens, missing an average of just one game per year. His tireless efforts and dedication to the team’s success led to Mantha’s appointment as captain to start the 1926-27 campaign. This was a title that, with the exception of one year, he would proudly hold for the rest of his tenure in Montreal.

With younger brother Georges’ arrival in 1928-29, the Canadiens iced one of the NHL’s first and most talented brother acts. They played together for the next eight years, sharing Stanley Cup Championships in 1930 and 1931, with both Manthas leading the charge in the postseason.

While his main charge involved preventing the opposition from scoring, Mantha also found the twine with regularity, scoring 10 goals in 1926-27 and 13 three years later. In 1928, he scored the first-ever goal at the brand new Boston Garden, securing a win for the visiting team.

Adding coaching responsibilities to his plate towards the end of the 1934-35 season, the veteran defenseman served as player-coach until leaving the club following the end of play in 1935-36.

After a brief on-ice return with Boston the following year, Mantha retired for good and devoted much of the next decade to coaching amateur teams in and around Montreal.

Mantha appeared in 538 regular season games over 13 years wearing the bleu-blanc-rouge, scoring 63 goals and adding 78 assists. His 689 penalty minutes secured his spot as one NHL’s best tough guys in the league’s early days.

In 1960, the Hockey Hall of Fame inducted Mantha as an honored member, recognizing his rightful place among the game’s superstars.
Sylvio Mantha passed away in 1974. His name lives on in his hometown, where a local arena is dedicated to his memory.

 

[Dreakmur]

Darryl Sittler !!!

I play best when I'm aggressive, making contact and going after the puck.

Awards and Achievements:
Canada Cup Champion (1976)

Second Team All-Star (1978)

Hart voting - 3rd(1978), 8th(1980), 9th(1974), 9th(1976), 9th(1977), 13th(1979)
All-Star voting - 2nd(1978), 3rd(1974), 5th(1977), 5th(1979), 5th(1980), 6th(1976)


Offensive Accomplishments:
Points - 3rd(1978), 8th(1974), 8th(1977), 9th(1976), 9th(1980), 12th(1979), 15th(1981), 18th(1975)
Goals - 6th(1978), 8th(1977), 9th(1974), 12th(1976), 14th(1981), 15th(1979), 16th(1975), 17th(1983), 18th(1980)
Assists - 2nd(1978), 8th(1980), 11th(1976), 14th(1977), 15th(1974), 15th(1979), 19th(1981)

Play-off Points - 2nd(1977)
Play-off Goals - 9th(1977), 10th(1976)
Play-off Assists - 2nd(1977), 9th(1978)

Canada Cup Points - 11th(1976)
Canada Cup Goals - 4th(1976)


5 Year Peak: 1976 to 1980
4th in Points, 87% of 2nd place Marcel Dionne
6th in Goals, 83% of 2nd place Marcel Dionne
6th in Assists, 87% of 2nd place Bobby Clarke
2nd in Play-off Points per Game, 92% of 1st place Guy Lafleur

10 Year Peak: 1973 to 1982
3rd in Points, 87% of 2nd place Guy Lafleur
3rd in Goals, 88% of 2nd place Guy Lafleur
5th in Assists, 82% of 2nd place Bobby Clarke


Scoring Percentages:
Points - 107, 92, 86, 84, 82, 75, 74, 71, 67, 66, 52

Best 6 seasons: 526


Team Scoring:
Points - 1st(1973), 1st(1974), 1st(1975), 1st(1976), 1st(1977), 1st(1978), 1st(1979) ,1st(1980), 2nd(1981), 2nd(1983)

Percentages - 137, 134, 131, 122, 108, 103, 102, 100, 99, 98

1974 Coaches' Poll:
4th Most Valuable Player

1976 Coaches' Poll:
4th Hardest Worker
5th Most Valuable Player

The sum of Sittler's game was greater than any one part. He was not the fastest skater, yet he was seldom knocked off his feet. His shot was not overpowering, but still very accurate. And while he was not a league heavyweight, Sittler could throw punches with just about anybody and wasn't averse to stirring things up if the Leafs were not playing well. His skill level did not match that of some of the other top players in the NHL, but nobody outworked the fiery Leaf and his touch around the net made him a leading point man year after year; he led the Leafs in points eight times in his career.

There was no better captain in the NHL at the time because Sittler cared about his teammates and wanted them to be treated decently. He was an unselfish player, who went so far as to pass up an open net so that teammate Lanny McDonald could record a hat trick during a playoff game.

The hard-working youngster made his way up the hockey ladder...

....

When Toronto captain Dave Keon jumped to the WHA in 1975, Sittler was given the "C". As the 24-year-old's fortunes rose, so did those of the club.

....

One of the greatest leaders the blue and white has known... A fierce competitor, a leader, a gentleman off the ice, he was everything a great player should be.

Sittler played a determined game and the Leafs made him the eighth pick overall in the 1970 Entry Draft. He saw limited action in his first pro season in 1970-71 and had an unremarkable sophomore year. In 1972-73, he began to establish himself as an offensive star, finishing with 77 points - a total he would better in all but three of his subsequent 12 seasons in the NHL. The Leafs were in a rebuilding phase early in his career and many veterans either retired or were traded. When Dave Keon moved to the World Hockey Association, the 24-year-old Sittler took over the captain's duties, becoming the second-youngest captain in Leafs history after Teeder Kennedy.

....

In September, during the Canada Cup in Montreal, he would make headlines again with his scoring ways. This time it wasn't the quantity but the quality and the timeliness that made the impression. In overtime of the second game of the best-of-three finals versus Czechoslovakia, he held onto the puck on a partial breakaway until Czech goalie Vladimir Dzurilla committed himself and an opening presented itself. The goal secured the championship and made him an overnight hero in Canada.

By the beginning of the 1975-76 season, the hard working center was given the great honor of being named captain, replacing the incomparable Dave Keon who jumped to the World Hockey Association. The honor was one that Sittler greatly cherished, and he responded to the challenge. He took his game to the next level, notching 41 goals and 59 assists to become the first Maple Leafs player in history to crack the 100 point mark in one season!

....

Once described as a "goaltender's nightmare," he found even more magic in the playoffs, particularly on the night of April 22, 1976. That night he tied Newsy Lalonde and Maurice Richard's playoff record with 5 goals in a single playoff contest. Reggie Leach and Mario Lemieux would later equal the mark, but no one bettered it.

A good skater with deceptive speed. Darryl is a sound playmaker, a tough forechecker & fine scorer.

When he went to Team Canada's training camp, Scotty Bowman told be after, he and Lanny McDonald, big offensive players, came and said, "we really hope to make this team, Scotty, so if you want us to kill penalties or sweep the dressing room, we'll do that". And Scotty said, "of course you gotta keep guys like that around" and in the end, they were two of the most valuable guys that Team Canada had in the tournament.

He wasn't the best stickhandler in the world and he didn't have the greatest shot. He wasn't the toughest guy in the league either, but was probably in the top quarter of every division. You put it all together and add a huge heart, you've got a guy you'd like to go to war with.

Darryl Sittler was the team captain and never took the easy way out. I'll always admire him. He worked for everything and demanded the same from his teammates.

One time I had twenty-five points in twenty-one games and had either come off the ice early after practice or gone on late before practice. Darryl grabbed me by the throat and said. "Listen, you have got to stay on and work harder. That's why you're not up here full-time. I'm the best player on this team, and I work the hardest. If I'm still on the ice, you should still be on the ice." I became a better player for it.

