Zdeno Chara is now a Hockey Hall of Famer, but is he a top-10 NHL defenseman of all-time?
Zdeno Chara got his flowers this past weekend as one of the newest members of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
An intriguing question coming out of the Hall of Fame induction celebration is where Chara sits in a ranking of the best NHL blueliners of all-time. And while it’s true Chara should be in the conversation as an all-time great, this writer wouldn’t put Chara among the top 10 D-men in hockey history.
To put Chara in the top 10, you’d have to remove an icon from the list. Would you say Chara was a better defenseman than Nicklas Lidstrom? No. Would you say he was better than Bobby Orr, Denis Potvin or Ray Bourque? No. What about Paul Coffey, Doug Harvey, Larry Robinson, Chris Chelios, Chris Pronger or Scott Stevens? No, we’d put Chara behind each of them in our ranking.
Now, Chara would be in the discussion for the top 15 of all-time.
That next group of players would include stars like Al MacInnis, Brian Leetch, Scott Niedermayer and Brad Park.
You also have to factor in the top blueliners today – specifically, with developing defense icons Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes and Victor Hedman all deserving of mention as an all-time great. But we’ll leave them out of our top 15 for now and slot them into the debate when their playing careers are complete.
Regardless, Chara’s impact is considerable. His longevity stands out above all defensemen, playing the most regular-season games of any blueliner, with 1,680, and skating in 200 playoff matches as well. His fearsome physical style of play, with 2,085 penalty minutes in his career and 2,455 hits and 1,752 blocked shots since 2005-06, made him extremely difficult to play against. He was no slouch on offense, either, recording three 50-point campaigns and 10 seasons of at least 10 goals.
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Please believe that not including Chara in our top-10 group of all-time great defensemen is any sort of criticism of him. This is a Stanley Cup champion, a Norris Trophy winner and a member of the NHL’s all-decade team in 2009.
Chara embraced the challenges that came with being named captain of the Boston Bruins. His leadership skills and ability to make a difference at both ends of the ice were some of the bigger reasons he flourished. And he was named to the league’s first all-star team three times and the second all-star squad four times. That kind of consistency was Chara’s hallmark, and he also stands out as a pioneer of sorts for players with his Slovakian heritage.
However, when you compare Chara with the aforementioned defensemen, you feel that he deserves to be in that second tier of all-time great D-men. That’s no slight on Chara; instead, it’s a recognition that very few blueliners rise to the very top of the profession, and those in the top three at their position are extra-special talents. Chara was a special talent, but he isn’t going to be on the Mt. Rushmore of iconic defensemen.
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