'96 Panthers: Grittiest group of forwards ever?

[SotasicA]

It's the 1995-96 Florida Panthers.

Mike Hough.
Bill Lindsay.
Dave Lowry.
Brian Skrudland.
Rob Niedermayer.
Scott Mellanby.
Jody Hull.
Tom Fitzgerald.
Stu Barnes.

Click to read more...

 

[Mickey Marner]

2002-03 Leafs had

• Roberts
• Nolan
• Tucker
• Corson
• Green
• Domi
• Fitzgerald
• Belak

And Gilmour for one game.

 

[Techcoockie]

Kings when the won the cup in the 2010's, for sure.

 

[Rorschach]

I think the 92-93 Leafs, lead by Doug Gilmour, were very gritty.

The 90s NJ Devils too.

 

[AngelDuck]

06-07 ducks

Penner-Getzlaf-Perry
Moen-Pahlsson-Niedermayer
Brad May-Marchant-Thornton
Parros

pure, unsolicited grit

@Dirk316

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Everyone is playing for 2nd place after the Broad Street Bullies

 

[SotasicA]

Everyone is playing for 2nd place after the Broad Street Bullies

Toughness is not the same as grit.

The '96 Panthers weren't especially tough. They did have Paul Laus whom I love and he fought everybody and their dog. And Mellanby was scrappy. But it was essentially a team of bad smelling third liners who grinded wins over some pretty talented teams.

The Flyers were tough. None of their players backed down from anybody. But they also had a lot of hockey playing ability. They didn't need to grind it out as much. They weren't the underdogs who didn't make plays. They asserted their dominance physically, and on the score board.

A tough physical team vs a team that hustles and grinds.

I think the '92 Hawks were a good combination of both. A lot of toughness added on top of the grit. But also finesse.

 

[McFlash97]

06 Oilers


Mike Peca
Ryan Smyth
Shawn Horcoff
Jarett Stoll
George Laraque
Fernando Pisani
Rem Murray
Ethan Moreau
Raffi Torres


You can't outgrit that group. I just can't see it.

 

[KMart27]

06 Oilers


Mike Peca
Ryan Smyth
Shawn Horcoff
Jarett Stoll
George Laraque
Fernando Pisani
Rem Murray
Ethan Moreau
Raffi Torres


You can't outgrit that group. I just can't see it.

You can add Todd Harvey.

 

[Stephen]

Toughness is not the same as grit.

The '96 Panthers weren't especially tough. They did have Paul Laus whom I love and he fought everybody and their dog. And Mellanby was scrappy. But it was essentially a team of bad smelling third liners who grinded wins over some pretty talented teams.

The Flyers were tough. None of their players backed down from anybody. But they also had a lot of hockey playing ability. They didn't need to grind it out as much. They weren't the underdogs who didn't make plays. They asserted their dominance physically, and on the score board.

A tough physical team vs a team that hustles and grinds.

I think the '92 Hawks were a good combination of both. A lot of toughness added on top of the grit. But also finesse.

Yeah grit is not exactly the same as toughness. It's more like a scrappy ability to hang in a hockey game, using effort and determination to bridge the skill gap. Visually, it looks like a combination of water skiing and yard work.

 

[Bounces R Way]

The 2001-02 Calgary Flames were chock full of that true grit that kids crave and mothers love

Jarome Iginla
Craig Berube
Scott Nichol
Craig Conroy
Ronald Petrovicky
Chris Clark
Steve Begin
Clarke Wilm
Dave Lowry
Rob Niedermayer
Jeff Cowan
Jeff Shantz

+ Boughner, Regehr, Gauthier, Morris, and Montador on the blueline

Team finished with nearly 1600 PIM. Kind of insane Iggy led the league in goals and points that year

 

[HarryLime]

2004 Flames best exhibited that to me

 

[Mitch nylander]

More recent example, might not be the grittiest here. But the bruins in the late 2000s and early 2010s were as gritty as it gets.

2011 Bruins
Milan Lucic
Shawn Thornton
Brad Marchand
Adam Mcquaid
Zdeno Chara
Nathan Horton
Andrew Ference
etc.

An older example:
Penguins of 1989, they had almost 2700 PIM as a team. They averaged 34 PIM per game.

-16 players on the team had over 97 PIM.

Roster
-Jay Caufield
-Paul Coffey
-Troy Loney
-Dave Hannan
-Jim Johnson
-Randy Cunningham
-Randy Hillier
-Richard Zemlak
-Steve Dykstra
-Bob Errey
-John Cullen
-Rob Brown
-Dan Quinn
-Rod Buskas
-Phil Bourque
And Mario Lemieux.

 

[lawrence]

still don't know how the Panthers made the finals after 2 years of entering the NHL, that team lacked skill, defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins, but I recall that team being talked about in the late 90's they were gritty, but had to do with a ton of leadership that propelled, and of course great goaltending, that propelled them through 3 rounds.

 

[Luigi Lemieux]

still don't know how the Panthers made the finals after 2 years of entering the NHL, that team lacked skill, defeated the Pittsburgh Penguins, but I recall that team being talked about in the late 90's they were gritty, but had to do with a ton of leadership that propelled, and of course great goaltending, that propelled them through 3 rounds.

They beat top seed Philadelphia too the round before they beat second seed Pittsburgh. For one Ron Francis was injured and didn't play that series. Florida was also the epitome of clutch and grab hockey, and the refs just let everything go. We were robbed of what would have been a highly entertaining avs pens final. I take great pleasure in knowing that was their last series win.

 

[Matty Sundin]

2004 Flames best exhibited that to me

first one I thought of. That team was Iginla and Kipper and like 10 Darryl Sutters.

 

[Iapyi]

I wonder if the guys playing pre-1967 expansion on average had more grit {and skill} then any team since.

 

[Breakers]

According to the numbers
An absolute gritty team forward group was the 1991-1992 calgary flames
Top 4 all time in penalty minutes, most of it by forwards
they essentially stepped on the ice and took a penalty or fought someone

Ron Stern
Gary Roberts
Joel Otto
Craig berube
Fleury

 

[spiny norman]

Lopsided result.