The tragedy was the fact that he played in the Harold Ballard era. I felt so sorry for a gifted hockey player, like him, and McDonald, and others, to be on a Leaf team that was a disaster; a skating disaster.

You don't like to see something like that happen against your team. But if somebody had to do it, I'm glad it was a player of Sittler's calibre, a guy who works for what he accomplishes.

Scouting Reports:

While the Maple Leafs had only one skater with more than 30 goals last season - hard-working Darryl Sittler with 38 - they had good, balanced scoring.

....

One of the best young playmakers in the NHL... Also has good wrist shot and can fight...

First 100-point scorer in Toronto history... Receives deserved credit for his leadership in Leaf's' resurgence...

Continues to provide leadership and scoring punch to Leafs and began 1976-77 in great style... A leading light with Team Canada in Canada Cup, Sittler scored goal which won the tittle over Czechoslovakia... Gifted and smooth, he roams into season with full momentum from Canada Cup... On a Leaf team gradually putting it all together, Sittler remains the heart.

In a poll conducted among writers, GMs and scouts, he rated among the league's best in six categories (best playmaker, hardest worker, most valuable player, best on faceoffs, best team leader, and a player you'd pick first for your team)... A quiet type, yet the team captain, leader and representative... His opponents consider him classy...

A consistently excellent center, the Leafs' captain scored more than 35 goals for the sixth straight season... Known for big games and clutch goals, he notched an amazing six goals and four assists to set single game record of 10 points against Boston in 1976...Tied playoff record with five goals in 1977 game victory over Philadelphia... Scored winning goal in overtime to beat Czechs for Canada Cup Championship... Has finesse skills but his intensity and toughness set him apart.

Darryl Sittler, despite the constant criticism he gets from outspoken owner Harold Ballard, still one of the best centers in the NHL and is the Maple Leafs' offensive leader.

....

How much can one man take? ... Verbally attacked and discredited last season by outspoken owner Harold Ballard... Has lead in Toronto scoring eight times... Despite owner's criticism, still wants to play in Toronto... Regarded as one of best players in NHL.

A NHL star for past decade... Holds just about every team scoring record... Has good skill but much of his success has been the result of hard work.

One of hockey's best centers and most respected veterans...

Provides leadership and productivity from both center and left wing... Fit in well immediately with Flyers' aggressive, physical style...

As classy as a person as he is as an athlete... A center who can score goals as well as set them up with passes...

​

 

[Namba 17]

Boris Petrovich Mikhailov

Position: RW
Height: 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight: 169 lb (77 kg; 12 st 1 lb)
Shoots: Left
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boris_Mikhailov_(ice_hockey))

Playing career 1962–1981

Сaptain of the Soviet national team and CSKA (1973-1980) (Михайлов)

Awards and Achievements:

Soviet league:

Goals finishes:
1, 1, 1, 2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 4, 5, 5, 7
(Archives - Hockey sur glace)

Comparing to other Soviets:
Only Bobrov and Guryshev managed to become the best goal-scorers 4 times each. It was in the 1948-1958 seasons (it was the early days of Soviet hockey with much lesser competition).
Since that time Mikhailov is one of 6 players, who became the best goal-scorer 3 times. Here is the list:
Mikhailov
Petrov
Yakushev
Balderis
Makarov
Krutov
(Лучшие снайперы и бомбардиры Чемпионатов Страны)

Top-5 goalscoring finishes (5 minimum):

Mikhailov - 11 times
Guryshev - 10 times
Starshinov - 9 times
Makarov* - 8 times
Krutov* - 8 times
B. Mayorov - 7 times
Petrov - 6 times
Bobrov - 6 times
V. Aleksandrov - 6 times
Almetov - 6 times
Shuvalov - 6 times
A. Yakushev - 5 times
Balderis - 5 times
Firsov - 5 times

*Finished career outside of Soviet League

Holds an absolute record of the Soviet league goals - 428 goals in 572 games, 0,75 goal per game.

Points finishes:
2, 2, 3, 3, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7

3-rd in the USSR league points total after Makarov and Petrov.

Soviet League MVP voting finishes:
1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8

Players, who won MVP more, than once:
Tretiak - 5 times
Makarov and Firsov - 3 times,
Mikhailov, Kharlamov and Fetisov - 2 times.
(Archives - Hockey sur glace)

7 Soviet league all-stars
Among forwards, after 1960 only Makarov and Starshinov managed to become all-stars more often - 10 and 8 times respectively.

11 Soviet league titles

International

2 the best forward of the WC (1973, 1979)
2 WC all stars (1973,1979)
2 the best WC goal-scorer (1977, 1978)
1 scoring leader of the WC (1974)

On WC + OG (the most important international games) - 120 games 109 goals (an absolute Soviet/Russian record), 0,91 goal per game.
Second place (Maltsev) - 126 games, 94 goals.
(https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Сборная_СССР_по_хоккею_с_шайбой)

Scored 706 goals in all events.
Only Makarov scored more (723 goals - including his NHL career, where he played significantly more games per year).
The third place holds Petrov, who scored 616 goals.
(https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Клуб_Всеволода_Боброва)

World Championships/Olympic Games
Scoring finishes:
1, 2, 2, 2, 4, 5, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9

Goalscoring finishes:
1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8

Top 5 WC/OG goalscoring finishes (4 minimum):

Mikhailov - 8 times
Kharlamov - 6 times
Makarov - 5 times
Vikulov - 5 times
Maltsev - 5 times
Loktev - 4 times
Krutov - 4 times
Firsov - 4 times
Starshinov - 4 times
Almetov - 4 times

Top 5 WC/OG scoring finishes (4 minimum):

Kharlamov - 8 times
Mikhailov - 7 times
Makarov - 6 times
Maltsev - 5 times
Petrov - 5 times
Vikulov - 5 times
Firsov - 5 times
A.Yakushev - 4 times
Larionov - 4 times

2 Olympic gold medal in 1972 and 1976, a silver medal in 1980
8 IIHF World Championships (1969–71,1973–75,1978,1979)
9 Izvestia championships

Against the best of his time.

1. Against NA professionals:

1979 Challenge Cup MVP


Mikhailov managed to play 40 games against NA professional players. It's more, than any player from USSR or NA. Second is Kharlamov with 39, third is Kasatonov with 35.
He was always 1-st line player either in National team or in CSKA, so he played vs the best NA players available.

Against all NA teams:
0,9 PPG, 0,5 GPG

Against NHL teams:
0,85 PPG, 0,5 GPG

Against WHA teams:
0,9 PPG, 0,5 GPG

For the whole data see tables here: Soviet players stats against NA professionals

2. Against CSSR players on WC/OG/CC:
24 games, 0,92 PPG, 0,33 GPG.

For the whole data see tables here: Soviet players stats vs CSSR players

Interesting study by Batis about Soviet PK, Mikhailov included can be found here: Study of the penalty killing of Soviet forwards during the 1960-1990 time frame
Batis rated Mikhailov among top Soviet PKers: Study of the penalty killing of Soviet forwards during the 1960-1990 time frame

Lutchenko:
Boris was always a leader, both in the national team and CSKA. ... he was a model for us. He was a winner, he hated to lose even while playing soccer or basketball on practices. You couldn't play in a slipshod manner with him. Boris was a true capitan. When we came to SS-72, we were loosing in the first game 0:2. Boris said then "Guys, let's get it together. Our whole country is watching us!"
Борис всегда был лидером, что в сборной, что в ЦСКА. ... он был примером для нас. Бориса отличал дух победителя, он не любил проигрывать, даже на тренировках, если играл в футбол или баскетбол. Играть с ним спустя рукава было нельзя. Борис был настоящим капитаном.+
Мы поехали на Суперсерию-72 в Канаду, проигрывали первый матч 0:2. ... Борис тогда сказал: «Ребят, давайте соберёмся. На нас вся страна смотрит!»

