Comparing HOF Classes: 2009 vs. 2007 (New Poll Added)

With the induction of possibly the best HOF class ever yesterday, it sparked some debate on which class is better: the 2009 class of Yzerman, Hull, Leetch and Robitaille, or the 2007 class of Messier, MacInnis, Stevens and Francis. It’s a tough call, and there probably is no wrong answer here. But let’s run through the NHL regular season numbers:

2009 Class:

• Goals: 2,348 (Yzerman-692, Hull-741, Leetch-247, Robitaille-668)
• Assists: 3,220 (Yzerman-1,063, Hull-650, Leetch-781, Robitaille-726)
• Points: 5,568 (Yzerman-1,755, Hull-1,391, Leetch-1,028, Robitaille-1,394)
• Stanley Cups: 7 (Yzerman-3, Hull-2, Leetch-1, Robitaille-1)
• Awards: 1 Hart (Hull), 2 Pearson (Yzerman, Hull), 2 Conn Smythe (Yzerman, Leetch), 1 Selke (Yzerman), 1 Masterson (Yzerman), 1 Byng (Hull), 2 Norris (Leetch), 2 Calder (Leetch, Robitaille)
• All-Star Appearances: 36 (Yzerman-10, Hull-8, Leetch-10, Robitaille-8)

2007 Class:

• Goals: 1,779 (Messier-694, MacInnis-340, Stevens-196, Francis-549)
• Assists: 4,088 (Messier-1,193, MacInnis-934, Stevens-712, Francis-1,249)
• Points: 5,867 (Messier-1,887, MacInnis-1,274, Stevens-908, Francis-1,798)
• Stanley Cups: 12 (Messier-6, MacInnis-1, Stevens-3, Francis-2)
• Awards: 2 Harts (Messier), 3 Conn Smythes (Messier, MacInnis, Stevens), 2 Pearsons (Messier), 1 Norris (MacInnis), 1 Selke (Francis), 3 Byngs (Francis), 1 Clancy (Francis)
• All-Star Appearances: 47 (Messier-15, MacInnis-15, Stevens-13, Francis-4)

It really is a toss up. There is no wrong answer here, cases can be made for both, and these are just the raw numbers. There was much more to each of these players than just statistics, especially with Scott Stevens.

The only surprise here is that Ron Francis was only voted to the All-Star Game four times. That’s an absolute travesty.

Update 4:00pm: Actually, let’s make a poll out of this. It’s mid-page, on the right hand side.

Leetch Punches HOF Ticket

As expected, Brian Leetch was voted into the Hall of Fame today, joining Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull and Luc Robitaille as possibly the best HOF class of all time.

Leetch’s Career Stats:

• 247 goals
• 781 assists
• 1,028 points
• Two-time Norris Trophy winner (1992, 1997)
• Calder Trophy winner (1989)
• 11-time All Star
• Conn Smythe Trophy winner (1994)
• Stanley Cup winner (1994)
• Gold medal – 1996 World Cup, captain of Team USA
• Silver medal – 2002 Winter Olympics

And now add to that list, Hall of Famer.

This caps off an amazing career by #2. There’s not much else to say other than Congratulations.

The Best Class Ever?

Hey all,

Been a while since I last wrote here.  Things like Hall of Fame Inductions always interest me, and I usually feel the need to ask the question posed in the title when it includes names like Yzerman, Hull, Robitaille, Leetch, Richter, Dino, etc etc etc.  While it seems that the general consensus is that the first four mentioned are virtual shoe-ins, it surprises me that it is so unanimous, given the company that is nominated alongside them.  For everyone else, its pretty much just a bad year to have your name on the ballot.  Everyone on this list at some point in their career was either an impactful or influential player, one way or another.  But when you consider that Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille, and Brian Leetch will likely be the 4 players inducted, can we coronate the Hall of Fame Class of 2009 the greatest HOF class ever?  The two classes of recent memory that are among the top include the 2007 class of Mark Messier, Al MacInnis, Scott Stevens, and Ron Francis and the 1983 class of Ken Dryden, Bobby Hull, and Stan Mikita. I’m sure the likes of Stan Fischler might say otherwise, but those are some pretty stacked groups.  Let’s see how they measure up:

Stevie Y: Three-Time Stanley Cup Champion, Captain of the Red Wings beginning at age 21, 6th on the all-time scoring list, and one of the gutsiest players of his time (played the majority of his final years with essentially no cartilage in both knees).  And to this day, has scored one of my favorite goals of all time.

