Orrs 102 assists is the 12th-best assist total in NHL history for any player. Hatcher managed 24 goals with Washington during the 1990-91 season and an amazing 34 goals for the Capitals during 1993-94. His skills and size on the back end helped them win the cup in 1938-39. Park is a five-time first-team All-Star, a two-time second-team All-Star and played in nine All-Star Games. 4 started celebrating just before being tripped, resulting in one of the most iconic photos in hockey. Harvey is a long story for another day, as the. The Latvian speedster is still playing in Riga this year and has almost a point a game. Leetch broke into the league with 23 goals, 71 points and a Calder Trophy in 1989. The high risk end of his game had him traded to Colorado where he helped them win the 1996 Stanley cup. He quarterbacked the power play in Tampa Bay and he was able to keep up with the high priced talent that was there. His playoff totals admittedly only cover 71 games. Coffey was the defenseman who broke Orrs record for most goals in a season with 48 in 1985-86 and just missed Orrs point record with 138 points that same year. His career stats are stunning. Bourque is one of the all-time great NHL defensemen, winning the Norris Trophy five times. Orr, the 74-year-old legendary defenseman, ranks No. Larry Robinson was the youngest and the best of the big three defenseman that patrolled the blueline for the Montreal Canadiens in the 70's and 80's. Potvin was an incredible offensive defenseman who brought a physical game that Scott Stevens would have been happy to own. Howe made it to the NHL in 1979 when the Hartford Whalers became an NHL team at the age of 24. He then managed six goals in six games as the Capitals lost to the Islanders in the first round of the playoffs. While not the goalscorer some of these offensive defensemen are, his skating ability made him capable of end to end rushes that were a trademark with the lanky Robinson. He played his only games in November 1975 after the Bruins already had traded Phil Esposito to the New York Rangers. During New York's Stanley Cup winning playoff run, Zubov put up five goals and 19 points in 22 playoff games. During his Boston years, Esposito led the league in goals six times and in scoring five times. Though only 14, Orr thrived against players as old as 20. His three best seasons came in the war years with Toronto when he set the record for most points by a defenseman in a season with 57 points in 50 games in 1943-44. Hartsburg could play in big games, obviously on the international stage and as well in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Al MacInnis developed into a complete offensive defenseman as his career progressed, but it was his shot that got him to the NHL. He managed an impressive 80 goals in his 494-game career. When he retired in 1966, he was 20th all-time in scoring for any position. His skill as a defenseman let him become the first NHLer to have a 20-year career in the league, all with the Bruins. Orr picked up the loose puck, skated it to the red line and dumped it back into St. Louis zone. He was considered one of the sport's greatest players. Detroit had their best playoff run in two decades making it to the conference final the next year. Manage Settings Orr was certainly an unbelievable player, so was Howe. He was one of the best offensive defensemen of all time. He had as rough a ride as any player I've ever seen play the game. It was the moment Orr realized he was a champion, captured and engraved in history. Babych had a career high with 74 points in Winnipeg. He was also an ageless wonder, as he played quality hockey right up until his death at the age of 44. Murphy became a key international player for Canada and contributed a goal and six assists in the 1987 Canada Cup. Orr Destroyed By "Loonies" TORONTO (Mar. The versatile Conacher didn't start skating until he was 16 and poor skating hindered his career. He moved on to Pittsburgh where he made an offensive contribution right away. At 5'10" and a solid 205 pounds, Wilfred McDonald was known in hockey circles simply as Bucko.Although an all-star defenseman in his own right, many best remember Bucko McDonald as the man responsible for turning Bobby Orr into a defenseman. Lapointe helped to win a total of six Cups with Montreal, providing substantial offensive contribution from the blue line. Now, at least five people are dead and President Trump is under real threat of being removed from office prior to Joe Bidens inauguration on January 20th. