Top 10 Defencemen of All Time

[Victor 10,534]

Top 10 Defencemen of All Time

 

In case you missed it: https://vhlforum.com/topic/55988-top-10-playoff-performers-of-all-time/

 

Note on statistics presented below - these are defencemen-only, taken from the linked spreadsheet: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1gCAmcJIqYzrkq8CrpRauI9DmmJAbdm9xC6aAzpEUAgw/edit?usp=sharing

 

10. Elijah Incognito (S27-S34) @Strummer

653 points (10^th), 511 assists (5^th)

3 Continental Cups (SEA, TOR, RIG)

Labatte x1, Beketov x1, Kanou x1
 

On the face of it, Incognito was a great but not all-time legendary defenceman. He was consistent more than flashy and in truth, that almost cost him a place in the Hall of Fame, but the offensive output is hard to dispute. What's also hard to dispute is that Incognito was just a few weeks ago ranked the best playoff performer among defencemen and that goes some way to distinguish him in a long list of honourable mentions. A staple of some of the main contenders of his time, Incognito is the first player to make two top 10 lists.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

9. Tomas Jenskovic (S10-S15) @scotty

515 points (49^th), 1.19 points-per-game (T-15^th)

2 Continental Cups (both DAV)

Labatte x3, most assists x2, Campbell x1, Slobodzian x1, playoff MVP x1, most points x1

 

Sample size is everything. Peak Jenskovic was the most dominant player in the league in S14, but he was retired a season later. The only defenceman to ever lead the league in points, albeit with a relatively low 112, it is very difficult to exclude the Davos legend from the top 10 conversation, but it's also very difficult to rate him any higher than near the bottom of the list. Three Labatte Trophies show Jenskovic was the dominant force of his generation, but the career stats don't stack up as well – partially due to a short career, and partially due to defencemen evolving so much since the VHL's first years. A great in his time, but pushed out to the margins since.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

8. Alexander Valiq (S30-S37) @Koradek

300 goals (1^st), 698 points (5^th), 1,288 shots blocked (5^th)

1 Continental Cup (QUE)

Single-season powerplay goals record (30, S31)

 

No defenceman has ever had more of a unique selling point than Valiq – and now he has a much deserved trophy named after him as well. Valiq was king of the numbers, patrolling the line on the powerplay, scoring at will, and helping Quebec to the franchise's first championship just 5 seasons in. 300 goals is the standout stat, ahead of those who spent some time up front, and 90 whole goals ahead of the great Labatte, who had an extra season and played in a higher scoring era. Valiq has a ceiling due to the lack of individual awards, but he was no one-trick pony, as the second highest shots blocked for a Hall of Famer will testify.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

7. Black Velvet (S48-S53) @Higgins

701 points (4^th), 1,379 hits (34^th), 1.22 points-per-game (T-10^th)

5 Continental Cups (TOR 3x, HSK 2x)

Labatte x2, Beketov x1, Kanou x1

Black Velvet was the archetypal modern defenceman. As builds and TPE evolved such that a top defenceman had to be good at everything, that is exactly what Velvet was. On the flipside, the defencemen market became saturated and therefore it became much more difficult to stand out against rivals. As a result, Velvet's trophy cabinet is not the largest but his underlying numbers are among the best (even adjusting for his last season as a forward). Probably most important though is the team success, as Velvet was part of a threepeat and a repeat to start and end his career and is one of two players to win five championships – as a defenceman, it's hard to do much better than that.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

6. Jochen Walser (S5-S11) @marshall_222

617 points (19^th), 1,170 shots blocked (9^th), 1.23 points-per-game (9^th)

2 Continental Cups (TOR, DAV)

Top defenseman x3, playoff MVP x1

 

Recency bias often skews any conversation about the all-time best. Someone like Jochen Walser went from the original new Labatte to an afterthought when several newer defencemen came to the fore, but now that the dust has long settled on them all clearly holds his own. His 192 goals are the fourth highest among those who spent their entire careers on defence. Despite that, Walser still managed to put up strong defensive numbers in an era not known for that, as well as getting that elusive playoff MVP in a forward-dominated time and team. Fifty seasons on, still one of the best.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

5. Japinder Singh (S20-S27) @8Ovechkin8

751 points (2^nd), 580 assists (1^st), 1,241 shots blocked (6^th)

3 Continental Cups (DAV x2, HSK)

Most assists x1

 

How do you rank someone who was never crowned the league's best defenceman but is statistically probably its most well rounded ever? There was a time when a serious case to be made for Singh to be the best defenceman of all time and although he's been superceded by more modern players, a hint of a claim remains. Initially overlooked on the basis of stat padding on a lowly New York team, Singh then silenced the critics by performing just as well for two cup contenders and probably was closer to a Labatte than the records now show. Yet a man who was never considered the best of his time can only go so far up an all-time list, which is an achievement of its own.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

4. Sterling Labatte (S1-S9) @sterling

772 points (1^st), 1,070 shots blocked (18^th), 1.19 points-per-game (17^th)

3 Continental Cups (all with CGY)

Top Defenceman x3, Playoff MVP x2

 

I have to start with a disclaimer here: I kept coming back to this article over a couple of weeks and until the end hadn't ranked the top four. It was very much splitting hairs and in the end the man synonymous with great defence comes fourth on the list. Time has not been kind to the original Labatte in that the further away it is, the harder it is to compare his era with any other. The fact he was the only player to play nine full seasons can also be used against him, but even with that considered, he might still be the best there ever was. A whole career spent with Calgary, still possibly the greatest dynasty of all time, is also not a detriment as Labatte was the one constant and, as the playoff MVPs attest to, a leader, not a follower.

