Defensemen - which side did they play?

Appleyard

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Yes he was a LHS, but when he played there were no left defencemen or right defencemen, there were point and cover-point. He played point the vast majority of the time.

Yeh, just his handedness is missing in the table at the top.

Pospíšil's handedness and side is also missing I realised, he was a lefty and he played on the left side. He did in the CSSR footage of him I have seen anyway.
 
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reckoning

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Let's talk about Paul Coffey, who is listed at RD in the OP.

Video available online of the 1983 Cup final shows that the Oilers used the following pairings:

LD Lowe - RD Fogolin
LD Jackson - RD Gregg
LD Coffey - RD Huddy

Similarly in the 1987 final it seems to be:

LD Lowe - RD Muni
LD Smith - RD Gregg
LD Coffey - RD Huddy

In the 1991 finals the Penguins had Murphy, Taglianetti and Stanton paying RD, and when Coffey played it was generally with Larry Murphy (RHS).

As well, in the '87 Canada Cup all of Coffey's even-strength shifts were at LD. The only times he played at RD in the tournament were when he was paired with Bourque on the PP.
 

overpass

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Let's talk about Paul Coffey, who is listed at RD in the OP.

Video available online of the 1983 Cup final shows that the Oilers used the following pairings:

LD Lowe - RD Fogolin
LD Jackson - RD Gregg
LD Coffey - RD Huddy

Similarly in the 1987 final it seems to be:

LD Lowe - RD Muni
LD Smith - RD Gregg
LD Coffey - RD Huddy

In the 1991 finals the Penguins had Murphy, Taglianetti and Stanton paying RD, and when Coffey played it was generally with Larry Murphy (RHS).

Post 2 says he played RD in Edmonton "for sure" - so were these Cup finals anomalies? He certainly played a lot of right point on the PP. I also found a quote where he said his first partner was Gary Lariviere, who was RHS, but that would have only been one season at most so it's not much to go on.

I'm not sure why I said he "definitely" played RD in Edmonton. I thought he played on the right and Huddy on the left for some reason but I guess I was wrong. I'll change it in the OP.

Did he play on the left side when he played together with Lidstrom in Detroit?
 

Iain Fyffe

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I'm not sure why I said he "definitely" played RD in Edmonton. I thought he played on the right and Huddy on the left for some reason but I guess I was wrong. I'll change it in the OP.

Did he play on the left side when he played together with Lidstrom in Detroit?
I know that Huddy was versatile enough to play both sides, and Coffey certainly played a lot of right point on the PP, but the video evidence I've seen does show him as LD. As for his time in Detroit, at this point I have no idea.
 

overpass

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Watching some video from the 1995 playoffs, Coffey and Lidstrom did play together and it looks to me like Lidstrom was on the right side, except sometimes on the power-play.

I've updated Lidstrom.

I remember a Red Wing fan posting about Lidstrom's early NHL years in one of the many Lidstrom threads here who mentions that he played the right side for a while. I don't know if he specifically mentioned it as a problem - but I wonder if it was a factor that held Lidstrom back a bit. Maybe his game didn't play as well on the right side.
 

Canadiens1958

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Handedness Update

Do not know if others have been watching the Montréal Canadiens this season but they have a very interesting fourth line in Flynn,Mitchell and Smith-PelleyAll are RHS. Cannot recall an all RHS line in the NHL.
 

overpass

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Do not know if others have been watching the Montréal Canadiens this season but they have a very interesting fourth line in Flynn,Mitchell and Smith-PelleyAll are RHS. Cannot recall an all RHS line in the NHL.

The Ottawa Senators in the second half of the season and the playoffs last year had a third line of all RHS. Condra, Pageau, and Lazar.
 

Appleyard

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Do not know if others have been watching the Montréal Canadiens this season but they have a very interesting fourth line in Flynn,Mitchell and Smith-PelleyAll are RHS. Cannot recall an all RHS line in the NHL.

Flyers 1st/2nd line in 2010-11 had 3 RHS on it:

Zherdev -- Giroux -- Carter

It was a great line as well before Lavi got fed up of Zherdev's cherry picking!
 

Canadiens1958

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Big Three

Canadiens Big Three - Savard, Lapointe, Robinson.

Serge Savard, initially came up with the Laperriere/Harper, Ted Harris/J.C. Tremblay pairings. Rotated thru playing RD and LD, plus some time as a PK forward.
1969 Conn Smythe year mainly RD. After two serious leg injuries played mainly RD but would play LD to accommodate filler or rookie d-men or due to match-ups.