Luc Robitaille: Stanley Cup Champion, 8-Time All-Star, highest scoring left wing in NHL history with 668 goals.  Holds most scoring records for the Los Angeles Kings, where he played the majority of his career.

Brett Hull: Two-Time Stanley Cup Champion, his 741 career goals rank him 3rd all-time overall and the highest American goal-scorer in NHL history (even though he has dual citizenship with Canada, all his international play has been for the USA).  Nicknamed the Golden Brett.  Scored one of the most controversial goals in the NHL history during the 1999 Stanley Cup Final.

Brian Leetch: Stanley Cup Champion (as if you didn’t know), only Amercian-born player to win Conn Smythe Trophy, two-time Norris Trophy recipient.  Scored a still rookie-defenseman record 23 goals in his debut season with the Blueshirts.  And the importance of this goal can never be overstated. PS: if any of you guys can find an isolated video of the spin-o-rama goal against Brodeur in the ’94 East Finals please post it…because that was pretty)

So that’s a pretty impressive resume if you ask me.  What do you guys think?  If this does turn out to be the Class of 2009, will it be considered the best-ever?

My Hall Picks

Tomorrow at 3pm, a max of four players will get the nod to the Hockey Hall of Fame. The noteables eligible for the first time: Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille, and of course, my favorite Ranger of all time, Brian Leetch. Other players that are eligible, but seems to be looked over, Alex Mogilny, Dave Andreychuk, Dino Ciccarelli, Pavel Bure, Doug Gilmour, Steve Larmer, Kevin Lowe and another one of my favorites, Mike Richter.

All of the players listed above should get into the Hall of Fame. Of the ones listed, Richter is the most questionable to get into the Hall. I think the magic number is 300 wins, so he should be getting in, but it’s more of a question of when.

So with all those names up there, who gets in for 2009?

Yzerman, Hull, Leetch, Robitaille.

First-Time Hall Nominees

Brian Leetch is one of the many on the Hall of Fame ballot for the first time. He should be a shoe-in, as should other first timers Steve Yzerman, Brett Hull, Alexander Mogilny and Luc Robitaille. I don’t know who else is on the ballot, nor do I know what the maximum number of players voted in per year is. But these five players belong in the Hall, no doubt about it.

In other news, John “OH BABY” Davidson will receive the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award. The Foster Hewitt Memorial Award is an award named after Foster Hewitt and presented by the Hockey Hall of Fame to members of the radio and television industry who make outstanding contributions to their profession and the game of hockey during their broadcasting career (source: Wikipedia).

Congrats to JD, and future congrats to Leetch, and the other soon-to-be Hall of Famers.

Brian Leetch @ Last Licks

For all of us Brian Leetch fans, the soon-to-be Hall of Famer and greatest Ranger skater of all time (think I’m biased?) will be making an appearance at Last Licks in Scarsdale, NY on Saturday May 9th, from 12:00-1:30. You can have a plethora of items signed by the superstar, all for a price.

The address and contact information of the store is located on the Last Licks site.

Upcoming Ranger Player Signings

Blueshirt Bulletin is reporting that three current Rangers (Sean Avery, Dan Girardi, Ryan Callahan) will be appearing at Last Licks Ice Cream at their store location at 245 E 93rd St on Monday, March 23, from 6:30-8:00pm. Pricing on the items to sign varies, or you can bring your own item to have them sign. Prices are available at the Last Licks webpage.

In addition to the current Rangers night at Last Licks, some Ranger Legends will also be appearing at the same Last Licks location two days later (Wednesday, March 25). Mark Messier, Adam Graves, and Brian Leetch will be there signing autographs as well. Pricing for this even is still unavailable.