No.
I'm somewhat sympathetic to the "if X is in, then ..." argument, because Steve Larmer certainly would not be the worst player of his generation in the HHOF. Larmer's peak offensive point production is easily above both Glenn Anderson and Lanny McDonald, and very very comparable with Joe Mullen and, I would add, Dino Ciccarelli. Others did score more goals, but if there is reason to believe Larmer's defensive value was significantly higher than these comparables then a case could be made that he's the best of the group.
But I would tend to say that the problem is not that Steve Larmer should be in because he's better than at least a few of these guys; the problem is that none of them should be in.
If you adjust the numbers for the context of their scoring eras, Keith Freakin' Tkachuk comes out, fairly significantly, ahead of all five guys listed above in terms of his peak offensive value. Pierre Turgeon crushes them, too. Vincent Damphousse is a closer comparable to Larmer and co. in terms of the adjusted offensive numbers.
Again, I'm somewhat sympathetic because I think Larmer was a better player than some of his contemporaries in the Hall (particularly Anderson, McDonald, and of course Clark Gillies), and it's not fair that they should get in when Larmer was the better player.
But I also don't think that, just because the Hall made some stupid decisions and let in a few players clearly below the generally accepted Hall standard, they now have to let in anyone who clears that low benchmark. It's a travesty that Anderson is in, but if you use him as a comparable then Doug Weight is a Hall of Famer and Bill Guerin has an argument. If Clark Gillies is your comparable, then just about anyone good enough to play on a first line for more than a couple of years is a Hall of Famer.
A player today with Larmer's relative level of offensive production (adjusted for era) would not have Hall of Fame numbers. Among current players, Thomas Vanek would be a good comparable in terms of point production.
- Sven22
A travesty that Glenn Anderson's IN ?????????? Guess you didn't watch any hockey in the 80's. Anderson was $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$, especially in the playoffs.
