Best NHL Defenseman of all time Orr OR ? AND why?

Answer 1

Bobby Orr
- he revolutionized the game, prior to Orr, defencemen rarely rushed up the ice
- he was among the greatest pure skaters
- he had great vision on the ice matched only by Gretzky
- he has the highest minutes per game in the modern era
- 8 Norris Trophies in 9 years
- 2 Stanley Cup Rings
- The first NHL player to get $1,000,000 a year (Black Hawks, May 15, 1976)
- Canada Cup MVP (1976)
- Calder Trophy (1967)
- highest PPG by a defenceman and 4th highest in NHL history (Gretzky, Lemieux, and Bossy - notice they all played aftre he retired!)
- in the opinion of a lot of hockey experts (and myself as well), Orr is not only the game's greatest defenceman, but the game's greatest player period
- highest plus player in NHL history
- most shorthanded points by a defenceman in NHL history
- first defenceman in NHL history to record a regular season hat trick
- first defenceman in NHL history ro record a playoff hat trick
- still holds records for most assists and points in a season by a defenceman
- only defenceman to win the Art Ross Trophy (and he did it not once, but twice)

Answer 2

Saw Harvey. Saw Orr (even in junior). Saw Bourque. Loved all of them.

Orr by far.

Fact is Harvey spent nearly 200 games in the AHL during the last 5 years of his career. He never scored more than 7 goals in a season, and never once had more than 50 points in a year.

Orr won TWO scoring championships, ahead of forwards like Lafleur, Bobby Hull, Esposito, etc. It's never been done before or since by a defenceman. No defenceman has even come close. He topped 100 points in a season six times in 12 years, once reaching 139, and he also scored 46 goals in a season.

Orr was better than the other two in his own end by a long shot. The idea that Orr was all offense is a myth that has developed over the past two decades probably by people who never saw him play. He was one of the meanest dudes in front of his own net in his era, and he owned the corners in his own end.

Orr often led the league in plus-minus, one year hitting a +124 (that's not a typo).

He had over 900 points in just 650 games, twice Harvey's rate. In playoffs he had 92 points in just 74 games. In points per game he's just behind Gretzky and Lemieux and maybe a handful of other players. He would fight anybody. Was the best player in Canada Cup tournament in '76 ON ONE GOOD KNEE.

TROMBASS: Yeah, it was 9 out of 12 seasons he won the Best Defenceman trophy and he would have had at least two more but he missed too many games because of knee injuries.

There's much more .........

Answer 3

Doug Harvey - here is an exerpt from NHL.com

Doug Harvey -- Harvey is probably the best all-around defenseman of all time. The former Montreal Canadiens backliner, who played in the League from 1947 until 1969, could do it all on both sides of the puck. He not only was selected to the NHL All-Star team 11 consecutive times, he also won an impressive seven Norris Trophies in eight years from 1955 to 1962. The 20-year NHL veteran also won six Stanley Cup championships in his career. Harvey, who recorded 540 points in 1,113 games, was a huge piece of the Canadien squad that won five straight Cups from 1956 to 1960. One needs to look no further than to Hall of Famer Toe Blake's quote on Harvey to find out what type of player he was. "Doug Harvey was the greatest defenseman who ever played hockey bar none." Harvey was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1973.

Orr was the best ever on offense, but Harvey reolutionized the position long before Orr started playing. Harvey was an all-star on both sides of the blueline and considered by many to be the most underrated player of all time. Orr is a better overall hockey player, but not a better defenseman.

Answer 4

Orr. Best player ever. Saw him come down the ice with the puck, drive to the net, shoot, and then be back to break up the ensuing rush after the goalie save. Others might have been better at purely defense, but he was the complete player.

Answer 5

Bobby Orr is greatest player to ever play the game in my opinion. He controlled the game when he played. My favorite Bobby Orr stat is his carrer plus/minus was higher than total games played. That means his average per year was over 80.

Answer 6

Orr. He only played 12 seasons and won the Norris Trophy in more than half of those years.

The second best would be Wings captain (and back up back up goalie lol) Nick Lidstrom.

Answer 7

I never saw Harvey or Orr... so from 1975 on my list is...

Bourque
Coffey
Potvin
Langway
Lidstrom
Chelios
Stevens
McInnis
Leetch
Niedermayer
Pronger

Answer 8

Numba Fouwa Bobby Orr!!!!!!!!!!
To add to Lity's list - record for one season +/- +124. Unheard of.

Answer 9

Orr--Best offensive defensman ever to play the game.

Borque--Best defensive defenseman ever to play the game.

Lidstrom--Best all-around defenseman ever to play the game.

My opinions.

Answer 10

Ronnie, Ray Bourque, are you kidding me.
He couldn't even make the top 20.
Take a look at his plus_ minus over his career.

Best HOCKEY player ever, shoot, skate, score, fight. ORR
Not a one dimensional player who I will not name.