Guy Lapointe. Initially played RD with Jacques Laperriere, mainly RD throughout his career except for match-ups/strategic reasons or when the Big 3 was being rotated - played ywo at a time.

Larry Robinson. Initially LD - OT goal against Flyers in 1973 and hit on Dornhoefer in 1976 Finals until he was comfortable on defence. Then tended to play both according to the pairing and match-up/strategic reasons. Post 1979 when the Canadiens were in the process of rejuvenating their defence would take the side opposite to the "rookies" strength. RD with Petr Svoboda, LD with Chris Chelios. etc.

Big 3 in rotation. Lapointe played more often at RD but depending on game situations you would see both combinations. Robinson RD with Savard LD or Robinson LD with Savard RD etc. Also the two would switch during a shift.

Example in the video showing the Yvon Lambert goal in Game 7. Serge Savard is lined-up at RD for the face-off, Robinson at LD. Yet on the Bruins rush Savard is playing LD ,stripping the puck cleanly after reading the play and transitioning for the winning goal:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l22FV4105p8
 

overpass

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Updated Mark Howe to LD/RD - I watched an old Flyers/Oilers game and he played the left side and McCrimmon played the right side.

After checking a few more clips, it looks like he generally played the left side when paired with McCrimmon and Kjell Samuelsson, but played the right side earlier in his Philadelphia career when he played with Glen Cochrane.
 

mrhockey193195

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Nov 14, 2006
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Mods, sorry if this is the wrong place to ask. Does anyone have a good reference for whether or not a defenseman tended to play RD or LD? My go-to sites (HockeyReference, hockeydb, EliteProspects) don't help in that regard.

I'm looking for some guidance for historical players, namely players from the 70s, 80s, and 90s.
 

BobbyAwe

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My notes are below. For players who have played within the past 15 years, I have listed this from my own viewing experience. I haven’t followed every team closely so others may have something to add. For older players, if they were a RHS and were normally partnered with LHS I assume they played RD primarily. If they were a LHS and were normally partnered with a RHS I assume they played LD primarily. There were also several seasons in the 1930s when all-star voting was separated by LD and RD, which can provide useful information.

Orr – He’s played RD in any games and highlights I've seen. Partners were always LHS. Not aware that he ever played LD in the NHL.
Harvey - I've read that he and Tom Johnson were the two RD for Montreal in the dynasty years and seen highlights from those years of him on the right side. As a younger player he was paired with Butch Bouchard, a RHS - I assume he played LD while playing with Bouchard.
Bourque – I remember him mostly playing RD in Boston, but he played LD in Colorado while paired with Foote or Blake.
Shore - RHS, most of his all-star votes came for RD.
Lidström - Played LD for the latter half of his career that I saw. All his partners that I'm aware of were RD - Coffey, Murphy, Rafalski, etc.
Potvin - He played a lot with Ken Morrow, a RHS - so I would guess he played at least some LD but don't know.
Fetisov - In the 1987 Canada Cup I'm pretty sure he played the left and Kasatonov played the right. Would like to get more information on the rest of his career.
Park - Played RD for Canada in 1972 - didn't play with Orr at even strength because they both played RD.
"King" Clancy - Based on all-star voting - LD in 1930-31, unclear in 1932-33, RD in 1933-34,
Coffey - Played RD in Edmonton for sure, not sure about all his other stops.
Pilote - Partnered with another LHS, Elmer Vasko. Not sure which one played the right side.
Seibert - Received all-star votes at both LD and RD - BUT his LD votes came in years the league had many high-end RHS defensemen (Shore, Clapper, Coulter, Seibert).
Pronger - In St Louis, Anaheim, and Philly played primarily RD. Played LD in Edmonton (with Jason Smith) and for Canada in international tournaments.
Leetch - I assume he played LD while paired with Beukeboom?
"Dit" Clapper - Received all-star votes at both LD and RD - BUT his LD votes came in years the league had many high-end RHS defensemen (Shore, Clapper, Coulter, Seibert). His most frequent partner (Johnny Crawford) was a LHS.
Savard - Famous for his Savardian spin-orama, which he used while playing on the right side of the ice.
Niedermayer - Played RD in New Jersey as far as I remember.
Conacher - Most of his all-star votes came at LD
"Ching" Johnson - Most of his all-star votes came at LD
Chára - Played mostly on the right side in Ottawa with Redden, then Phillips. Has played mostly on the left side at ES with Boston.
Goodfellow - Most of his all-star votes came at LD
Bouchard - I assume he played RD - RHS.
Brewer - Played LD while paired with Bobby Baun
"Babe" Siebert - Most of his all-star votes came at LD
Johnson - He and Doug Harvey played most of the minutes at RD for the dynasty Canadiens
Coulter - Received all-star votes at both LD and RD - BUT his LD votes came in years the league had many high-end RHS defensemen (Shore, Clapper, Coulter, Seibert). His most frequent partner (Muzz Patrick) was a LHS.
Wilson - Played a lot with Bob Murray, RHS.
Mantha - I assume he played RD - RHS.
Cameron - I assume he played RD - RHS.
Stanley - Played LD while paired with Tim Horton.