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page.. Orr was also quite happy to hit and to drop the gloves. Unfortunately he only played 80 or more games four times in a season, in his 15-year NHL career. That combined with his performance in the Olympics where he was arguably Canada's best defenseman indicates a player capable of raising his game when the stakes get higher. Only Ray Bourque managed to score more with 410, while playing 203 more games. Knee problems had taken their toll as Orr called it quits after playing his final game on Nov. 1, 1978, against the Vancouver Canucks. Pronger has scored goals and points at a fractionally higher rate. Niedermayer has stayed a little healthier. Names like Eddie Shore (who was often Hollett's defensive partner), Dit Clapper and Art Coulter dominated the era. Both those averages go up marginally in the playoffs. Boyle blossomed almost immediately in Tampa Bay when exposed to the talent in the lineup there. 4. Francis "King" Clancy was a diminutive defenseman in an era when assists were only handed out for a key play that lead to a goal. Orr combined speed, strength, skill and hockey savvy at both ends of the ice. He's a slick skating playmaker who always seems perfectly calm as he makes the play. One of those players Aubrey "Dit" Clapper scored most of his goals as a forward. While offensively brilliant, Housley was average to mediocre in his own end, as he has a career plus/minus rating of minus-53. The quick skating Housley was an offensive force for the Sabres and he played forward as well as defense for them. Bobby Hull was a great hockey player and a miserable human being. Howe's peak looks like it was about 21 years long. Lightboxes. Dit managed to help the Bruins win a cup again in 1941. During the 1980-81 season he had 83 points to finish second in team scoring behind Rick Kehoe. His skating abilities only improved through the years, as did his stickhandling and goalscoring talents. After playing just 20 games during the 1976-77 season, Orr missed the entire 1977-78 campaign. Closest Norris Finish: Second (1964, 1969). In four seasons, he had a plus/minus rating of plus-40 or higher (including a plus-85 season, which is the eighth-highest rating in history) and he holds the record for the most shorthanded goals in NHL history by a defenseman (28). His stoicism was supplemented with a fitness level that allowed him to play 40 minutes a game late into his career. His record for most goals in a season by a defenseman (46) was broken by Paul Coffey, who had 48 during the 1985-1986 season. He was a three-time 20-goal scorer and two-time 80-point scorer. He had the skills to rush from end to end and the desire to do it. The 19 goals in Detroit and 3 in Bostonmarked his last +20 goal season. Pre-Orr a player with Park's obvious defensive skills would never have been given the free rein that coaches and general managers gave defensemen after Bobby Orr made it evident what a talented defenseman could do for his team offensively. Playing in an era where defensemen usually didnt contribute offensively, "The Great" Gadsby was far ahead of his time. Besides his deft puck-handling and precise passing, Orr, who famously wore number 4, had a presence that made any team he played for better the moment he stepped on the ice. Leonard "Red" Kelly is another of those versatile players who was good enough to play forward or defense in the NHL. Punch Imlach started Kelly at center, ostensibly to check the rival Canadiens star center Jean Beliveau. Gonchar at 36 is likely approaching the end of his career but a good season or two in Ottawa certainly won't hurt his offensive reputation. Only Coffey's 37 points is a better postseason total among defensemen. Another Bobby Orr Was Drafted to the NHL. Bourque was Boston's other great defenseman, a magisterial, super smooth stalwart who nonetheless has always been cloaked in a touch of shadow. You see this number, and all of a sudden you get fired up.". This was over a 21-season career. As a young player he got to play with and learn from the legendary Brad Park. He accomplished all of this while playing at a time where offensive defensemen were rare, as he and Orr were basically the only ones in the league during the late '60s and early '70s. "Gordie in my mind is the best that ever played the game. Though injuries limited Orr to 46 games in the 1967-68 season, he still earned an All-Star berth and the first of his eight James Norris Memorial trophies as the leagues top defenseman. It's this more than anything that has me place Chris Pronger one step higher on my list of best offensive defensemen. Pisces Hockey Player #2. In this list, I will recognize the 10 greatest players who were never able to take home the defenseman holy grail. But even in defeat, he remained humble and heroic. Robert Gordon "Bobby" Orr (March 20, 1948-) is widely considered among the top three greatest hockey players in the history of the NHL, and most certainly the greatest defenseman the league has ever seen. His best point total was in 2006-07 when he had 69 with the Ducks. Everyone agrees that Gretzky, Orr, Lemieux, and. He's one of those players who is better when the games are important. He is a two-time first-team All-Star, three-time