(У Бориса Михайлова – стальной характер - Новости ПХК ЦСКА - Cтатьи - ЦСКАНЬЮС)

S. Gimayev:
Boris was an outstanding player. We all know, that he is the best sniper. His shot was not as hard, as Petrov's or Kharlamov's, though. But Boris was always at the right time in the right place. He was fearless. He always fought, no matter whom he played against.
He had a strong character, a real capitan. Those days it was really tough in the slot, they could do almost everything. During SS-72 they hurt him, but he was in the slot, fighting. That's a character, made out of steel!
He always could shoot or make an assist - there were no inconvenient moments for him, he always could find a way to make play.
Борис Петрович – фантастически игрок! Мы все знаем, что он – лучший снайпер! При этом он не обладал таким сумасшедшим броском, каким был щелчок у Петрова или кистевой у Харламова. Но Борис Петрович всегда был там, где надо. Его невозможно было напугать. Он в самые трудные моменты продолжал бороться, независимо от того, против кого он играл.
Бойцовские качества у него были уникальные, настоящий капитан. В то время стоять на пятаке было невозможно, разрешено было всё. На Суперсерии-72 Михайлова били, но он всё равно стоял на пятаке и боролся. Это стальной характер! Для Бориса Петровича не было ситуации, когда нельзя было бросить или отдать пас. Неудобных моментов с шайбой не было никогда, он всегда мог принять шайбу и её обработать.

(У Бориса Михайлова – стальной характер - Новости ПХК ЦСКА - Cтатьи - ЦСКАНЬЮС)

Tarasov:
No one could work, giving it all, like Mikhailov. There were no meaningless games to him, he never rested himself.
В течение многих лет в трудолюбии, в стремлении действовать через не могу Борису Михайлову не было у нас равных. Он не делил матчи на главные и второстепенные, никогда не экономил силы и в каждом игровом отрезке действовал во всю силушку

(Во славу ИИХФ. Борис Михайлов)

Tarasov:
He did not shy away tough physical play. Probably, he was the first Russian forward, who played that tough, especially, in the slot.
Что до силовых приёмов противника, то, казалось, они Михайлову нипочём. Больше того, он, пожалуй, стал первым нашим форвардом, кто так охотно сам постоянно предлагал соперникам помериться силой. И особенно упорно Борис бился в зоне у чужих ворот.

(Во славу ИИХФ. Борис Михайлов)

Tarasov:
Here is the story from Tarasov's book "Maturity". Tarasov describes 1970 Canada's tournament of the Soviet team. He wrote, that "Canadian way of playing hockey is battle, fight, box without any rules. A lot of our players disappeared in such a game. But there were at least two players, who could play hockey this way too. They were Evgeniy Poladiev and Boris Mikhailov. Mikhailov really went after Canadians the way, they went after our players, and beat them all over the rink. He didn't score goals, but Canadians became much less aggressive every time he was on ice"

Драка, бокс вне рамок и правил, а не хоккей - вот что такое наша любимая игра в трактовке тех профессионалов, которые влились в команду Маклеода...
Думаю, что не найдется такого знатока хоккея, кому не нравились бы Анатолий Фирсов, Вячеслав Старшинов, Валерий Харламов, Александр Мальцев - игроки яркие, творческие, со своим собственным технико-тактическим почерком. Но... многие из них просто затерялись на фоне сплошного силового единоборства, различных захватов, стычек, а то и откровенных драк.
Правда, и в нашей команде обнаружилось два игрока, которые после просьбы тренеров, быстро научились играть в ключе канадцев. Это защитник Евгений Поладьев и нападающий Борис Михайлов. Кстати, последний действительно устраивал охоту на канадцев, так же как они на нас, лупил их по всему полю, хотя, к сожалению, потерял в этих драках свою игру (не случайно Борис не забросил ни одной шайбы), но был в полной мере вознагражден за такие действия не только синяками и шишками, но и осторожностью канадцев в те минуты, когда он выскакивал на площадку.

Там, за океаном [1970 Тарасов А.В. - Совершеннолетие. Хоккей и хоккеисты]

He was not flashy, but he scored almost all goals - says Gonchar. He came in the slot and scored from rebounds. He didn't care if he would be hurt, he just repeated it game after game and that's why he is respected that much in Russia. Besides that, Mikhailov was a true-born leader.
Нельзя сказать, что он блистал или был ярким, не из тех, кто "раздевал" соперников, как детей, или выдавал финты, обсуждавшиеся повсеместно, но чуть ли не все голы забивал он, – говорит Гончар. – Он прикатывал на пятак и добивал шайбу в ворота. Его не смущало, что там больно бьют, он лез и лез туда, и за свое бесстрашие очень уважаем на родине. Помимо того, Михайлов был настоящим лидером по натуре.

(Великие русские. Харламов, Федоров, Овечкин... Версия Гончара)

Mikhailov about himself:
I never forgave. If you hurt me, I'll find a moment and hurt you.
Но спуску не давал. Если меня обидите, найду момент и сделаю вам так же больно.

(Борис МИХАЙЛОВ: “ФИДЕЛЬ МЕНЯ ЖДЕТ”)

Sweden newspaper "Aftonbladet" wrote "Boris Mikhailov - tough, mean, speedy, probably, not that flashy, but, without doubts, sweet dream of any coach"
Шведская газета «Афтонбладет» в те дни написала: «Борис Михайлов — жесткий, ядовитый, быстрый, пробивной, быть может, не столь броский, но, безусловно, игрок-мечта для любого тренера…»

(Хозяин «пятачка». (Борис Михайлов) Двукратный чемпион зимних Олимпийских игр (1972, Саппоро; 1976, Инсбрук). Легенды отечественного хоккея)

Vaikhanskiy:
They hurt him, but he never gave up and, as a result, he became the best goal-scorer.
Его толкали, били по спине клюшками, но он «не сдавался», а в итоге назабивал больше всех.

(Хозяин «пятачка». (Борис Михайлов) Двукратный чемпион зимних Олимпийских игр (1972, Саппоро; 1976, Инсбрук). Легенды отечественного хоккея)

Excerpt from The Red Machine:

Compared with their rivals, the Russians may have lacked heart - but it wasn't on account of Mikhailov. On occasion he was even prepared to berate his own players. More than once, though not during the 1972 series, he dressed down Tretiak. "What are you here for?" he scolded. "To let the pucks in?" Tretiak came to respect Mikhailov, however, calling him the "fighter of all fighters."

The Kharlamov-Petrov-Mikhailov line became the 1970s successor to Loktev-Almetov-Alexandrov of the 1960s and Bobrov-Shuvalov-Babich of the 1950s. All three units played for the Central Red Army club, as would be the case with the trio of the 1980s: Krutov-Larionov-Makarov.

"Mikhailov was the workaholic," said Vladimir Yurzinov, who coached the 1970s line for several years. "He played very tough. Petrov had the amazing shot. He was strong physically and he could score. And Kharlamov was simply a universal player. He could do all things."

