Park was also named the best defenseman in the ground breaking series. Last Name Orr #1. In this list, I will recognize the 10 greatest players who were never able to take home the defenseman holy grail. The former Minnesota Golden Gopher and Herb Brooks protege, played for some of the worst Red Wing teams of all time. United States diplomat who did the groundwork for creating the United Nations (1871-1955) United States naval officer who commanded the `Constitution' during the War of 1812 and won a series of brilliant victories against the British (1773-1843) 3 letter answer (s) to hockey great bobby ORR Canadian hockey player (born 1948) Trumps tumultuous first term in office has been beset in recent months by high rates of COVID-19 infections and deaths, and now the events that occurred at the Capitol building. Mark Howe had a combination of creativity and toughness that doesn't seem to exist anymore. All rights reserved. 20) Today is Bobby Orr's 73rd birthday. Known as a devastating hitter, shutdown defenseman and long-time Devils captain, Stevens memorable and iconic career spanned 22 seasons and 1,635 games, and it's hard to believe that in that much time, he never won a Norris Trophy. THATS the kind of teammate you want??? He was skilled with the puck and mobile for a big man but it was the shot that set him apart. Orr also earned his final All-Star selection. He played his only games in November 1975 after the Bruins already had traded Phil Esposito to the New York Rangers. Nobody played the game like him. He scored 20 and had 82 points for his first and only point a game season. He had 50 points in 66 regular season games and then 199 in 22 playoff games. Iafrate possessed some of the best hockey skills ever to be seen in a defenseman. he became the Jets best player leading the team in scoring from the back end three years in a row. So rather than penalizing him for playing so long I want to reward the offensive skill he did show for over 1006 NHL games. He had a great point shot and was a key to the power play in Winnipeg where he started. Not only was he one of the best at reading plays, he was also more than capable of contributing offensively. The hockey was indelible, but Hull, who died Monday at age 84, had demons behind . Stock photos, 360 images, vectors and videos. Injuries chipped away at the hard playing Suter but he managed to maintain an offensive presence almost to the end of his career. The record held until Chicago Blackhawk star Pierre Pilote broke it with 59 points in 68 games in the 1964-65 season. Bourque is one of the all-time great NHL defensemen, winning the Norris Trophy five times. His best statistical season in the league came while playing with Mario Lemieux and company in 1992-93. Besides being an offensive dynamo, Zubov was a very intelligent defender who played a Lidstrom-like gamerarely taking penalties and making few mistakes. Had eight monster seasons with Calgary, including a Calder-winning rookie season and a 91-point season in which he finished third in Norris voting. As a young player he got to play with and learn from the legendary Brad Park. Orr combined speed, strength, skill and hockey savvy at both ends of the ice. Salming was named to the NHL first All-Star team once, the second All-Star team five times and played in three All-Star Games. Niedermayer also won three Cups with New Jersey. Orr was great, he played 12 NHL seasons between the years 1966 and 1979. Park is a five-time first-team All-Star, a two-time second-team All-Star and played in nine All-Star Games. Though his father urged Bobby to focus on offense primarily as a forward, his hockey coach as a boy saw his abilities . Bobby Orr was the most creative individual in the game of hockey. Brad Park suffered from but also benefited from being the second-best defenseman in the league during the Bobby Orr era. He lead the Leafs in goal scoring and points that playoff year. He was a runner up for the Hart Memorial trophy as the leagues MVP twice. He was a first-team All-Star three times, a second-team All-Star three times and played in seven All-Star Games. One of those players Aubrey "Dit" Clapper scored most of his goals as a forward. He took home the Hart, Norris, Art Ross, and Conn Smythe Trophies and his first Stanley Cup . His skills and size on the back end helped them win the cup in 1938-39. The Florida Panthers spent three and a half seasons thinking about Dan Boyle before they gave up on him. Bobby Hull was a great hockey player and a miserable human being. Closest Norris Finish: Second (1977, 1980). Zubov was named to the NHLs second All-Star team in 2006 and played in three All-Star Games over the course of his career. He was beaten out by the 24-year-old Petr Stasny, who had 109 points with the Nordiques that year for the Calder Memorial trophy as rookie of the year. Closest Norris Finish: Second (1964, 1969). Chris Chelios was always a good skater who could distribute the puck and had a reasonable shot. He scored over .7 points per game for his entire career and almost a fifth of a goal per game. Here are 21 reasons why Orr is hockey's GOAT. An absolute defensive force for Toronto, he led the team to four Stanley Cup wins during the 1960s. His .173 goals per game for his career put him in a goal scoring class with the likes of career point men like Sergei Zubov and Larry Murphy. He scored 15 goals or more for seven straight years. Housley was never treated very well by the fans in Calgary despite leading the team in assists during the strike curtailed 1994-95 season. Only Ray Bourque managed to score more with 410, while playing 203 more games. Conacher was named Canada's best athlete of the first half of the 20th century. 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. Larson followed this season up with 18 goals the next year five seasons in a row where he scored more than 20 goals as a defenseman. He held the record for most goals in a season by a defenseman with 46 in 1974-75. Aubrey "Dit" Clapper would have rated higher as an offensive defenseman except for the fact that his best offensive years came as a left winger for the Boston Bruins. A seven-time All-Star, he remains the last defenseman to lead the NHL in scoring. 