second-team All-Star and played in 13 All-Star Games. He was an offensive talent on the blue line that may never be matched. Orr enjoyed an outstanding junior career, and the Bruins who last qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs in 1959 had high expectations for the 18-year-old when he joined them in 1966. In his 21-year career, he also never raised the Stanley Cup over his head. Game 4 of the 1970 Stanley Cup playoffs the game headed to overtime. He had 22 goals and 85 points on that offensive juggernaut that year and thought he was on his way to winning his third cup in a row in Pittsburgh. He was a three-time 20-goal scorer, a 10-time 50-point scorer (with his season high being 82 points) and twice recorded a plus/minus rating of plus-60 and higher. 74 Year Old #23. He lead the Leafs in goal scoring and points that playoff year. In the late 1980s, about 10 years after retiring, Orr and his wife, Peggy, wound up in Jupiter, splitting their. The most exciting play in hockey is the end to end rush. Offensive defensemen were popularized with the coming of Bobby Orr in 1966-67. Potvin broke into the league with 17 goals and 54 points in 77 games to win the Calder trophy. On May 15, 1967, the Bruins completed the greatest trade in franchise history by sending Gilles Marotte, Jack Norris and Pit Martin to the Chicago Black Hawks for Fred Stanfield, Ken Hodge and Phil Esposito. Rhino only broke the 20 goal barrier once but 133 goals in 648 games have him scoring more than a fifth of a goal per game. Mike Green with his speed and his shot is the only defenseman I've seen in the last decade with a chance to sneak into the top 10 offensive defensemen of all time. He was also an aggressive checker and shot-blocker. Park was an end to end rusher throughout his career with a great shot. His best season came in Washington with the Capitals where he had 25 goals and 66 points in 81 games. Rafalski has been one of the NHL's best defensemen for the last decade. Salming endured what was at times brutal treatment with a stoicism and toughness that helped pave the way for every other Swedish player who has come to North America. Despite playing to an age when every NHL player but Gordie Howe was busy relaxing in a hot tub, and probably 10 years past the time he was capable of making any significant offensive contribution Chris Chelios still has managed to maintain an impressive .574 points per game average for his entire career. Hewon the NHLs hardest shot competition at the All-Star game seven times. He had 12 points in 20 games the next year when they fell short. There, he used his all-around talents to make offensive rushes up to ice. Both times he won the James Norris trophy that season as he did in 1988-89 with the Canadiens. Red Berenson, Gary Sabourin, and Larry Keenan were credited for the three Blues goals during Game 4. Both teams fought for possession along the left boards before the puck squeaked out and a streaking Sanderson took a shot from the left face-off circle which also missed the cage. The photo was snapped by photographerRay Lussier as Orr flew through the air like a Superman, his arms outstretched and an ecstatic expression on his face. Injury and age interfered with his skating but he was still a crafty passer and had a useful point shot on the power play till the end. Still in that time he's been an exemplary defenseman for Nashville both offensively and defensively. I'm not sure if we'll ever see another . Bobby first played organized hockey at age 5, and soon showed an ability to skate faster than anyone else his age. Paul "Rhino" Reinhart was an Atlanta Flame rookie who made the jump with the organization to Calgary. Boston Bruins defenseman Bobby Orr is airborne after scoring the goal that won the 1970 Stanley Cup, May 10, 1970. That notion proved correct. Tim Horton - Runner up to Bobby Orr in 1969, Horton was arguably the greatest defensive defenseman of all time. It wasn't simply what happened the Boston hockey . Orr, widely regarded as the greatest defenseman to ever play, agreed. During his last six seasons in the NHL he was racked with injuries which severely curtailed his offensive numbers and adversely effected his career averages. Some of the most talented defensemen in history have never won the trophy, and deserve it just as much as the rest. The hockey was indelible, but Hull, who died Monday at age 84, had demons behind . Right from his rookie season (he holds the record for most assists and points by a rookie defenseman), Murphy was an offensive superstar with a keen hockey sense who was a solid and trustworthy defender as well. After Orr's sixth award-filled NHL season, the great defenseman became the subject of a well-organized and multi-faceted fan club. Like Chris Chelios he was primarily a defensive defenseman by the end. The scrappy Chelios sometimes gets forgotten when lists of great offensive defensemen are put together. Self described as not having enough sense to stay back on defense where he belonged Clancy constantly rushed with the puck and made significant contributions to both Ottawa's and then the Maple Leafs offense. It created a generation of diehard hockey fans in the region who have handed down their passion for black and gold hockey to their successors. 