The line often worked a special play when they had a three-on-one or a three-on-two break. Mikhailov was a left-hand shot, but he would come down the right wing. Petrov and Kharlamov would control the puck on the left side, keeping the goalie's attention over there. Then, with the defense beginning to commit, one of them would get it over to Mikhailov who was right against the far corner of the cage. Another set play they and other players used effectively would see a Soviet player rush around a defenseman but, rather than break to the front of the net, he would keep going around behind it. The goalie would start moving across but the skater would fire a back pass to a trailing winger who would one-time the puck past the surprised goalie on the near side.

Mikhailov, who symbolized the evil empire for a lot of Canadians with his style of play, was atypical of the Russian players in his desire to set himself in front of the net, take the hits, get the garbage goals. Kharlamov devoted a lot of time to studying goaltenders' moves and concluded that "it is important that a player does not go into a glide before shooting. The shot should be taken in your natural stride." He also emphasized that the puck should be shot to the corner away from which the player is moving. Mikhailov, he noted, was the expert at doing this. "He always shot the puck in towards the goalie's steadying foot when the goalie was moving sideways. It is impossible for the goalie to stop a puck with this foot."

(http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=16012181&postcount=6)

Great analysis of Mikhailov's play, made by Sturminator, can be found here:
http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=16012181&postcount=6

Bobrov:
If Boris has the puck, it's almost impossible to take it away from him. If he loses it, he immediately catches the offender and often causes the opponent to give it back. His peculiar manner of skating (with increasing acceleration), his perfectly sound passes, irresistible swiftness, determination in attacking, and his contempt for any danger on the ice- these are the qualities that are rapidly making him among the number of top-class strikers.

(http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=43294897&postcount=37)

Phil Esposito:
(Mikhailov is) one of the dirtiest players I've ever played against.

(http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=43294897&postcount=37)

peoples.ru
Boris Mikhailov was an exceptionally brave hockey player who knew how to ignore pain, to tolerate it even after the roughest methods of the most evil opponents.

(http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=43294897&postcount=37)

 

[chaosrevolver]

JOHN LECLAIR - #10

NHL Accomplishments
Stanley Cup Champion (1993)
NHL First All Star Team (1995, 1998)
NHL Second All Star Team (1996, 1997, 1999)
NHL Plus Minus Award (1997, 1999)
NHL All Star Game (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000)

Season-By-Season Finishes
Goals: 3,3,5,5,7,10
Points: 4,5,9,9
Plus/Minus: 1,2,4,9
ESG: 2,3,4,4,5,5
PP Goals: 2,4,4,5
GWG: 2,3,4,8,9

Voting Records
Post Season All Stars: 1, 1, 2, 2, 2, 3
Hart Trophy: 6, 7, 15
Selke Trophy: 12
Lady Byng Trophy: 7, 12, 32

International Accomplishments
1996 World Cup Champion
1996 World Cup All Star
2002 Olympic Silver Medalist
2002 Olympic All Star

NHL Regular Season
Games Played: 967
Goals: 406
Assists: 413
Points: 819
PIM: 501
+/-: 204

NHL Playoffs
Games Played: 154
Goals: 42
Assists: 47
Points: 89
PIM: 94
+/-: 18
OT Goals: 2

International
Games Played: 17
Goals: 12
Assists: 6
Points: 18
PIM: 8

Ranked #16 by Overpass in his List of Top-60 Players from 1968-2008 in Adjusted Plus/Minus.​

With his size and grit, left winger John LeClair was made for the modern NHL game. He had the ability to win the battles in the corners and the speed to be dangerous on the rush. Though a slow starter in terms of goal scoring, LeClair made up ground fast, becoming the first American-born player in the history of the league to score more than 50 goals in a season three times.

When he joined the Canadiens on a regular basis in 1993, LeClair earned comparisons to another much talked about youngster, Eric Lindros, and to the Pittsburgh Penguins' hot-scoring Kevin Stevens. LeClair had the size and the mobility to wreak havoc in the corners and in front of the net. But he did not consider himself a scorer, finishing the season with just 19 goals after concentrating on the defensive part of his game.

That began to change during the 1993 Stanley Cup playoffs. LeClair made scoring goals, namely overtime goals, his specialty, as did Montreal. The team won 10 consecutive overtime games. In the Stanley Cup finals against Wayne Gretzky's Los Angeles Kings, LeClair scored the overtime winner in two consecutive games, the first time any player had done that in the history of the playoffs. His second, which gave the Canadiens a commanding 3-1 lead in the series, showed just what kind of a roll he was on.

LeClair's overtime heroics did not go unnoticed in Philadelphia. The Flyers were building their team around size, toughness and skill, as they had so often in the past, and general manager Bobby Clarke believed he had a spot for the 6' 3", 225 pound LeClair. On February 9, 1995, nine games into the strike-shortened season, the Flyers acquired LeClair, Gilbert Dionne and Eric Desjardins from the Canadiens for Mark Recchi and a third round draft pick. Placed on a line with Eric Lindros and Mikael Renberg, LeClair paid dividends for his new bosses immediately. In his first 13 games after the trade he had 12 goals and 11 assists, a considerable improvement over his five points in nine games with Montreal.

LeClair's line was a powerful physical presence. With Lindros at 6' 4" and Renberg a muscular 6' 2", the threesome earned the nickname "The Legion of Doom" for its bruising and effective style. After picking up 25 goals in 37 games with the Flyers that first year, LeClair exploded for 51 in 1995-96.

LeClair proved it was not completely his teammates after his offensive awakening led to a spot on the U.S. team at the World Cup of Hockey in 1996. He was one of the leaders on that championship team, placing second in goals and points in the tournament and earning a selection to the All-Tournament Team.

LeClair's first full season with the Flyers began a streak of three consecutive 50-goal seasons, making him the second Flyer to accomplish such a feat after Tim Kerr. He was a member of the U.S. team at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, a disappointing sixth place showing for the team and LeClair. When he returned to the NHL his pace slowed but only marginally as he scored 43 goals in 1998-99, playing with new linemate Keith Jones who replaced the traded Renberg. Since the departure of Eric Lindros, it has been LeClair who has been both leader and scorer and become the cornerstone to any Flyers chances at a Cup in the 21st century.

It is not often a hockey superstar comes from the mountains of Vermont, but that is exactly where the Montreal Canadiens found John LeClair. The future NHL power forward was born in St. Albans, attended prestigious Bellows Free Academy high school and studied at the University of Vermont.

LeClair would turn professional following graduation in 1991, and played three seasons with Montreal. He was nicknamed Mountain Man, partly because of his Vermont upbringing and partly because he was a mountain of a man. At 6'3" and 225lbs, his job was to park himself in front of the opposition's net and score goals.

LeClair showed glimpses of promise in Montreal, particularly during the team's 1993 Stanley Cup championship run. LeClair was a physical force through the playoffs, and then became a goal scoring hero in the finals. In games 3 and 4 LeClair scored back to back overtime game winning goals to help Montreal knock off Wayne Gretzky's Los Angles Kings.

Not unlike Cam Neely when he left Vancouver for Boston, John LeClair almost immediately transformed into one of the NHL's top players. Playing alongside Eric Lindros, LeClair finished the lock-out shortened season with 25 goals in 37 games. He followed that up with three consecutive 50+ goal seasons. He also had 43 and 40 goal seasons to round out the decade.

To add salt to the wound, is favorite goal scoring target seemed to be Montreal. It was a constant reminder of Montreal's impatience, as LeClair quite arguably became the best power forward in the game. He wasn't just a product of Eric Lindros either. LeClair was dominant in international play with Team USA, always proving to be a thorn in the side of the Lindros-led Team Canada. The best example of this had to be the 1996 World Cup of Hockey which went to the Americans. Also, while Lindros spent a lot of time on the injured reserve list, LeClair, who only missed 4 games in the 6 prime years of his career, continued to score goals.