Edit: Adding a quote from Larry Robinson's book, which matches what Canadiens1958 posted below.

The mentorship started back in Montreal, when Serge used to pair me with every new kid that came to the team as a defenceman. I wouldn't say that it hurt my career, but a lot of times I was playing on the right side, where I didn't feel as comfortable. I preferred the left side, and that's where I played when I was on the blueline with Serge. But all of a sudden, I'd be playing with someone like Gaston Gingras, and because he played left, I was moved over to the right side (being more able to do that). That meant that a lot of times, when the puck came around the boards, I would be on my backhand. I had to reinvent my game and learn to play from the right side.


I believe Pilote played RD with Vasko.
 

tarheelhockey

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Feb 12, 2010
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"King" Clancy - Based on all-star voting - LD in 1930-31, unclear in 1932-33, RD in 1933-34,

The lineup in this Sens program from 1928 shows Clancy at RD and Boucher at LD.

Rare Early 1928 NHL Hockey Program Ottawa Senators Blackhawks King Clancy! | eBay

In that small-roster era the LD/RD distinction was still viewed as being common knowledge like LW/RW, so it feels pretty certain they would have had it right for their star pairing.


Edit: This 1932 Boston Garden program shows Clancy shifted to LD and Horner at RD.
1932 Boston Garden News Program Toronto Maple Leafs Boston Bruins NHL Hockey | eBay

This one from 1935, also Boston Garden, shows Clancy and Horner flipped back to RD and LD respectively.
1935 Stanley Cup Playoffs Program Toronto Maple Leafs Boston Bruins | eBay

1936 in Detroit, Clancy listed as LD.
1936 Stanley Cup Detroit Redwings vs Toronto Maple Leaf Championship program bh3 | eBay

Filling in the gaps:

1922
Ottawa Citizen 2/6/1922 has Clancy at LD

1923
Ottawa Citizen 12/29/1923 has Clancy at LD

1925
Ottawa Citizen 1/15/1925 and 2/2/1925 have Clancy at RD

1926
Ottawa Citizen 1/5/1926, 11/29/1926, 12/8/1926, and 12/10/1926 have Clancy at RD

1927
Ottawa Citizen 2/2/1927 has Clancy at RD

1928
In addition to the program above, Ottawa Citizen 1/23/1928, 2/24/1928, and 3/28/1928 have Clancy at RD

1929
Ottawa Citizen 11/25/1928 has Clancy at RD

1930
Ottawa Citizen 11/14/1930 has Clancy at RD.

1931
Ottawa Citizen 11/23/1931 and 12/2/1931 show Clancy at RD.

1932
The program above shows Clancy at LD.

1933
Ottawa citizen 1/24/1933 has Clancy "probable" at LD.
Ottawa Citizen 2/23/1933 has Clancy at RD.

1934
?

1935
The program above shows Clancy at RD.

1936
The program above shows Clancy at LD.


It seems fair to say Clancy could and did play both sides. He appears to have spent the bulk of his prime at RD, with most of his time at LD being either early or late in his career.
 
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TheDevilMadeMe

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Aug 28, 2006
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Nov 19, 1958 NY Daily News: Bill Gadsby was moved from RD to LD, because the Rangers rookies struggled to replace Jack Evans at LD. Gadsby protested at first, but eventually was moved to LD, which helped the team as they had rookies who were right-handed for the right side 19 Nov 1958, 109 - Daily News at Newspapers.com

Gadsby was a 1st Team All Star in 1955-56, 2nd Team in 1956-57, 1st Team in 1957-58, 1st Team in 1958-59.

So it looked like he, in fact, excel at both sides.
 

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TheDevilMadeMe

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I'm actually starting to wonder if Harry Howell was RD now.

From other readings, including The New York Rangers - Broadway's Longest-Running Hit, Page 132

1955-56 and 1956-57 Rangers D pairings were:

Jack "Tex" Evans - Bill Gadsby - both LH, but these were their sides when they played together
Lou Fontinato - Harry Howell - both LH, no idea who played what side.

Funny enough, I've also seen press that said Fontinato played to the fans by making big hits without knowing where the puck or himself was on the ice.
 

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