The 6 Best Americans Ever Are ...

[Say Hey Kid]

The 6 Best Americans Ever Are ...

Click to read more...

 

[CanadienShark]

Where Matthews at?

 

[KirkAlbuquerque]

Kane
Hull
Chelios
Leetch
Modano
Mike Rupp

 

[DFF]

Where Matthews at?

Not there

 

[jigglysquishy]

Brimsek and Chelios are the very clear cut top two. Kane is the clear cut number three.

 

[Crow]

I would add Matthews. He has a trophy case bigger than a lot of these guys already.

 

[LeonDraisaitl]

I don’t know where he would be in the overall 6 rankings but I do know that Mathews should be there

 

[HolyHagelin]

No goalies? Richter, Callahan, Quick…

Edit - sorry, no goalies any of us watched?

 

[Albatros]

Chris Chelios
Brett Hull
Auston Matthews
Brian Leetch
Pat LaFontaine
Rod Langway

 

[Bedards Dad]

Your list is missing Matthews and. A bunch of goalies.

 

[Buck Naked]

Chris Chelios
Brett Hull
Auston Matthews
Brian Leetch
Pat LaFontaine
Rod Langway

Lol at not including Kane.

 

[Albatros]

Lol at not including Kane.

LaFontaine has 468+545=1013 points in 865 games (1.17 ppg), Kane 466+809=1275 points in 1218 games (1.05 ppg).

 

[Felidae]

LaFontaine has 468+545=1013 points in 865 games (1.17 ppg), Kane 466+809=1275 points in 1218 games (1.05 ppg).

Different scoring eras...

Only thing Lafontaine may have over Kane is better peak. But even if that was the case, Kane was elite for much longer (partly due to Lafontaine's injuries). Either way, it makes Kane > Lafontaine pretty decisive.

 

[Albatros]

I wouldn't say Kane was elite for much longer, he had his final high-scoring season at 33 and LaFontaine at 31. Despite having lost his health LaFontaine was better when he retired at 33 than Kane at any point after 33.

 

[bobholly39]

Brimsek and Chelios are the very clear cut top two. Kane is the clear cut number three.

If you take into account that Brett Hull was born in Canada, maybe.

 

[Buck Naked]

LaFontaine has 468+545=1013 points in 865 games (1.17 ppg), Kane 466+809=1275 points in 1218 games (1.05 ppg).

Look at you being edgy.

 

[HFpapi]

Matthews needs to be there. His career already surpasses LeClair, Langway, Tkachuk, Housley, Brimsek, and he's likely above JR too who I have at 6th.

Chelios, Kane, Hull, Modano, and Leetch should all be locks for 5/6.

Truly think AM deserves to be top 6 too.

 

[Felidae]

Mark Howe is very underrated here and he'd round off my list which includes Chelios, Kane, Leetch, Brimsek and Hull.

He was Runner up to the Norris 3 times against prime Bourque and Coffey's historic 138 point, 48 goal season. Was also robbed of a norris the year Langway won.


Overall his Norris and Hart finishes are

Norris: 2, 2, 2, 5, 9, 6, 10

Hart: 3, 5, 7

His Hart finalist season BTW, was against an up and coming Lemieux and 215 point Gretzky. The number of defenseman that have been nominated for the Hart is a very small list.


I'd take him over Modano, who had his best years in the late 90s, early 2000s against relatively weak competition, yet failed to come close to being a finalist for any trophy other than his 3rd place selke finish.

 

[Nocashstyle]

Mark Howe is very underrated here and he'd round off my list which includes Chelios, Kane, Leetch, Brimsek and Hull.

He was Runner up to the Norris 3 times against prime Bourque and Coffey's historic 138 point, 48 goal season. Was also robbed of a norris the year Langway won.


Overall his Norris and Hart finishes are

Norris: 2, 2, 2, 5, 9, 6, 10

Hart: 3, 5, 7

His Hart finalist season BTW, was against an up and coming Lemieux and 215 point Gretzky. The number of defenseman that have been nominated for the Hart is a very small list.


I'd take him over Modano, who had his best years in the late 90s, early 2000s against relatively weak competition, yet failed to come close to being a finalist for any trophy other than his 3rd place selke finish.

Those are my choices as well, except I went Modano over Hull, not because I think Modano was a better player than Hull, but I have a hard time truly considering him an American player, but at the same time, would not consider him a true Canadian player either. He’s kind of in no man’s land.

 

[BKarchitect]

Mark Howe is very underrated here and he'd round off my list which includes Chelios, Kane, Leetch, Brimsek and Hull.

He was Runner up to the Norris 3 times against prime Bourque and Coffey's historic 138 point, 48 goal season. Was also robbed of a norris the year Langway won.


Overall his Norris and Hart finishes are

Norris: 2, 2, 2, 5, 9, 6, 10

Hart: 3, 5, 7

His Hart finalist season BTW, was against an up and coming Lemieux and 215 point Gretzky. The number of defenseman that have been nominated for the Hart is a very small list.


I'd take him over Modano, who had his best years in the late 90s, early 2000s against relatively weak competition, yet failed to come close to being a finalist for any trophy other than his 3rd place selke finish.

Modano played heads up against Fedorov/Yzerman and Forsberg/Sakic for all of his prime and often came out on top. The top of the west was loaded…weak competition?

Modano was also completely neutered as a points-compiler by playing as the centerpiece of Hitchcock’s franchise.

Howe was slightly before my time - I would tend to agree based on his trophy finishes he’s very underrated…not just among Americans.

But Modano is the best two-way forward America has ever produced.

 

[x Tame Impala]

Chelios himself said Kane is the best American ever. I don’t count Brett Hull, he’s in a weird grey area.

Kane and Chelios are the clear 1 and 2

 

[bobholly39]

I voted the top 6.

Really intrigued to see where Matthews ends up though. His lack of playoff success is definitely hurting him so far, but he's still young. Sakic is one of the greatest playoff performers ever but only had 12 playoff games at Matthew's current age, so Matthews has a lot of time left to still build a strong playoff legacy.

Because for regular season prime - I think Matthews ending up #1 on this list is very possible.

 

[The Tourist]

Chelios
Kane
Modano
Brimsek
Matthews
Leetch


Hellebuyck is knocking on the door the longer he plays.




Hull is there if we count him. I always feel weird counting him as American with the American born players.

 

[Hippasus]

Options are missing LaFontaine:

Brett Hull
Kane
Chelios
Modano
LaFontaine
Langway

 

[jigglysquishy]

The case for Brett Hull being American is spotty. He was born in Canada and split his time between southern Ontario and Chicago between birth and age 8. From 8 until 18 he lived in Canada (combination of Winnipeg, Quebec, and BC) nearly full time.

From a hockey standpoint, spending 8 to 18 in Canada as a Canadian born person is pretty Canadian.