Not surprisingly, LeClair became a favorite of Philly fans. Those faithful must have thought LeClair was a reincarnation of Tim Kerr, the 1980s sniper built in the same mould. Both players would park themselves in front of the net, tip incoming shots and fight for rebounds and loose pucks with great effectiveness.

Though that is how LeClair scored most of his goals, he had more tricks up his sleeve than Kerr. LeClair was a better skater, with enough speed and power to drive to the net with the puck. LeClair had enough speed to get him into battles on the wall and his status as perhaps the strongest man in the league would more often than not let him leave the corner with the puck. He was a punishing hitter and great digger. His one short coming was that he never had a lot of vision or creativity to set up plays once he gained control of the puck. His best play was to put the puck back to the point and then drive his body back to the front of the net.

Defusing the big man's weaponry had become a colossal challenge for enemy checkers and coaches. LeClair employed his abundant physique to shake off the opposition and reached 50 goals in 1996-97.

Unquestionably, John LeClair closed the decade of the 1990s as one of the most productive Flyers ever to grace Broad Street.

Deceptive was not a word used to describe 700 pounts of bulldozing Doom that the Flyers unleashed on the NHL with their top line of the mid-to-late nineties. Take it from the goalies, though, John Leclair could turn his back to the net on the power play and never give away his intentions.

Whether playing facing out towards the points, or with his back to the boards powering down left wing, Big John could either flip the puck up high or keep it as low as the profile he preferred to keep.

Laperriere. Lapointe. Lafleur. Lemaire. Flying Frenchmen and Stanley Cup heroes, one and all. John LeClair fits right in.

Except for one thing: He's from Vermont! Vermont!

The 23-year old kid has turned on of the most evenly matched Stanley Cup finals ever into a one-sided series favoring the Montreal Canadiens.

LeClair scored the overtime winners in both games in Los Angeles, including a bank shot off two Kings players at 14:37 Monday, putting the Canadiens up 3-1 in the best of 7 series.

John LeClair scored twice and Brett Hull added a key goal as the United States skated to a gutsy 5-2 victory over Canada on Thursday night to force a deciding third game in the World Cup of Hockey championship.

Many hockey insiders consider Guerin the best power forward in the game after John LeClair of the Philadelphia Flyers.

Lindros, like Lemieux, is the cornerstone of his franchise, but is hardly the only big-time talent in Philadelphia. Because Lindros has missed 26 games with a variety of health problems this season, he has surrendered the team scoring lead to linemate John LeClair.

LeClair, who ranks among the game's finest power forwards, performed brilliantly for Team USA during the World Cup tournament last fall, and has followed that up with a superb regular season.
...

John had a twist to his stick, so you wouldn't think he could get much on his backhand. But he could, that's how strong he was. The goalie never knew which way the puck was coming.

When John came to town he told me, 'I'll take myself our of the play to allow you to come out in front of the net.' He created a lot of space.

Johnny was very good at digging out pucks and finding a place to shoot. In front of the net he was so strong that many times one person wasn't enough to keep him from getting his stick open.

The rules were different. Size and strength were a big deal. New Jersey had Stevens and Daneyko. The Devils also had a nimble guy like Niedermayer who could really skate, so speed was also important. But primarily it was a holdup game and being able to get through it was vital. Fifty-five percent of John's goals were scored from within eight feet of the net. He was that powerful.

But don't get me wrong, John had a wonderful shot and could score from anywhere.

With Johnny on that side, things were getting cleared out. Overall, we were able to play a more physical game. Since John came to Philly, I was able to become a better playmaker. I would get the puck to him in the right spot. He certainly could hammer that thing.

We figured we would try Leclair first with Eric, and if that didn't work, we'd move Rod Brind'Amour to the first and use John at center on the second line.

I had to make him understand how good he can be. There was never a lack of effort from him, it was just that John took a little more time to mature.

John's one of the strongest players on the team. He also has a great shot like Kevin Stevens. He just has to put it all together.

The thing that drives me most is not embarrassing myself. Not being a joke like Warren Young, not having people use my name like that. That drives me more than self-doubt. No one likes to be embarrassed. I scored some fifty-one goals my first full year here. It was important for me to back it up the next season. It's the next year that says a lot about you.

It's a different accomplishment to be the first American (to score fifty goals). A lot of it has to do with team play and having opportunities.

What happened in Montreal is that the style we played was so defensive. I didn't get that many open chances. I'm not saying that that's bad. Look at it this way, we won a Stanley Cup with that style, so how could we complain.

I don't find myself newsworthy. I get bored listening to myself so I don't know why other people would want to.

I can't be disappointed, but you always wish you could've done more. I was thirty-three games short of 1,000. Obviously, for goal scorers, 500 is a big number. I got a cup in Montreal but I don't have one from Philadelphia, which is disappointing because we had much better teams here and I look back at myself as a Flyer.

 

[Dreakmur]

Craig Ramsay !!!


Awards and Achievements:
Selke Trophy Winner (1985)

All-Star voting - 4th(1978), 7th(1977), 8th(1979), 9th(1980), 11th(1975)
Selke voting - 1st(1985), 2nd(1978), 2nd(1980), 2nd(1981), 3rd(1979), 3rd(1982), 5th(1984), 7th(1983)
Lady Byng voting - 6th(1974), 6th(1982), 8th(1981), 9th(1979)


Offensive Accomplishments:
Only 63 of 672 points scored on the power play, which is about 9%.

Short-Handed Goals - 1st(1978), 3rd(1975), 5th(1979), 6th(1977)


Scoring Percentages:
Points - 65, 60, 58, 53, 51, 50, 49

Best 6 Seasons: 337




1974 Coaches' Poll:
3rd Best Penalty Killer

1976 Coaches' Poll:
3rd Best Penalty Killer
4th Best Checker

1979 Coaches' Poll:
2nd Best Penalty Killer
3rd Best Defensive Forwad

1981 Coaches' Poll:
2nd Best Defensive Forward


Ultimate Hockey's Best Shadow of the 1970s

That year we had ***, Ramsay, and Gare playing against the best opposition in the NHL, and they had the best +/- record on the team. There is no way you can be a loser under those circumstances.

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I didn't always get along with Ramsay, either, but I would never take anything away from him as a man who would stand up for teammates in trouble on the ice, as well as being a damn good hockey player.

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At the end of every season I ask the people most concerned to evaluate the players and the team. So when we were bounced from the playoffs, I got reports from Allan Stanley, ****, and *****. Stanley's, which was handwritten, showed his frustration with what he found in Buffalo.

"There are too many players here who think work, body contact, and aggressive play are dirty words and shouldn't be used. The players seem very complacent and talk tired all the time."... I'm not going to run down his entire list of comments on individuals. A few will do. On most players, he used from 30 to 50 words. Only two rated his shortest report: "100%." They were Craig Ramsay and ***.

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In the fifth minute of OT, Montreal had survived a tripping penalty to Bob Gainey and was starting to come on again. There was a faceoff in our end. ***, over-eager, was waved out. I got ready to pull my hat over my eyes. Craig Ramsay was waved in to take the faceoff against Lemaire, one of the best in the business. Ramsay figured, probably correctly, that he couldn't outdraw Lemaire, so he tried something. He let Lemaire win the draw but whipped his stick around behind him in an attempt to get it on the puck - and did. He went around Lemaire like a rocket, pushing the puck in front of him. *** and Gare broke with him. The Montreal defense opened a little to play the wings so Ramsay headed for the space between them. Robinson recovered almost in time and got a hip on Ramsay, but Ramsay held Robinson off with one hand and with the other shoved the puck to Gare. Gare pushed Henri Richard aside, took the pass and shot without breaking stride. It was in at 4:22 of OT. We had won.

