Toggle sidebar

Best Defending Defensemen All Time

One good trick is to also take a look at who these guys were partnered with and what role they played on their pairings. Are they the safety net? Or are they the tight-rope walker?
 
Bobby Orr is the best at everything. It's hard to tease out his pure defending but his defensive impact, like his offensive and transition, is the best.

In 1970 he was +124 (best non-teammate was +51) while putting up 100+ assist and almost 140 points. This is a comparable scoring era to now...

When we rank defencemen, there is no big 4, there is Bobby Orr and then the..............the rest. The only thing stopping him from being the absolute GOAT is injuries.

When is comes to anything regarding playing defence in Hockey...you are not as good as Robert Gordon Orr.
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: joe galiba, DaveG, Felidae and 8 others
Winged Wheel Willy said:
I'm bored rn and this is kinda born out of the pet peeve of mine that nobody voting for the norris seems to care about defensive play anymore. Maybe I'm just stuck in a time long past, but I like my defenders being able to shut down top opponents - and not by just by way of having the puck. So who were the best when the opponent had the puck/when their team was in the d-zone? So basically exclude offensive play (passing, shooting etc.)

80s onward, cuz I don't know many players before that. Just of the top of my head, so order is subject to change:

1. Pronger
2. Bourque
3. Lidström
4. Chelios
5. Langway
in the discussion: Potvin, Stevens, Hatcher, Chara, .........
Click to expand...

How do you shut down top opponents without taking and keeping the puck away from them?

Strong language and menacing looks?

There's no elite defensemen that's like 'no, no, I would prefer you have the puck in my zone, I'll just gap up in front of you and try to block as many shots as possible'
 
  • Like
Reactions: Strawberry Fields, HTFN and AlainVigneaultsGum
JaegerDice said:
How do you shut down top opponents without taking and keeping the puck away from them?

Strong language and menacing looks?

There's no elite defensemen that's like 'no, no, I would prefer you have the puck in my zone, I'll just gap up in front of you and try to block as many shots as possible'
Click to expand...
Most ppl in here understand what I mean by that. You seriously do not or are you just trying to be cute?
 
Winged Wheel Willy said:
Most ppl in here understand what I mean by that. You seriously do not or are you just trying to be cute?
Click to expand...

No, I'm curious. What is a better way of defending than taking the puck, getting it out of your zone and into the other team's zone ASAP
 
JaegerDice said:
No, I'm curious. What is a better way of defending than taking the puck, getting it out of your zone and into the other team's zone ASAP
Click to expand...
That was never the arguement. What I am asking is the best defensemen at breaking up attacks, getting puck posession. Not what comes after that (transition/passing etc). Leetch for example was mesmerizing in transition, but certainly not an all time great in breaking up plays/getting posession.
 
  • Like
Reactions: shakes the clown
Hockey Outsider said:
A quick (and completely subjective) top ten list:
  1. Doug Harvey
  2. Tim Horton
  3. Larry Robinson
  4. Denis Potvin
  5. Ray Bourque
  6. Scott Stevens
  7. Chris Chelios
  8. Nicklas Lidstrom
  9. Chris Pronger
  10. Zdeno Chara
Each of those defensemen was excellent defensively, and also good to great offensively.

If the question is the best "pure" defensive defensemen (ie their focus was almost entirely on defensive play) - Rod Langway would be a good choice. Other candidates - Valeri Vasiliev, Serge Savard, Rod Langway, Craig Ludwig, Vladimir Konstantinov, Derian Hatcher, Adam Foote.
Click to expand...
Pronger that low?

Foote and Ludwig are good mentions!
 
  • Like
Reactions: wetcoast, OgeeOgelthorpe and Hockey Outsider
the ones you don't wan to play agains is a stanley cup serie

-Chara
-Pronger
-Scott Stevens
 
Hard to say the best overall. Lidstrom is the best I've seen in transition, Langway probably the best near his own net.
 
I like prime Pronger for this. I could see someone picking Lidstrom because he played defense so perfectly. As a skill position, no one was better and smarter. But, when you get a guy like Pronger who was still high end in that regard but was also a physical beast who cleared the crease and brought that mean edge, I got to admit I'd take him in his prime over Lidstrom. Chara and Chelios are right there too
 
  • Like
Reactions: TheDawnOfANewTage
Lidström for his overall defensive ability, maybe someone like Pronger was better at certain things but he also had bigger weaknesses in others.
 
Where does Mike Ramsey stack up on these lists? I always remember his name coming up when people were talking about the best defensive d-men during the 80s.
 
  • Like
Reactions: frisco
Mike C said:
With you on number 4--Serge Savard checking in too! Underrated and never mentioned nod to Dave Langevin
Click to expand...
There have been a lot of great defensive minded D. Many mentioned in this thread were fantastic.
 
Winged Wheel Willy said:
I'm bored rn and this is kinda born out of the pet peeve of mine that nobody voting for the norris seems to care about defensive play anymore. Maybe I'm just stuck in a time long past, but I like my defenders being able to shut down top opponents - and not by just by way of having the puck. So who were the best when the opponent had the puck/when their team was in the d-zone? So basically exclude offensive play (passing, shooting etc.)

80s onward, cuz I don't know many players before that. Just of the top of my head, so order is subject to change:

1. Pronger
2. Bourque
3. Lidström
4. Chelios
5. Langway
in the discussion: Potvin, Stevens, Hatcher, Chara, .........
Click to expand...
I feel like Rob Blake needs a mention here.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Users who are viewing this thread

Total: 1 (members: 0, guests: 1)

Latest posts

Ad

Ad

Top Bottom