Larry Robinson deserves to make the list. He had a couple fights early on in his carreer and word got around the league. So feared, he seldom had to fight for the rest of his career. Pointing and stabbing his index finger into opponents' chests was enough to calm anyone down
Larry Robinson. He could do everything, great defence, great offence, crushing body checks and he single handedly ended up right of terror of the Broad Street Bullies by toying with Dave "the Hammer" Schultz as if he was a little kid.
He (Larry Robinson) played for the Nova Scotia Voyageurs before he made Montreal. I was treated as a kid in Halifax when Larry and Terry O'Reilly went at it. Terry was already trying to engage a Voyageur player when Larry waved his teammate off and stepped in. My first in person Pro Hockey tilt. Larry won the fight and deserves to be rated higher than O'Reilly.
This is the Top 6, not the Top 50. Probert couldn't begin to compete with Howe with 1850 points for Howe (NOBODY wanted to go into a corner with Mr. Elbows!) or Messier with 1887 points and 6 Stanley Cups. Supposedly great numbes scoring don't cut it in this company!
Probert only put up any numbers when he is on a line with yzerman. He was the greatest enforcer of all time, but as an actual hockey player he was only mediocre.
I saw Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay play many times at Olympia Stadium. Gordie was incredible to watch. He used to cut his stick handle shorter so it was easier to handle the stick with one hand. I saw him hold off a defender with one arm, stick handle the puck past other players and then fire the puck past the goalie one-handed in a number of games. He made it look so effortless that it was easy to overlook the subtle moves he was making.
I didn't see Ted Lindsay he retired before I was born but I did see Gordie Howe play for the Red Wings and later with his sons in Hartford. They say Howe was one of the strongest players to play the game.
You forgot Bobby Orr, maybe the most talented Hockey player ever and nobody wanted to mess with him. Too bad his kness didn't last , would have broken many more records.
Indeed just imagine what he would have done had he had a long career. And he was one of the nicest and humble personalities off the ice. Red Fisher who was a columnist for the Montreal Gazette who also saw Maurice Richard play said that Orr was the greatest player he ever saw.
Gordie Howe was a specimen of strength long before steroids became prevalent in sports. And, he was ambidextrous, known to switch hands to score a goal. For a goalie that would mess your head up pretty well. Off the ice one of the humblest people I'd ever met. And he was just so simple of a man.
@@MrJett1971 Even todays juiced up egocentrics can't compete with that man. And his humility, second to none . A great family man, husband and citizen.
Stan was my favourite player ... but Stan couldnt fight his way out of a paper bag ... he was a STICK MAN that carved up a lot of people . AND ... i found out much later he was not a nice guy ... he was surly and sarcastic as hell , not nice to fans . Referees hated him due to his beig a jack ass ... and I was his biggest fan till I got older and saw he was justa jerk .
If you want to know just what a beast Tocchet was, look up the Canada Cup 1987 series. Just reviewed it the other day and was disappointed how I had forgotten how great he was in that series.
I met Gordie on three different occasions, he was won of the nicest person you’ll ever have met, great guy! Hell they name a bridge between Canada and Detroit after him!
Interesting fact about those seasons in Chicago for Terrible Ted. He was traded by Red Wings ownership as punishment for his leading role in trying to get the NHLPA off the ground.
I was 11 years old and Lindsay was my favorite player. I hated the red wings for years after that. The Lions did the same thing to me when they traded Bobby Layne. Worst trades in Detroit sports history.
@@randyfromthepeg4994 Not exactly as Howe was not the confrontational type Howe's wife Colleen being better at looking after financial matters made sure the Red Wing Organization didn't take advantage of her husband when it came to salary negociations.
What else can you say about Gordie Howe that hasn't been said already. That goes for Ted Lindsay too, so glad I got to meet those absolute legends and shake their hands.
My first professional hockey game I saw was with the Halifax Voyageurs (IMSMC later the Nova Scotia Voyageurs). Larry Robinson and Terry O'Reilly have a historic fight, Robinson stepping in to protect another player. O'Reilly was as tough as they come, and no liability on the offensive sheet.
