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FACT: Chris Pronger Unquestionably Best All-Around Defenseman EVER. |
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The Blues will retire Chris Pronger’s #44, and I am about to convince you, beyond a shadow of doubt, that Chris Pronger is the best All-Around defenseman of all time.
#1. His impact on the ice was enormous. Taking three teams to the Stanley Cup Finals. He won with Anaheim, a very good team, but more than that, he brought two teams Philly and Edmonton to the Finals as well…neither had any business being there…without Pronger neither probably even makes the playoffs.
#2. Point production. In 1167 Games he put up 698 points. Ranking him 27th all-time among NHL Defensemen
#3. His 1590 PIM place him at #37 all time. His size and mean streak had forwards ALWAYS aware of his presence on the ice. He didn’t always hit clean of course. He was suspended 8 times in his career, but only for a total of 14 games. His first two suspensions were four games a piece, but he learned and each of his last 6 suspensions was only for a single game each time. I would argue these sort of suspensions were almost beneficial to Pronger and added to the fear forwards felt when he was out there.
#4. He quarterbacked power plays as well as anyone. His 53.6% of Power Play Points Percentage is 10th All-time.
#5. He won Olympic Gold with Canada in 2002 and 2010.
#6. He won every trophy possible, but perhaps his most impressive accomplishment was winning the Hart Trophy in 2007 for League MVP. No defenseman has won that since and none had won that since 1972 when Bobby Orr won it.
#7. He was an amazing locker room leader and just brought teams together. I saw this first hand in 2010 during the Finals when he was stealing the game pucks from the Blackhawks at the end of games. It became the perfect distraction for a team being outplayed by a way better team and took the media’s attention away from their play in the early games.
#8. But Perhaps the biggest compliment you can give Pronger is that EVERY team still, to this day, is looking for a “Chris Pronger” type of defenseman. That term is thrown around all the time, often quickly followed by, “but they just don’t exist. An intimidating six foot six, shutdown D-man who can run your power play, make an incredible first pass, skate like the wind, and bring a team to the next level in the playoffs….”
Sure Bobby Orr was an incredible scorer and skater, but he didn’t play in his own end or flat out scare opponents anywhere close to Pronger.
So all-around…Pronger is the best ever. Plain and simple.
Don’t you agree?
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