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. Bobby Orr Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Salary, Title | Hockey-Reference.com Bobby Orr Position: D Shoots: Left 6-0 , 197lb (183cm, 89kg) Born: March 20 , 1948 (Age: 74-345d) in Parry Sound, Ontario ca Amateur Teams: Oshawa Generals More bio, uniform, draft, salary info Hall of Fame 2x Cup Winner 1966-67 Calder 9x All Star 8x Norris 2x Ross His six James Norris Trophy wins as the league's best defenseman put him behind only Bobby Orr (eight) and Doug Harvey (seven). He leads all defensemen in scoring that year. Still not convinced Bobby Orr is the greatest hockey player of all time? In between he managed to play almost 80 games a season every year. Continue with Recommended Cookies. According to Orr, though, his flight through the air was by choice. Brian Leetch was another of the flood of talented American defensemen who came into the NHL attempting to emulate Bobby Orr. Closest Norris Finish: Second (1956, 1958, 1959). He played in the AHL for a time, but finished his career with the St. Louis Blues at the age of 44. Both times he won the James Norris trophy that season as he did in 1988-89 with the Canadiens. He was fair skater and an able puck mover, but his shot moved him into the offensive elite of the game. He was seventh in the league in assists that year. That didn't detract from the fact that he was a skilled offensive contributor early on. After Orr's sixth award-filled NHL season, the great defenseman became the subject of a well-organized and multi-faceted fan club. During the Boston Bruins 1969-70 season, Orr netted a remarkable 33 goals and 87 assists in 76 games. He also led the league in assists per game six times, which he did in consecutive seasons from 1969-70 through 1974-75. But one stands above the rest. Orr combined speed, strength, skill and hockey savvy at both ends of the ice. Iafrate was rushed into the league by a desperate Leaf team in 1984. But Orrs goal goes beyond winning the Stanley Cup. His .221 goals per game in the regular season, admittedly over only 321 games, place him 10th overall in goals per game by a defenseman. 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. 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. Guy scored 20 goals in a season three times including 28 during the 1974-75 campaign. He was a key component in two Stanley Cup runs with the Canadiens in 1986 when they won the cup and in 89 when they lost. Orrs 102 assists is the 12th-best assist total in NHL history for any player. Bourque was Boston's other great defenseman, a magisterial, super smooth stalwart who nonetheless has always been cloaked in a touch of shadow. His obvious offensive skills were an immediate boon to the Devils. The talented Gonchar is the definitive power play quarterback, confident and creative at the point with a fine hard, accurate shot. Not only did Orrs flying goal net the Bruins their first Stanley Cup since 1941, but it changed the landscape of hockey in New England forever. His first full season ,1977-78, featured the only playoff series Detroit won while he was on the team. 4. Suter was an incredibly strong skater throughout his career. He scored 20 goals in the 1999-2000 season. Not content to be Wayne Gretzky's teammate, swift-skating Oiler defenseman Paul Coffey suddenly is getting himself compared to Bobby Orrand not unfavorably, either. Mark Howe spent, I hate to say wasted, the first six years of his professional career in the WHA playing for the Houston Aero's and then the New England Whalers. He didn't begin getting the respect he deserved until the second half of his career and didn't win his first Norris Trophy until. The Original Six era featured a conservatism of play that frequently quashed any offensive creativity from defensemen. When playoff performances are added, Coffey leads all defensemen with 455 goals in 1,603 NHL games. Play-by-play announcer Dan Kellys call of the final moments of Game 4 will give you goosebumps even to this day. Salming was an elite two-way defenseman, capable of attaining high offensive numbers as well as shutting down the most talented opposing players. Without a devastating point shot it's his mobility and playmaking that set him apart from other defensemen. His big offensive weapon was the point shot as was reflected in his almost a fifth of a goal a game he scored during his career. Orr, widely regarded as the greatest defenseman to ever play, agreed. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 2003-04 Upper Deck Trilogy Bobby Orr #8 Hockey Card NHL Boston Bruins Defenseman at the best online prices at eBay! Thousands had to wait weeks to join up. Suter had a long offensively prolific career in the NHL. 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 best point total was in 2006-07 when he had 69 with the Ducks. He skated like the wind and had one of the hardest slap-shots ever. He suffered a nasty injury from a collision with a net the next year that degraded his offensive ability. He was a second round pick for the Sharks (30th overall) in 1991 and he joined the team for 1992-93 season. Calgary, Alberta, native Cale Makar has played three seasons with the Colorado Avalanche and each season he's been getting better and . Jul 24, 2021. Al MacInnis was renowned for having the hardest shot in hockey, ever. He scored well over a fifth of a goal a game in his NHL career and had almost .8 points per game for 929 regular season games. Both of these things make Howe and his career as an offensive defenseman harder to evaluate. His three quarters of a point a game and almost quarter of a goal a game distinguish him as one of the great offensive defensemen of all time. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. The quick skating Housley was an offensive force for the Sabres and he played forward as well as defense for them. That same year, Zubov scored five goals and assisted on 14 others in the postseason to help the Rangers win their first Stanley Cup in 54 years (he won another Cup with Dallas in 1999). 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