He’s the only player to goal score while sliding on his rear toward the net, before reaching the goalie so the goalie couldn’t write it off due to approaching ice blades,
Most feared.... so, excellent player and fearsome physical presence. Let's see.... all time line. Lw Clark Gillies, Rw Rick Tocchet C Eric Lindros. d-men Behn Wilson, Larry Robinson. 1 goalie Billy Smith.
Having Wendel Clark on your list over Bobby Hull or Rocket Richard to name just a few truly feared players is pretty sad . In my opinion your criteria for feared is all askew.
I spent an afternoon with Gordie Howe in the Hartford Civic Center after he retired A perfect gentleman. His daughter-in-law was expecting a baby. He was a proud grandpa to be. Pure class. I'm glad he spent time with the whalers, what a specimen of pure resilience 😊
My father had a brief correspondence with Ted Lindsay via personal letters in the 1990's. He seemed like a chill guy. He always made time for fans in his post playing days and I always admire when pro athletes do that.
Have to agree with this entire list! I'm old enough to have seen Terrible Ted and Gordie Howe play heaps, and was in Canada long enough to see Terry O'Reilly play. Moved to NZ before I had a chance to see Clark or Messier, but got the Hockey News mailed to me for years before the Internet, and certainly couldn't disagree with their selection, especially Messier. The ones on this list were not only able to take you apart physically, but are legendary for their other skills, like scoring! Great list, mate!
Gordie and Ted Lindsay made a pointe to sign autographs clearly, neatly and legible. Unlike the unreadable chicken scratch today's athletes scribble. They knew these kids, and adults,would treasure their signatures for a lifetime. And yes,I still have mine from l970.
Seriously ... based on the same criteria ... how about some Habs ... Maurice "the Rocket" Richard, his brother Henri Richard [11 Stanly Cups], John Ferguson, Serge Savard, Chis Chelios and Larry Robinson.
I recall being at a Boston / Rangers game , I`m thinking it was the late 70`s in NYC. A fan tosses a beer on a Boston player.....off goes O`Reilly right up over the glass and he gets a hold of a guy,. He has him in a head lock & is beating the guy over the head with his own shoe....not a man to piss-off
Wow you got Eddie Shore! Two more stories about him I read in Hockey Digest. Once in the Boston garden, he was up on a very high ladder, changing lights at the top of the stadium, and the ladder fell He calmly hung there by the rafter until someone came along, and he asked them to put the ladder back up. and he once missed a flight to Montréal and was going to miss the game, but he got in his car and drove through a snowstorm. His windshield wipers broke, so he hung out the side window and cleaned the snow off the windshield as he went along. He got there the next stage just before the game played at scored the only goal to win the game. ❤
Its pretty crazy Wendel Clark injured his back badly in his 3rd or 4th season too and still played hard. He says he was doing 3 hours a day on a therapy table from 1991 til he retired.
Gordie was well known as a dirty player, and I saw that live in the 50's. In hose years there was only 3 cameras following the game, but at the other end of the rink things were happening... ask the mouth of the defense players or their ribs ...
What makes you think Richard comes close to any of these guys? Richard was neither a cheap shot artist nor a goon. Now if this list was for passionate players, then Richard would be numbers 1, 2, and 3.
@@andrewgodo9799 Richard was able to whip pretty much all the goons during his career. Only Howe and Lindsay could fight with Richard. Except those two, most guys either picked fights with Richard just to get him off the ice so Richard would score goals against him. It was a fight with Boston's Hal Laycoe and punching a linesman that led to the Richard Riot. If Richard wasn't one of the three baddest guys along with Howe and Lindsay, I can't see why not.
