Doug Harvey is arguably the greatest defenseman to ever play hockey. I chose him as my number 2 all-time best blue-liner for the Montreal Canadiens because of the numerous individual honors he received while playing for the team between 1947-1961.
You’ll recall that during that era, defensemen rarely ventured past center ice and putting up points was a rarity. Fortunately for the Habs, Harvey had one of the most impressive skating strides combined with speed and vision. He excelled at creating plays and helping his team transition out of his zone thanks especially to his excellent passing ability. The 5’11… 190-pounder played in 890 regular season games and amassed 447 points. In his playoff appearances, he posted 67 points in 123 games. In 1958 and 1959, he played in 21 postseason games and and had 23 points.
Harvey would be a part of 6 Stanley Cup victories between 1953 and 1960. Moreover, he won the Norris Trophy in 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1960 and 1961. Estranged from his organization for publicly denouncing the way teams essentially “owned… players for the duration of their contracts, he was traded to the New York Rangers. He was a pioneer in shaping the first hints of a players’ association, and was therefore respected by his peers. He was subsequently awarded another Norris Trophy in New York, and Bobby Orr would be the only defender to ever win more trophies than Harvey.
He commanded the love of his teammates by consistently opting to selflessly pass the puck despite having numerous scoring chances himself. Many had financial bonuses attached to a goals quota, and Harvey felt that he should do his part in helping his friends earn every single dollar they could during an era where players were shortchanged compared to the millions of dollars team owners earned.
Harvey would also be inadvertently instrumental in changing the man-advantage formula. During that time period, a player would sit in the box for the entire duration of the penalty, even if a goal was scored by the opponents. Playing on one of the most dangerous power plays in the history of the game, there were times where his unit would score more than two goals in the span of two minutes, and the NHL would therefore change the rules and a penalized player could leave the box if his team conceded a goal.
He would be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1973, and his #2 jersey was retired in 1985 at the Forum.