The French connection line is tough to stop for 60 minutes. But people often overlook their other players, guys like (names a bunch of guys including Ramsay). A lot of people thought Ramsay's line was Buffalo's best in the playoffs, with Ramsay their club's top Conn Smythe Trophy candidate.

Once "Rammer" caught on full-time with the Buffalo Sabres in 1972-73, he played ten-straight seasons with perfect attendance. During that time he became one of the league's premiere defensive forwards.

Shortly after his arrival in Sabres-land, he was united with his close buddy and playing companion, Don Luce. Together the two formed a defensive juggernaut that served as a dragnet aimed at neutralizing the stars of the NHL. After a few years of experimenting with the third member of their line, Danny Gare settled in to form a trio that not only slowed the opposition to a crawl but generated high levels of offense at the same time. In 1979-80, Gare potted 56 goals--on a defensive line! Luce and Ramsay were no slouches either, netting their annual booty of 20-plus goals.

In 1983, Ramsay was finally knocked off stride for a brief time when he broke a bone in his foot, thus ending his iron-man run of 776 consecutive games played. He recovered, however, and continued to serve the Sabres until 1985 when he was offered a coaching position with the team. He accepted the job, thus ending his 14-year run with the club.

As a fitting honour to close out his career, Ramsay was awarded the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the league's best defensive forward in 1985. Since leaving the ice, Ramsay has coached and scouted for the Sabres, Senators, Stars, Panthers and Flyers.

Don Luce and Craig Ramsay were about as good a regular pair of penalty killers as ever played the game, particularly when they were also the Sabres' second-best offensive line and played a regular shift as well as killing off shorthanded situations. They made it an art as well as a science, often turning tables on the opposition, scoring instead of being scored on.

Partly when Rammer and I played on the same line, we got to know eachother's little nuances and where eachother would be at certain times. Back in those days when the puck was shot in, I was the bigger player and so I wanted to go in and bring the puck away. Rammer was a little niftier and quicker in the forecheck, so he'd do that and I'd do the other part... I knew Rammer. He was going to be sneaking out here, and so I'm going to throw it out there, and he's there.

Ramsay shuts down Lafleur as well as anyone in the league.

One of hockey's most underrated players.

The Rammer is as steady and consistent as any player in hockey.

Best Penalty Killer of All Time?
According to this post by pnep, Craig Ramsey was one of the key members to an elite penalty killing team 9 times over his career. That is the most of any forward.

Don Luce was second on the list with 6. Every one of those 6 seasons was paired with Ramsay. Once that dominant pair was broken up, Ramsay landed among the elite 3 more times. Each of those following seasons he was paired with a different partner, and each of those partners only appear as top PKers once.


Contemporaries Reports:

MEET THE ROOKIES


The Buffalo Sabres have had more than their share of success with rookies. First it was Gilbert Perreault. Now Richard Martin. Who will be next? The name is Craig Ramsay, an exciting young player who jumped directly from Ontario junior league ranks right into the NHL this season. Ramsay, a 21-year-old, 5'10", 168-pounder collected 106 points in his windup junior year with Peterborough, a performance that prompted Buffalo to draft him No. 2 last summer. A rugged left winger, Ramsay figures to be a future star for the Sabres.

LUCE, RAMSAY'S CHECKING TACTICS TURNING OFF SABRES' OPPONENST


In almost any list of the National Hockey League's most underrated players the name of Craig Ramsay appears.

The quiet, softspoken Buffalo Sabres left winger with the mutton-chop sideburns shouldn't be underrated much longer. He's making himself pretty well-known i this, his fourth pro season, and especially in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Ramsay is known primarily for his defensive and penalty-killing ability. He and Don Luce have been among the leaders i the penalty-killing repartment for the last three years. Their penalty-killing in the playoff quarter-finals against the Chicago Black Hawks was particularly outstanding

....

Ramsay was the most prominent, blocking passes and stealing the puck time and time again. And it hasn't been only defensively that Ramsay's star has glittered.

RAMSAY LINE BACK TO PROVIDE BUFFALO WITH PLAYOFF SPARK


The Luce-Ramsay-Gare line topped the club in both goals, with 93, and in plus-minus (Sabres' ratings) with a plus total of 101.

Ramsay, the club iron man, ran his consecutive regular-season game streak to 401 and led the club in plus-minus with a plus-37.

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Ramsay led the league in shorthanded goals, with five, as he and Don Luce set the pace in making the Sabres the best penalty-killing team in the NHL.

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Ramsay is deceptively frail looking for a team iron man. He weighs only about 175 pounds during the season...

....

But on the ice, Rammer is just fast enough to check the opposition all oer the ice and to break away when Luce gets him the puck during an opposition power play.

A PATTERN PLAYER


At 25 the left-handed left-winger, slightly built, but tough, has become a superb penalty-killer and defensive specialist who is good for more than 20 goals and 40 assists a season...

He is an all-around performer who will never be a star, but may be more valuable to his team than some stars. Although the goals have been coming slow so far this season, he is the sort who can make up for it in many ways.

SABRE 'IRON MAN' RAMSAY PERFORMS LIKE AN 'ALL STAR'


The Buffalo Athletic Club, at its annual Sports Night, honored Craig Ramsay, the Buffalo Sabres' ironman left winger, as the city's "pro athlete of the year."

This made hockey fans of Buffalo happy because they like and respect the quiet, hard-working forward from Toronto. At one time or another, Ramsay has received the club's unsung hero award, the most popular player award, most improved player award and the Charley Baarton Silver Stick Award, which goes to the Sabre who most exemplifies dedication and love for the game.

The same week Ramsay was honoed, the teams for the National Hockey League All Star game were announced and, as usual, Craig Ramsay was not among those voted to the classic. He didn't expect to be - although he did play in the game two years ago as a choice of the coaches - because he is an unspectacular workman who isn't a high scorer. He just does things right and is one of the best checking forwards in the game.

....

It was his third shorthanded goal of the season. He is regarded as one of the best penalty-killers in the business.

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He doesn't look like an ironman. He's not very big, for a pro athlete - five foot 10 and 176 pounds. He's slow and methodical.

MOST CONSISTENT SABRES' RAMSAY EARNS DUAL HONOR


The Buffalo Sabres' Mr. Consistency finally receives his due.

....

Ramsay isn't a big guy and he doesn't have muscles on muscles. He's quiet and self-effecting. He just goes about doing his job, whether he is feeling well or not.

He has spend time between games in a hospital but was there when the opening puck as dropped.

BUFFALO IRONMAN KEEPS STRING ON


Rammer, as he is known, is an unlikely-looking ironman. He is listed as 5 feet 10 inches and 176 pounds...

....

In close games, Ramsay, one of the best defensive forwards in the league, always is on the ice for the last minutes or more. Had he been out there this time, maybe O'Reilly wouldn't have scored the goal.

RAMMER PROVIDES SABRES WITH SOMETHING EXTRA


Ramsay, who played his 585th straight regular season game for the Sabres Sunday against the Colorado Rockies, is known as one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL.

....

With Ramsay and Don Luce as the principals up front, the Sabres have had oe of the best penalty-killing records in the league for several years...