THE BEST WINNERS WIN CUPS AND .... the ROCKET ... HAD LESS THAN 1/2 OF THE NATURAL TALENT OF HOWE ... HOWE HAS LESS THAN 1/2 OF THE DRIVE THAT ROCKET HAD . ROCKET SCORED 6 OVERTIME GOALS ...>>>>>>>>>> GORDIE HAD >>> ZERO O T GOALS !! THAT IS JUST ONE OF MANY STATS THAT ROCKET HAD OVER HOWE IN A CLUTCH GAME I WOULD CHOSE ROCKET OVER GORDIE EVERY TIME ... WHEN THE MONEY WAS ON THE LINE ... ROCKET HAD IT ALL OVER HOWE ... * THAT'S A LEADER * . ROCKET HAD 8 CUPS ... GORDIE HAD ONLY 4 . FOR PLAYOFF S ROCKET HAS IT ALLLL OVER HOWE ... FOR THAT MATTER .. *.HENRI " RICHARD ACCOMPLISHED MORE PLAYOFF SUCCESS THAN HOWE . IN A CLOSE PAYOFF GAME .. HENRI WAS AS GOOD A LEADER AS ROCKET WAS >>> AND BOTH HE AND ROCKET WERE bETTER LEADERS THAN HOWE ... just add up all the cups to see what I mean... Rocket had 8 cups three cup winners Henri had 11 cups .... 2 cup winners Gordie had zeero cup winners the prosecution rests your honor. - case closed
@@andrewgodo9799 HEY ANDREW ....... SEE ABOVE ABOUT HOWE AND ROCKET . AS FOR HE BEST LEADER ???? HENRI HAS 11 CUPS TWO OT CUP WINNERS ... ROCKET HAD 8 CUPS ... 6 O T GOALS ..... 3 CUP WINNERS ... 21 PLAYOFF HAT TRICKS 7 SERIES WINNERS .. 82 PLayoff goals that was not broekn for 30 years >>>> when playoffs wer onlt maz of 14 games .. AS FOR LEADERS ?????????? I TAKE EITHER RICHARD BROTHERS OVER HOWE IN A HEARTBEAT .... IF YOU WANT TO WIN ... TAKE THE RICHARDS OVER HOWE IN A HEARTBEAT ... 19 CUPS BETWEEN THEM ...... GORDIE WHO ????? HAS ONLY 4
Interesting list. Could never narrow one down to just six. Clark Gillies should DEFINITELY be on it. He and Larry Robinson---who should also be on this list---are both hall of famers smart players went nowhere near. Ask Dave Schultz about Gillies,ask O'Reilly about him,ask just about anyone dumb enough to rattle his cage or that of Robinson. I'm 61 and remember those days well. And what about hall of famer Red Horner,the Leaf who kocked out Shore with one punch after the former had almost killed Ace Bailey with a cheap shot from behind? Anyway,as a Leaf fan it's nice to see Wendel Clark on this list. If he hadn't been injured for probably half his career,at least with Toronto,I think he could have ended up in the hall.
@mike196212 - Clark Gillies was some kind of tough, wasn't he? "Big Bird," a.k.a. Larry Robinson, too... I really enjoyed seeing Robinson beat the stuffing out of Dave Schultz of the Flyers... he had it coming.... For Hawks fans, Bob Probert is justifiably famous as one of the toughest men ever to play in the NHL and one of the toughest fighters, too. And as I mentioned in another post, Tim Horton (Maple Leafs, Sabres) was known not only for his Hall-of-Fame caliber play as a defensemen, but perhaps the strongest man ever to play in the National Hockey League. Playing when he did, alongside Gordie Howe and Bobby Hull, themselves two of the strongest ever to play the game - that is some accomplishment. Horton didn't get into fights once his reputation spread. You don't pull on superman's cape...
1. Scott Stevens 2. Larry Robinson 3. John Wensink 4. Zdeno Chara 5. Eddie Shore 6. Wendel Clark 7. Alex Ovechkin 8. Cam Neely 9. Gordie Howe 10. Maurice Richard In my opinion, a feared player would be a threat in a fight as well as giving solid open ice hits. Also, that player should also be a good offensive or defensive player. Messier was just a dirty player and a pu**y. Have a look at the footage out there. Larry Robinson outed him...
Any NHL list with 'fear' in it has to include Scott Stevens or its a failed list - sorry. Hardest open ice hitter in NHL history.. period. Wasn't afraid to scrap, even against bigger players. Just a stud all around.