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

 

3. Daniel Braxton (S24-S31) @Jericho

666 points (8^th), 1,572 hits (19^th), 1,035 shots blocked (21^st)

4 Sterling Labatte Trophies

2 Brett Slobodzian Trophies

 

The New York Americans made the finals five times during Braxton's career. Just one championship in any of those years and his legacy would have been so different. That's not to say it's much worse as it is – Braxton was a force to be reckoned with and another defenceman with a legitimate claim for the #1 spot. The all-around play and second-most Labattes of all time are probably the main reason, but it's the Slobodzian Trophies which really stand out. As this was in the days that this was awarded to the MVP, Braxton effectively twice did something that only three other defencemen managed ever. A Campbell and a cup to go with it probably would have sealed the deal.

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

 

2. Ryan Sullivan (S29-S35) @Advantage

648 points (14^th), 1,768 hits (10^th), 1.29 points-per-game (T-4^th)

Labatte x3, Beketov x2

1 Continental Cup (CGY)

Defence is a position marked by points and hits above all, yet it's more often forwards who hit the records in the latter category. Ryan Sullivan is an anomaly in that he didn't sacrifice a high-scoring game by focusing on checking, resulting in very high figures in both, despite only playing seven seasons. Sullivan was a bit unlucky in that 3 Labattes could well have been 5 had it not been for some career seasons by rival defencemen, but he was consistent enough, for three different contenders, for that not to matter a huge deal. Playing for New York shortly after Braxton retired, Sullivan improved on the latter's legacy and it's fitting that only his immediate successor could beat him.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

1. Conner Low (S36-S42) @Smarch

1.32 points-per-game (1^st), 1,208 hits (46^th)

5 Sterling Labatte Trophies

3 Alexander Beketov Trophies

2 Continental Cups (both with NYA)

 

When it comes down to it, Conner Low played five seasons on defence and was crowned top defenceman every single time. You could chalk it up to lack of competition, but that would be doing Low a disservice – his numbers at the time matched any Labatte winner before and his scoring pace remains the highest of all defencemen ever, including those who spent time as forwards. Low also spent time up front, although that is not reflected in the stats above, and in truth that's the only reason there even is a debate in the first place – with two more seasons on the blue line he probably would have been untouchable. Instead, Low still finishes top, but at least leaves some hope for someone in the future.

 

Link to Hall of Fame article

 

Honourable mentions:

David Walcott (S19-S26)

If Walcott had combined his offensive and defensive play one more time other than his final, record-setting 145-point season, he would have certainly been on the list. Instead, a place in the top 15 is his. Walcott is one of the few defencemen who combined over 1,000 hits and 1,000 shot blocks with a 600+ career points – Braxton and Singh are two of the others. It's all the more impressive he generally played on the cup favourites. Given former commissioner's David Knight's success with defencemen (Night and Henman are two other Hall of Famers), at least one receiving a mention seems like just reward.

 

The Hamiltons (S45-S53)

The Hamilton brothers, Jeff and Phil, were less physical defencemen, better known for anticipating danger rather than reacting to it (although Phil did put up an impressive 1,674 hits). With two Labattes apiece, the Hamiltons are probably hardest done by missing out on this list, but are hurt by not having any eye-catching individual quality. Three championships between the two of them also seems lower than it could have been, but with both ending up in the top 15 highest-scoring defencemen of all-time they probably won't mind too much.

 

Ay Ay Ron (S56-S63)

A career that fizzled out so spectacularly is hard to put into context right now. Statistically, Ron was a Jake Wylde type – a two-way defenceman who took his time to get into the Hall of Fame. In truth, he was only really great for three seasons, but in those three seasons he grabbed two Valiqs and one Wylde, as well as a playoff MVP with an unfancied Helsinki. Ron was probably hit hardest by the four-season gap in the Labatte Trophy – as he'd have likely won three of them. Simultaneously, Ron will be an odd Hall of Fame entry and yet not far from the top 10 defencemen ever.... what could have been.

 

Fabio Jokinen (S52-S59) @jRuutu

640 points (16^th), 1,354 hits (36^th), 1,108 shots blocked (13^th)

1 Continental Cup (QUE)

Labatte x2, Wylde x1

The last player to be culled – he got so far that he even had his stats in, but sadly nothing really stood out when I realised I had 11 names instead of 10. Without a doubt though, Jokinen was the best of his generation – the embodiment of a modern defenceman proficient at everything from points to hits to shots blocked.

[Victor 10,534]

Doubles week for this week, plus gonna use for next week too.

[BOOM 8,408]

Great read. 

[Higgins 3,617]

I'll take the 5 cups and a cool name over any of those stupid BIAS VOTED AWARDS any day of the week.

 

Black Velvet #1

[Advantage 2,769]

I am ok with this.  

[Advantage 2,769]

Sullivan > Braxton clearly

 

Also was the GM of Mr. Connor Low Tho so I’m happy

[Victor 10,534]

1 hour ago, Advantage said:

Sullivan > Braxton clearly

 

Also was the GM of Mr. Connor Low Tho so I’m happy

I was almost swayed by the 2 Slobos though, pretty impressive all things considered.

[Advantage 2,769]

33 minutes ago, Victor said:

I was almost swayed by the 2 Slobos though, pretty impressive all things considered.

He also campaigned for those slobos but yes

[diamond_ace 3,106]

Kefka Palazzo S67-74

Oh sorry what was that? Great article as usual Victor

[Victor 10,534]

This was 1,870 words so another week yes please.

[Phil 5,014]

Yay for honourable mention!