SABRES' RAMSAY PASSES 700



But it is as a defensive ace that Ramsay is best known. He is a prime reason Buffalo's penalty-killing record has been among the best in the league for some years. Although his old penalty-killing partner, Don Luce, is long gone to other teams, Rammer is still out there skating if off when a Sabre is in the penalty box

He plays on the line that goes against the opposition's top scoring line, too. In the 2-2 tie in the Forum, he was out against Guy Lafleur whenever coach Jim Roberts could arrange it and Lafleur didn't get a point.

SABRE VETERANS CHALK UP A FEW MILESTONES



Ramsay was the third player in club history to hit the 600-point plateau. The others were Perreault and Martin.

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Ramsay is known primarily as a defensive forward and penalty killer. Each year, he is among the top three receiving votes for the Frank Selke Trophy as the league's top defensive forward.

RAMSAY SETS CLUB RECORD IN 900TH GAME



Ramsay is known more as a defensive specialist than a scorer. He played junior hockey for Peterborough in the Ontario Hockey League under Roger Neilson, along with Bob Gainey, Montreal's defensive ace.

For years, Ramsay and Luce were the key operators giving Buffalo one of the top penalty-kiling records in the NHL. The Sabres still are at or near the top of the league in that department and Ramsay plays a major role.

He is one of those quiet, unobtrusive types who, as the saying goes, always comes to play. He's always there, in sickness and health, ready to do the dirty jobs, such as checking the opposition's bug scorers.

Such sharpshooters as Montreal's Guy Lafleur and Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders know what it's like to go against Craig Ramsay. The Montreal game was the 770th regular-season game in a row for Ramsay, the second longest streak in NHL history.

Ramsay set up the goal that most people figure was the clincher in the Montreal game... Ramsay also helped Buffalo kill off two consecutive penalties in the second period without giving up a goal.

For his efforts, he received the game's first star.

RIGHTING WRONGS OF SELKE WINNERS: RAMSAY HAS BEEN OVERLOOKED IN AWARD FO TOO LONG


The Selke Trophy, awarded to the National Hokcey League's best defensive forward, ough to have to defend itself regardig some of the choices made in it's brief history.

One of several recent additions the NHL curio cabinet, some superficial observers have occationally derided it as a frivolous bit of hardware. Of course, this tribute to some of hockey's most skilled, hardest-working and least-recognized players was long overdue. Unfortunately, the bestowal of the award over the last seven years hasn't always been close to appropriate or just.

Hype and reputation seem to have influenced the voting more than any critical observation, or even a close loot at the statistics. Players normally outstanding in this category have won it after having some of their worst years, while others - notably Buffalo's Craig Ramsay - have gon un-noticed.

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Ramsay vs. Selke Winner

Year | GP | G | A | P | PIM | SHG | +/- | Winner | GP | G | A | P | PIM | SHG | +/-
1978 | 80 | 28 | 43 | 71 | 18 | 5 | +33 | Bob Gainey | 66 | 15 | 16 | 31 | 57 | 2 | +11
1979 | 80 | 26 | 31 | 57 | 10 | 3 | +21 | Bob Gainey | 79 | 20 | 18 | 38 | 44 | 1 | +11
1980 | 80 | 21 | 39 | 60 | 18 | 0 | +15 | Bob Gainey | 64 | 14 | 19 | 33 | 32 | 1 | -2
1981 | 80 | 24 | 35 | 59 | 12 | 1 | +39 | Bob Gainey | 78 | 23 | 24 | 47 | 36 | 3 | +13
1982 | 80 | 16 | 35 | 51 | 8 | 1 | +14 | Steve Kasper | 73 | 20 | 31 | 51 | 72 | 3 | -18
1983 | 64 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 7 | 3 | +14 | Bobby Clarke | 80 | 23 | 62 | 85 | 115 | 1 | +37
1984 | 76 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 17 | 0 | +3 | Doug Jarvis | 80 | 13 | 29 | 42 | 12 | 2 | +7

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Craig Ramsay, Buffalo's Professor of Defense, is particularly deserving of the award. For 14 years a prototype for defensive forwards, Ramsay, a brilliant penalty-killer, is still as shrewd and tenacious a checker as ever, while remaining one of the cleanest, most honest players in hockey. A strategist and student of the game, Ramsey was appointed playing assistant coach for Sabres this season, and there is much the adolescent Buffao team can learn from him. But he has long been lending h is expertise in an unofficial capacity - shouting instructions on coverages and indicating checking assignments while on the ice, directing traffic during line changes; the hustle, intelligence and skill of the soft-spoken little veteran epitomizes the qualities the Selke is meant to honor, and it's high time Ramsay got the recognition he richly deserves.

SELKE AWARD NICE FINISHING TOUCH



Ramsay wasn't a great offensive star - he did score 252 career goals, not exactly chopped liver - but in special wats, he was one of the NHL's truly great players. In knowing how to play the game, to use his solid but far from overwhelming talent to be a valuable worker, Ramsay was at the top of the list. Because there are so few of that breed in the game, his absence leaves a big hole.

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The lads have produced a high-speed, exciting, high-scoring game but, too often, the good offenses aren't challengd by smart, thinking defenses. Many teams are fine when they have the puck, not so hot when they don't have it.

Ramsay was marvellous when he didn't have the puck and watching him employ his knowledge, intelligence and experience to baffle some big, fast player was exciting to those who feel the game should have something more than masses of flashing red lights.

The ideal balance is that for every Wayne Gretzky in the NHL, there's a Craig Ramsay. The match-ups of the top offensive and defensive players alwats have been hockey highlights...

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"Watching Keon, I saw what could be accomplished by a player who worked hard and intelligently every shift," Ramsay said. "Kelly showed me that a forward could be excellent offensively and not have his defensive play suffer at all."

BUFFALO'S RAMSAY RETIRES, LEAVES DEFENSIVE LEGACY



In a sudden and unexpected move, defensive genius Craig Ramsay has announced his retirement from the NHL.

The decision comes just three months after the left winger won the Frank J. Selke Trophy as best defensive forward in the league and only weeks after saying he expected to play another season.

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Although best known for his defensive talents, Ramsay also had an offensive touch - witness career totals of 252 goals and 420 assists.

Scouting Reports:

Has paired with Don Luce as one of the league's most competent penalty-killing twosomes... One of club's top checkers.

Considered one of the league's best checkers, he's also turning into a consistent scorer... Voted Sabres' "Unsung Hero" by booster club in 1974.

With Don Luce, gives Sabres perhaps NHL's best penalty-killing duo... Persistent checker and intelligent player who's offensive contributions continue to rise...

Last season was fourth straight 20-plus goal year, not bad for a man who is noted as penalty killer... Type of player who seldom gives a bad game and who is worthy of "Unsung Hero" award voted him by Sabres fans two year ago... Is a persistent checker who is considered dangerous with the puck when he decides time is ripe to go... Proof of playing "with his head" reflects in only 20 penalty minutes last year.

A quiet, unobtrusive type, he qualifies for the All-Underrated team... He teams with Don Luce to form what probably is the best penalty-killing unit in the NHL... One of the best checkers in hockey... Also among the best at controlling the puck with his feet.

The young defense should benefit from checking help contributed by strong two-way forwards Craig Ramsay and Don Luce.

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Don't judge this book by its cover; he appears frail and has a back problem but he's still the Sabres' "Ironman"... Finished third in balloting for Selke Trophy and forms top penalty-killing duo with Don Luce... Rivals Europeans in ability to control the puck with his skates...