Going to point out that three of the six named in this video are from Saskatchewan. Gordie (Floral, SK), Eddie Shore (Ft. Qu'Appelle), Wendal Clark (Kelvington)
Hall of Fame defenseman Tim Horton may be best-known today as the moniker of the successful chain of donut & coffee shops in Canada and northern U.S. - but in his day, he was something special. Horton was the member of Stanley Cup winning teams while on the Toronto Maple Leafs, and later played for the Buffalo Sabres at the time of his death in a motor vehicle accident in February 1974. Although he was not exceptionally large or heavy, Horton was legendary for his other-worldly strength. Horton didn't get into fights a lot because of this; no one wanted to wind up in one of his bone-crushing bear hugs. That's what Horton did to guys who took liberties with him or a teammate; he'd grab 'em in the corner or whatever and just start crushing them until they couldn't breath and stopped resisting. Cam Neely once tried to "walk" him, i.e., fake him out - but instead he found himself airborne off of his skates. Horton had picked him up - with one arm! "Don't do that sonny!" Horton said, and put him down. Horton played a prank on a team-mate once by lifting one of those 400-lb. concrete traffic barriers by himself, unaided, and barricading the guy's car or whatever. Just picked it up like a sack of groceries. Horton was known as the strongest man in the league during the heydays of Gordie Howe and Bobby Hull, themselves two of the strongest men ever to lace up skates. That's how impressive he was.
Messier was the biggest coward who carried the biggest stick! He is the blindside champion of all time. When a tough guy tried to stand up to the coward Messier would grip his stick like a bat threatening the player with it. He is the one guy who never in his career stood face to face with a tough opponent…ha always turtles or gets ready to swing his stick. Nobody was afraid of him as a tough player…only as a cheap shot chicken shiite.
Clarke although one of my favs was dirty af. Remember what he did to that Russian players ankle in the exhibition game. He was the guy that started fights and let his teammates finish them.
O'Reilly was a great all around player, talented and tough. As a Leaf's fan I hated to see Wendel Clarke get traded but it brought the Leafs this guy named Mats Sundin. What a great player to watch. Eddie Shore, great skater and mean. Immortalized in the movie Slap Shot (Old Time Hockey). Ted Lindsey known for his toughness. He was not big but would never back down. In the meantime he racked up points and was part of 4 Stanley Cup Championships I believe. Gordie Howe (Mr Hockey).
Not saying anyone should be taken off this list but if one were to add a player to it the best candidate might be Newsy Lalonde. He played only 5 seasons in the NHL because there was no NHL through most of his career and because he also played for a few years in a rival league to the NHL at a time when the NHL was not the only top level league. Not sure that we should hold the era of his playing career against him. He averaged well over a goal a game in top level leagues, likely the best scorer until the Rocket came along. Also, even though it was hard to be credited with an assist in his day he is third in NHL history in points per game at 1.6667 (and the NHL didn't even exist till he was 30 so he was not a young man then). Onky Lemieux and Gretzky are ahead of him. Plus he apparently had a mean streak and was not shy about using violence on the ice. In one league he had 359 penalty minutes in only 108 games. So even though he was like Ted Lindsey not a big man he was still very much feared both for his scoring and for his fisticuffs and other rough activity. Other honourable mentions: Sprague Cleghorn, Eric Lindros, Cam Neely, Zedeno Chara, Tim Horton (though it was more his strength than dirty play or fighting - Gordie Howe said it was hard to play against Horton because he was so strong).
The Leafs need a player like Wendel Clark again. Mental and physical toughness with a scoring touch. He would put the fear of god into the current players.
100 PIM meant absoutely nothing in the 80'S. Scott Stevens, Chris Pronger, Eric Lindros, Ulf Samuelsson and Rick Tocchet could have been on that list too
This is just a who’s feared through popularity. There are a few little known players who people were shit scared of and in my opinion, Nick Fotiu was the worst. He fought a few times his rookie year and a little his second year but very little after that. He was truly a feared man who didn’t even like to fight unless pissed off. He had a long fuse and only protected teammates. Rumour has it even Probert avoided him when Fotiu approached to fight him, I’ve seen the video, Probert keeps his gloves off, he broke a bone in Craig Coxe face and coxe went toe to toe with Probert and Tim Hunter claims he could hear the punch from the bench. They say he was to nice a guy to be an all-time goon and never had high penalty minutes. He mauled Paul Holmgren, rocked Behn Wilson and Gillies and Semenko just stayed away. Never seen him get hurt or dropped in a fight and when he had a couple of draws it was guys who were on top of him along the boards and dropped the gloves before him and held on with little rabbit punches to the side and back of his head, during these minor scurmish he seemed completely uninterested and never got hurt. In my opinion, definitely the toughest and best fighter I ever saw and I watched everyone through the 70’s and 80’s and early 90’s. It was reported he was the New York City golden gloves champion boxer before joining the NHL, which would explain his toughness and power when he wanted to really fight, which wasn’t often.