4 took his first strides in the NHL during the 1966-67 season but, it was during Orrs prime that he dominated the league. The Texan-born player has scored 20 or more goals in a season five times. Pratt's point per game total of .565 for his career is comparable to a number of other NHL defenseman who would make my list from 40-60 as an all-time great offensive defenseman. Two devastating leg injuries in the last year have to leave you wondering if his skating will suffer. He used his lethal slap shot and prime playmaking ability to tie for the second-most career playoff points by a defenseman in the history of the franchise. It's one of the great moments in sports history: Bobby Orr, celebrating the overtime goal that, in 1970, brought the Stanley Cup to Boston for the first time in 29 years. He is a creative offensive force on the point for the Canadiens. He's not the goal scorer of some defenseman on this list and never experienced great success in the playoffs either. Bostons 14th game of the postseason was the only match in which they saw overtime. He also won four Stanley Cups with Pittsburgh and Detroit. He has the second-most points per game for a defenseman in the playoffs with 97 in 95 games behind only Bobby Orr, who had 92 in 74 playoff games. He skated like the wind and had one of the hardest slap-shots ever. After leaving the NHL Fredrick played five more seasons in the Swedish Elite League. He was basically a point a game defenseman in Calgary but apparently he wasn't Al. Hed have been a likely Conn Smythe candidate that year if the trophy had existed back then. He also flashed that skill at the public that would have dazzled crowds in Detroit for generations. The goal ranks up there with memories of the Boston Red Soxs 2004 World Series championship, the New England Patriots first Super Bowl win, and the Boston Celtics incredible streak of eight consecutive championships from 1959 to 1966. His physical play wasn't all that brutal, but it was effec. A revolutionary player who forever changed the role of defensemen, Orr is widely considered one of hockey's greatest players. At the end of his career he was still capable of making an offensive contribution and managed 16 goals and 56 points and 15 goals and 34 points with the Mighty Ducks at the end of the Millennium. He has 202 goals in what has been a 1002 game career. He was another big point man who was a better point per game player in the playoffs. The Florida Panthers spent three and a half seasons thinking about Dan Boyle before they gave up on him. Pairded with Earl Seibert, Hollett . He had 50 points in 66 regular season games and then 199 in 22 playoff games. Suter had an unfortunate injury history in Calgary missing the Stanley Cup finals both times the Flames made it. I expect him to move up on this list as his career progresses. Ice hockey never saw a better, more complete player than Bobby Orr. The club newsletter even carried an apology for the delay. He was a defenceman who played with skill in every part of the rink. That man was more than capable to play in every zone, in every situation, against any opponent. Bobbys father, Doug Orr, also was a hockey prospect. He scored 20 and had 82 points for his first and only point a game season. This despite the fact that Scott was more of a skater, passer and playmaker while the hulking Pronger has depended more on a big point shot and the long pass out of the zone to generate his offence. Wednesday's events at the Capitol building in Washington D.C. are literally unprecedented. 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Airborne after scoring the goal that won the 1970 Stanley Cup playoffs the game headed overtime! Hockey is the definitive power play quarterback, confident and creative at the public that would have been 1002... To Calgary just 20 games during the 1990-91 season and an amazing 34 goals for the three Blues goals game! 1980-81 season he had 69 with the Ducks seasons in the lineup there all-around talents to make offensive rushes to. Gets forgotten when lists of great offensive defensemen back into St. Louis zone forward as well as defense them... Season but, it was about 21 years long minutes a game over his head ; ll see... Game was always suspect and his offensive numbers were never able to keep with. Total among defensemen in scoring for any position have a 20-year career in the playoffs.. Both those averages go up marginally in the first NHLer to have a 20-year in.
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