Looks like quite a few people already have Kelly on their list already. Here’s my case for why he deserves a top 20 spot.
Detroit’s best player after Howe. Red Kelly was better than two of his teammates currently up for voting: Lindsay and Sawchuk. First, let’s consider the evidence from hockey writers from the 1950s. The Hart trophy voters easily thought that Kelly was the Wings’ best player after Mr. Hockey. Red Kelly finished in the top three in Hart voting three times (1951, 1953, 1954). No other Wing (aside from Howe obviously) made it to the top three during the dynasty years, even once. In fact, Red Kelly alone had as many top-ten finishes as Lindsay and Sawchuk combined.
Even if you don’t think that Hart voting matters, consider this. The Detroit dynasty was able to win a Cup without Sawchuk (1950); they won without Abel (1954, 1955); they could win it even without Howe (1950). Only Kelly and Lindsay were the constants. However, the Wings had a great team in the late 1940s (including Lindsay) but couldn’t win their first Cup until Kelly emerged as an all-star defenseman in 1950. His ability to control both ends of the ice put them over the top.
Kelly’s last year as an all-star defenseman was in 1957 (when the Wings were 1st in the regular season, and Howe and Lindsay finished 1-2 in scoring). In 1958, Kelly’s first off year, the Wings dropped 18 points and 2 spots in the standings. Granted, Lindsay was gone in 1958, but the Wings only lost 22 goals for versus 50 goals against. Unless you want to make the case that Lindsay was somehow more important to the defense than Kelly, it was the loss of Kelly as an elite defenseman (and, of course, the emergence of the Canadiens), that ended the Wings’ dynasty.
Closer to Harvey than most think. Doug Harvey has a 7-1 lead in Norris trophies, but that doesn’t tell the whole story. Kelly’s reputation is hurt because the Norris trophy came into existence halfway through his prime. He was a unanimous first-team all-star in the three years immediately prior to the creation of the Norris, finishing immediately ahead of Harvey twice. I view Kelly as the equivalent of a four-time Norris winner (with two second-place finishes), which closes the gap a bit on Harvey’s seven trophies.
Offense. Kelly was easily the best offensive defenseman of his generation, distancing himself from Harvey, Gadsby, and all the others. He towered above his peers, leading all blueliners in scoring five years in a row (with three more top-three finishes). Kelly’s biggest skill was his rushing ability, which was key to setting up the Detroit dynasty’s high-powered transition offense.
Kelly is also the best goal-scoring defenseman of his generation by a wide margin. During the 1950s, he scored 145 goals, nearly double what his closest competition accomplished (Gadsby 77, Harvey 57, Pronovost 55). Not even Bobby Orr could match Kelly’s streak of leading all defense in goal-scoring eight years in a row. Kelly’s ability to sneak in from the point during the PP was a great asset.
Most impressively, Kelly accomplished something that was unheard of during his era: he cracked the top ten in scoring three times (1951, 1953, 1954, peaking at 6th place in the league) and was in the top ten in assists five times, peaking at 4th place.
Underrated career as a forward. It seems like some people consider his career as a forward as an afterthought. I think most of us underrate the second half of Kelly’s career; it greatly improves his legacy and pushes him past Denis Potvin (probably equally good as a defenseman).
For starters, Kelly was a key playoff performer on the Toronto dynasty. In his first year on the Leafs, he led the team in playoff scoring (11 pts in 10 games) and finished 3rd in the league as he helped bring the team to the Cup finals. The Leafs won three in a row from 1962 to 1964, and Kelly finished 8th, 7th and 4th in playoff scoring despite taking on many of the team’s toughest defensive assignments. During the regular seasons, he contributed even more offensively (setting a career high of 70 points, finishing second in assists to Beliveau in 1961). Kelly continued to get strong MVP recognition, finishing in the top ten in Hart voting twice (1962, 1967). Imagine how much Denis Potvin’s legacy would be enhanced if he had a few years as a high-scoring MVP caliber forward.
Playoff performance. It’s worth mentioning that Kelly has won more Stanley Cups (8) than any non-Canadien ever. He wasn’t a secondary contributor, he was the #1 defenseman during his first four wins, and the #2 centre on the remaining four.