There is a story in one of the canada/Russia hockey series that a Russian player saw an old man in the corner and he went in there to take the puck away. Came out holding his ribs.
I agree with all except Howe. He doesn't belong in this video. Howe's entire fighting rep comes from that one Fontinato fight and nothing else. In the 50s (when Howe got into 95% of his career fights), he took some bad beatings in fights from Fern Flaman and Larry Cahan and others. Funny how Gordie's fans never discuss his losses. He also lost fights to Bill Ezinicki, Fred Shero and Noel Picard. The biggest joke is the "Gordie Howe Hat Trick" as he only had one in his entire career! Rick Tocchet had 18.... 18!!! Howe could have had more of these "Hat Tricks", but around 1960, Howe stopped dropping the gloves and started using his stick instead. Even Howe's son Marty ridiculed the statement "Gordie Howe Hat Trick" when he commented... “The Gordie Howe hat trick should really be a goal, an assist, and a cross-check to the face,” he told Luke Fox of Sportsnet. “That might be more accurate.” I think Marty knew his dad better than anyone and he was sure right about this.
It's funny that when you simply mention documented accurate facts about Howe, the Howe fans say you hate him. Why is that? Everything I stated is accurate and documented, so where does "hate" enter into this? And what about that statement from Howe's son, Marty? Do you think Marty hated his dad too? Please give me one fact that I stated that isn't accurate? @@larryjoe1357
@@larryjoe1357 Could you please explain where "hate" or even "dislike" comes into this? Everything I stated in my comment is fact, and all the stats and information I stated are accurate and documented. How are accurate and documented facts hateful? And what about the statement by Gordie's son? Do you think Marty hates his dad? No... just like my statements, Marty is simply setting the record straight by making an accurate statement. Or do you think maybe Gordie did a "terrible thing" to Marty? Please show me what parts of my comments (or Marty's comments) were inaccurate. It's funny that Howe fans love the hyped up exaggerated statements about him,. but dislike it when honest accurate facts are posted.
I GUESS it about all around playing but the best fighter i ever saw was John Ferguson who in the 19 71 Stanley cup series went around Bobby Orr to score a game winner
Agree with all of them. Little known conversation in hockey is teams feared the Bob Clark Flyers not just for fighting but the body checking. They hit anything that moved and most teams hated it. Montreal Solution was Bob Gainey and Larry Robinson who hit them back harder. And best them in both ways...
Larry Robinson deserves to make the list. He had a couple fights early on in his carreer and word got around the league. So feared, he seldom had to fight for the rest of his career. Pointing and stabbing his index finger into opponents' chests was enough to calm anyone down
Larry Robinson. He could do everything, great defence, great offence, crushing body checks and he single handedly ended up right of terror of the Broad Street Bullies by toying with Dave "the Hammer" Schultz as if he was a little kid.
and had more cups than anyone on the list.
He (Larry Robinson) played for the Nova Scotia Voyageurs before he made Montreal. I was treated as a kid in Halifax when Larry and Terry O'Reilly went at it. Terry was already trying to engage a Voyageur player when Larry waved his teammate off and stepped in. My first in person Pro Hockey tilt. Larry won the fight and deserves to be rated higher than O'Reilly.
Messier was dirty! The hit to the face of Modano when play has ended and Modano was looking the other way.
I would’ve thought that bob probert would be in there as he’s considered the best enforcer of all time and showed great numbers scoring
This is the Top 6, not the Top 50. Probert couldn't begin to compete with Howe with 1850 points for Howe (NOBODY wanted to go into a corner with Mr. Elbows!) or Messier with 1887 points and 6 Stanley Cups. Supposedly great numbes scoring don't cut it in this company!
Given the direction the video went the title is just clickbait.
while yes, he cant really be mentioned in the same breath as Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay.
This is his opinion … Probert was as very intimidating and people where afraid of him
Probert only put up any numbers when he is on a line with yzerman. He was the greatest enforcer of all time, but as an actual hockey player he was only mediocre.