Sabres believe he, and not Montreal's Bob Gainey, should have won Frank Selke Trophy lasy season as NHL's best defensive forward... They're probably right, since Gainey had injury-plagued season and won award on past reputation... Combines with Don Luce to form what many beleive is hockey's best penalty-killing tandem... So durable he's missed playing only three games in eight years...

Excels as defensive checker and penalty killer but eight straight 20-goal seasons prove he's not only a one-way player... Seldom makes mistakes, either on offense or defense as left wing... Always gets lots of votes in Frank Selke Award balloting as hockey's best defensive forward...

Steady, unexciting, quietly effective center who is particularly good at the small stuff... Excellent on face-offs... Has been one of the league's best penalty-killers for years... Never out of the lineup... plays hurt or tired...

Craig Ramsay and Ric Seiling are good checkers who also can score.

Led by the play of defensive forward Craig Ramsay, Buffalo finished third in penalty-killing.

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One of hockey's most durable, dependable players... Broken bone in foot finally ended his consecutive-game streak at 776, second to Garry Unger's NHL reocord... One of hockey's best defensive forwards... Annually a candidate for Frank Selke Trophy as NHL's best defensive forward... Plays hard but clean style... Twenty-seven career shorthanded goals indicate he's a gifted penalty-killer...

It has hustling, hard-working forwards who are willing to check and excel defensively: Craig Ramsay... Peterson, Craig Ramsay, and Seiling are three of the most persistent defensive forwards in the league...

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Classy old pro... Has been a valuable Sabres' left wing wince 1971-72... One of hockey's most outstanding defensive forwards and penalty-killers... Smart, hard-working player... Although known for his defensive skill, he has scored 252 goals in 1,070 NHL games.

There's nobody better at killing penalties, say the NHL coaches, than left-winger Craig Ramsey, 1971 junior draft pick who has quickly become one of Sabres' top hands.

On top of his defensive skills, Ramsey scored 20 goals and 26 assists last season. He did not incur a single penalty in 78 game and as a consequence, placed fourth in voting for the Lady Byng Trophy, which goes to the man best combining sportsmanship and effectiveness.

Insiders have nicknamed Craig Ramsey "Boris", because he plays hockey like one of the well-drilled Soviet stars. He checks efficiently, never strays from proper postition and, when the opportunity arises, is an effective playmaker and dangerous shooter.

Ramsey, now 25, was a 1971 junior draft pick off the Peterborough club where he was trained by Roger Neilson. He hit 64 points during the 1974-75 season and reached a career high of 71 last season, on 22 goals and 49 assists. He was tied for third in voting toward the Masterton Trophy, which goes to the NHL player showing the most dedication.

"He's not the spectacular type but extremely valuable," says coach Floyd Smith. "He's a guy you'd carry just to kill penalties even if he did nothing else. I'd say he's a bit underrated, which is bound to happen to a guy playing left wing on the same team as Richard Martin."

Sabres were the NHL's second most efficient team last season in defending themselves against opposition power plays. They killed 86.1 per cent of their own penalties. One of the reasons for this remarkable success was the conscientious work of 26 year-old left winger Craig Ramsay.

"He's just about the perfect hockey player," says Imlach.
"He can kill penalties, nullify the other guys' best right wingers and get you a steady 20 to 25 goals a year besides. And on top of that, he never says boo."

Ramsay and centre Don Luce, a regular combination with right winger Danny Gare (when he's well) are always assigned to work the first minute of a Sabre penalty. That's when the enemy takes its best shots.

"Killing a penalty is mostly a matter of maintaining position," Ramsay says. "That and a lot of hard skating."

NHL scouts pay Buffalo's Craig Ramsay the ultimate compliment. They mention that a certain young prospect is a "Craig Ramsay type" and everybody understands what they mean. The lad is an industrious player who's devoted to positional hockey and who has mastered every facet of the game so that he doesn't have a weakness.

Some overdue individual recognition came Ramsay's way last season. He was the fourth left winger chosen in all-star voting and runnerup to Montreal's Bob Gainey for the Frank Selke Trophy, which goes to the NHL's best defensive forward.

He and Don Luce are the Sabre penalty-killers who enabled Buffalo to lead the league i that critical department. They nullified enemy shooters 85.8 percent of the time they had to play shorthanded. And in spite of all that, the 27-year-old Ramsay collected 28 goals and 43 assists.

The best kind of recognition an athlete can obtain came to 28-year-old Craig Ramsay last season. His Buffalo teammates voted him the team's most valuable performer for 1978-79.

"It means a lot, coming from the other players," Ramsay said.

There probably isn't a better all-around left winger in the NHL than Ramsay, but he's unlikely to draw any all-star nominations because he doesn't score a lot of goals. He's too busy checking the best enemy right wingers and killing penalties - skills which were noted last spring when he was third in voting for the Frank Selke Trophy (best defensive forward).

An old partnership was revived when Roger Neilson joined the Buffalo coaching staff. He was the junior coach in Peterborough, Ont., when Craig Ramsay played left wing there. In fact, it's often said Ramsay is the ultimate Neilson player.

What that means in Ramsay defends meticulously and produces roughly one scoring point a game, usually when it's needed most. He is utterly dependable.

As usual, Ramsay was prominent in voting to select last season's winner of the Selke Trophy for defensive forwards. He placed second to Bob Gainey, another Peterborough alumnus. At the same time, Ramsay contributed 21 goals and 39 assists to the Buffalo attack.

Sabres were severely handicapped in the playoffs when Ramsay broke his wrist and was unable to continue.

Now 29, Ramsay has played nine NHL campaigns since being drafted by Sabres in 1971. He is a Toronto native.

Although he specializes in defense, 30-year-old Craig Ramsay has become a 200-goal shooter after 10 easons in the NHL. A 1980-81 output of 24 put him onto that distinguished plateau.

However, Ramsay's real forte is his checking ability and he was again the runner-up to Montreal's Bob Gainey in voting to select Frank Selke Trophy. Gainey has won it four times and Ramsay has been second to him each time.

"I don't suppose anybody in the league checks better than Rammer," says Bowman, "and the fact he'll always get you 25 or so goals doesn't hurt, either."

Each season, one Buffalo player is given the Tim Horton Trophy as the fellow whose contributions have exceeded the recognition he has received. That seems an apt description of Craig Ramsay's life in hockey and he won the award for the second time last season.

A good indication of Ramsay's importance may be the fact he has survived the Scotty Bowman purge despite being an old Buffalo standby.

"Hey," says Bowman, "anybody would be happy to have a guy who does a thorough a checking job as Ramsay does, makes no mistakes, and gets you more than 20 goals a year for nine consecutive seasons."

"There hasn't been a year when Craig Ramsay wouldn't have been a worthy winner," said Sabres boss Scotty Bowman. "He was overdue. I like to think that this, to some extent, recognizes the guy's whole career. It also salutes the fact that we had the best defensive record as a team and were No. 1 at killing penalties."

Always a contender, Ramsay outpointed Washington's Doug Jarvis on the 1984-85 Selke ballot.

Because of the emphasis on his style of play, Ramsay's offensive exploits have been overlooked. In fact, only two Buffalo players have surpassed his lifetime total of 672 points, going into the new campaign.

Ramsay perennially finished second to Gainey in Selke voting. It was Ramsay, a far less compelling player to watch but a far more effective one on the ice, who deserved this trophy...

...The French Connection captured the headlines, but the checking line of Luce, Ramsay, and Gare was Buffalo's bread and butter...

An example of a smart play only a player like Ramsay would make: