"A Century of Hockey Heroes" (1999) -- a pseudo- Top-100 List

[quoipourquoi]

Ahead of Fedorov, though? A Hart, two Selkes, a key player on two Cups, had just won silver in Nagano, and a major cog in the famous Russian Five unit... to me, even at the time, Leclair was not on Fedorov's level as a hockey player.

I don't want to say that LeClair was, but if Sergei Fedorov wasn't one of my favorite players, I could probably argue that LeClair was. And besides, if I'm scratching contemporary names off of the list in 1999 to make room for Fedorov, I'd knock out pre-Florida Bure before LeClair.

 

[Hardyvan123]

Agree if you are talking about his ability, but that's not what I meant, I said he was deserved because of his importance to the game. Regardless of what level he accomplished it at, he was the first American to become a star/famous from playing hockey, and that is important to the history of the game. Supported by his induction in the first ever HHOF class.

I think a large part of his importance is involved in his legendary status which grew with his early death.

It was easier to induct him than seem to disrespect him.

I always have a problem with players like Hobey and their "importance" to the game, if anything those type of players should go into a builders category.

 

[MXD]

Best player missing = Sprague Cleghorn

 

[tarheelhockey]

Here's a small excerpt of what the authors had to say about LeClair:

John LeClair has a lot in common with Hall-of-Famer Phil Esposito. Like Espo, LeClair loves the action right in front of the net. And like Espo, LeClair reached his potential after being traded to a new team. Unlike Esposito, who was banished by the Blackhawks for poor play in the post-season, LeClair excelled in the playoffs. It was in the regular season, though, that LeClair seemed to have some problems.
...
The St. Albans, Vermont native has become a consistent 50-goal scorer and is now a dominant left winger in the game. He has gone from being a bench-warmer in Montreal to being a four-time All Star in Philly. With his presence on the ice, Stanley Cup fever is still alive in Philadelphia.

Hobey Baker:

By the time he reached Princeton University in 1910, Hobey Baker was ready to become America's first hockey star. ... Newspaper stories would be filled with accounts of his dazzling displays.
...
[photo caption] After he joined the St. Nicholas team in New York, limousines would line up outside the arena. The big cars were bringing high society fans to watch Hobey Baker play hockey.

Tubma Johansson:

Sven Johansson is the greatest player in the history of Swedish hockey.
...
Big and strong, Tumba Johansson was a scoring star whose hockey style was similar to Gordie Howe.

Most of the content of the bios are recaps of their careers, but these lines give some suggestion as to why they were picked for the list.

 

[Czech Your Math]

Fedorov definitely should have been there. I think it was too early for Kariya: He hadn't led the league in anything, hadn't done anything in the playoffs, and wasn't better than 10th in Goals/Points (nor in top 5 in GPG or PPG) from '95-'99.

Interesting that Lidstrom, at age 29, with two 1st AS and two cups, wasn't considered in the top 100 all-time. How many other top 20 players would not be top 100 if they retired at 29?

 

[TheDevilMadeMe]

Fedorov definitely should have been there. I think it was too early for Kariya: He hadn't led the league in anything, hadn't done anything in the playoffs, and wasn't better than 10th in Goals/Points (nor in top 5 in GPG or PPG) from '95-'99.

Interesting that Lidstrom, at age 29, with two 1st AS and two cups, wasn't considered in the top 100 all-time. How many other top 20 players would not be top 100 if they retired at 29?

Doug Harvey - all 7 Norris Trophies after the age of 29
Eddie Shore - all 4 Hart Trophies after the age of 29
Dominik Hasek - 1st Vezina at the age of 29.

Strangely enough, noted latebloomer Phil Esposito probably is still a top 100 player even if he retires at 29, as he broke all kinds of single season records in 1970-71 when he turned 28 (and won his 2nd Art Ross).

 

[jkrx]

Here's a small excerpt of what the authors had to say about LeClair:



Hobey Baker:




Tubma Johansson:


Most of the content of the bios are recaps of their careers, but these lines give some suggestion as to why they were picked for the list.

http://hfboards.mandatory.com/showpost.php?p=52518663&postcount=3

Heres my bio on Tumba from the MLD draft in case people want to know more but as a summary.

 

[Czech Your Math]

Doug Harvey - all 7 Norris Trophies after the age of 29
Eddie Shore - all 4 Hart Trophies after the age of 29
Dominik Hasek - 1st Vezina at the age of 29.

Strangely enough, noted latebloomer Phil Esposito probably is still a top 100 player even if he retires at 29, as he broke all kinds of single season records in 1970-71 when he turned 28 (and won his 2nd Art Ross).

I agree that Espo would be top 100 even at 29. I guess Messier's Hart/Cup at 29 solidifies him in the top 100 as well.

BTW, I meant top 100 currently, not at the time of their retirement (which would be even more of a no-brainer).

 

[flyguy]

Fedorov definitely should have been there. I think it was too early for Kariya: He hadn't led the league in anything, hadn't done anything in the playoffs, and wasn't better than 10th in Goals/Points (nor in top 5 in GPG or PPG) from '95-'99.

Interesting that Lidstrom, at age 29, with two 1st AS and two cups, wasn't considered in the top 100 all-time. How many other top 20 players would not be top 100 if they retired at 29?

I think the Kariya selection comes down to creating interest in the Southern California area, on a team that had the biggest marketing potential in the NHL (considering the Mighty Ducks movies).

 

[LeBlondeDemon10]

Here's a small excerpt of what the authors had to say about LeClair

Leclair was hardly a bench warmer in Montreal. He was an integral part of the 93 SC run by Montreal. I agree that he did not get a lot of playing time as he was mostly a third liner, but he scored a lot of big goals in the 93 playoffs.

 

[tarheelhockey]

I think the Kariya selection comes down to creating interest in the Southern California area, on a team that had the biggest marketing potential in the NHL (considering the Mighty Ducks movies).

I'm not sure that was the case in 1999, though. The Mighty Ducks had been around for 6 years at that point, and Kariya was rolling through another 100-point season. That was the peak of the Kariya-Selanne hype, with them finishing 2-3 in league scoring. Kariya signed a $10m/yr contract that summer.

Even putting aside marketing hype, I can see how someone making a list in 1999 would have seen him as a star of his generation just beginning to hit his full potential. It really wasn't until 2-3 years later that he started to fade away.

 

[LeBlondeDemon10]

Sundin does not belong on this list as of the date published. He may belong now.

 

[jkrx]

Sundin does not belong on this list as of the date published. He may belong now.

He do if you take international career into account.

 

[tarheelhockey]

To put Kariya into perspective, he is STILL only the fourth-youngest individual to hit 400 career goals. By which I mean, only 3 guys born after Kariya have hit that mark. They are Iginla, Hossa and Kovalchuk. Marleau and Lecavalier seem like the only ones who are close and likely to make it.

He was really the first of the DPE/lockout generation, and viewed through that lens his accomplishments seem much more impressive than if you compare him to guys like Jagr and Selanne who are only slightly older but got the benefit of a higher-scoring league to start their careers.

 

[Eric Zweig]

I don't know who'll see this after all these years, but I think it's awesome how much thought all of you put into this book 12 YEARS AFTER IT WAS PUBLISHED!!! Honestly, probably at least as much thought as we gave it at the time! I do remember that we specifically wanted an assortment of non-NHL European stars, and pre-NHL stars too. (Because that's what I'm most interested in!) Yeah, it was more about who was important to hockey than who was the best. Or a blend of that, anyway. And because it was a book for 10-to-12 year olds, we were told it needed to have a significant amount of current player names that kids would recognize. (25 percent is what I recall.) That's why guys like Paul Kariya, Eric Lindros and John LeClair were there. Can't remember why we didn't pick Fedorov, and Salming definitely seems like an historic oversight. But we weren't even paid to do this book. Nor did we get royalties on sales. It was just part of my regular salary (probably a lot smaller than what you'd imagine!) working for NHL Publishing in those days...

 

[VanIslander]

... I think it's particularly interesting that the list contains significant representation from the early era and non-NHL Europeans. The introduction mentions that the list is based on the 20th Century only, so keep that in mind if you're missing someone really early.

Thanks man. I recall you from the early ATD days. I respected you. Glad you're still at least on the History Board!

Hobey Baker
Pavel Bure
Bill Cowley
Bill Durnan
Tumba Johannson
John Leclair
Lester Patrick
Darryl Sittler
Peter Stastny
Nels Stewart
Mats Sundin
Valeri Vasiliev

I don't believe these are 12 of the top-100.

Check that, maybe Nels Stewart is. Umm...

 

[quoipourquoi]

I don't know who'll see this after all these years, but I think it's awesome how much thought all of you put into this book 12 YEARS AFTER IT WAS PUBLISHED!!! Honestly, probably at least as much thought as we gave it at the time! I do remember that we specifically wanted an assortment of non-NHL European stars, and pre-NHL stars too. (Because that's what I'm most interested in!) Yeah, it was more about who was important to hockey than who was the best. Or a blend of that, anyway. And because it was a book for 10-to-12 year olds, we were told it needed to have a significant amount of current player names that kids would recognize. (25 percent is what I recall.) That's why guys like Paul Kariya and John LeClair were there. Can't remember why we didn't pick Lindros or Fedorov, and Salming definitely seems like an historic oversight. But we weren't even paid to do this book. Nor did we get royalties on sales. It was just part of my regular salary (probably a lot smaller than what you'd imagine!) working for NHL Publishing in those days...

That’s awesome. Really appreciate the insight on the process!

 

[Eric Zweig]

Thanks man. I recall you from the early ATD days. I respected you. Glad you're still at least on the History Board!

I don't believe these are 12 of the top-100.

Check that, maybe Nels Stewart is. Umm...

Not so easy, is it! : )

 

[Yozhik v tumane]

I don't believe these are 12 of the top-100.

For the purposes of that book, Sven Tumba is a great entry.

The popularity of hockey in Sweden exploded in the 1950s with Sven Tumba as its own “Mr. Hockey”. As of today, Swedes are the third most common nationality in the NHL, and has developed multiple all stars: it’s just very difficult to reimagine the league and the game without Sven Tumba and Tre Kronor of the 1950s and 1960s playing a decisive role in popularizing the game in Sweden.

For a book on the 100 heroes of hockey in the 20th century, I believe Tumba is a very good pick and I’m glad the authors appreciated the impact Tumba has had on the game.

 

[JackSlater]

I'm surprised, pleasantly, that the NHL put such a varied group of players in that book. Would not have expected someone like Bobrov to show up but that's a big plus.

 

[mrhockey193195]

This book is still sitting on the shelf in my childhood bedroom. I fondly remember getting it when I was ~10 years old, and it introduced me to a lot of players pre-1990s that I had never heard of at the time.