I saw Gordie Howe and Ted Lindsay play many times at Olympia Stadium. Gordie was incredible to watch. He used to cut his stick handle shorter so it was easier to handle the stick with one hand. I saw him hold off a defender with one arm, stick handle the puck past other players and then fire the puck past the goalie one-handed in a number of games. He made it look so effortless that it was easy to overlook the subtle moves he was making.
He also used that stick profusely in the ribs of oponants...
Gordie's wrist shot went over 100 mph.
I didn't see Ted Lindsay he retired before I was born but I did see Gordie Howe play for the Red Wings and later with his sons in Hartford. They say Howe was one of the strongest players to play the game.
You wouldn't want to fight him. He's too strong.
You forgot Bobby Orr, maybe the most talented Hockey player ever and nobody wanted to mess with him. Too bad his kness didn't last , would have broken many more records.
Indeed just imagine what he would have done had he had a long career. And he was one of the nicest and humble personalities off the ice. Red Fisher who was a columnist for the Montreal Gazette who also saw Maurice Richard play said that Orr was the greatest player he ever saw.
He was.
Gordie Howe was a specimen of strength long before steroids became prevalent in sports. And, he was ambidextrous, known to switch hands to score a goal. For a goalie that would mess your head up pretty well.
Off the ice one of the humblest people I'd ever met. And he was just so simple of a man.
Bobby Hull as well
@@MrErnieHanks
Totally different guy, both on & off the ice...do some homework❓️
🇨🇦
That famous picture of him sitting in a rowboat proves it. Muscle on muscle.
@@MrJett1971 Even todays juiced up egocentrics can't compete with that man. And his humility, second to none . A great family man, husband and citizen.
@@loilt5091 bud, did you take your meds? No shit they're different people, my point being they were both pyshical specimens
Stan makita. Feared in the NHL until his very own mother asked him to tone it down. Tough as nails and a long career.
Stan was my favourite player ... but Stan couldnt fight his way out of a paper bag ... he was a STICK MAN that carved up a lot of people . AND ... i found out much later he was not a nice guy ... he was surly and sarcastic as hell , not nice to fans . Referees hated him due to his beig a jack ass
... and I was his biggest fan till I got older and saw he was justa jerk .
Gordie Howe only had two Gordie Howe Hat Tricks during his career.
Rick Tocchet has 18 and is the leader in that list.
If you want to know just what a beast Tocchet was, look up the Canada Cup 1987 series. Just reviewed it the other day and was disappointed how I had forgotten how great he was in that series.
Yayy Ricky! Let's hear it for the Scarborough boy!
Good to know. People were Afraid of Mr. Hockey
They were afraid of his stick, not his fists.@@JamesHadfield-v3t
Right! It should be called "The Rick Tocchet Hat Trick."
I met Gordie on three different occasions, he was won of the nicest person you’ll ever have met, great guy! Hell they name a bridge between Canada and Detroit after him!
Interesting fact about those seasons in Chicago for Terrible Ted. He was traded by Red Wings ownership as punishment for his leading role in trying to get the NHLPA off the ground.
and Howe kissed up to the owners
I was 11 years old and Lindsay was my favorite player. I hated the red wings for years after that. The Lions did the same thing to me when they traded Bobby Layne. Worst trades in Detroit sports history.
@@randyfromthepeg4994 Not exactly as Howe was not the confrontational type Howe's wife Colleen being better at looking after financial matters made sure the Red Wing Organization didn't take advantage of her husband when it came to salary negociations.
@@oldgordo61 yes she did, but Ted Lindsay asked Gordie to sign up and help lead a players union, and he refused
What else can you say about Gordie Howe that hasn't been said already. That goes for Ted Lindsay too, so glad I got to meet those absolute legends and shake their hands.
Dang you must be very old.
⁸76p78pp⁷ì⁸⁹ò
You’re a lucky man memories like that last a lifetime
both times i met them they were absolutely amazing
@@Samsquamsh i am in my early twenties and have met them both twice
Where's Larry " Big Bird" Robinson? He went at it with O'Reilly on many occasions, put Messier in his place and beat the crap out of Dave Schultz.
agreed
Bobby Hull , The Golden Jet was a true tough guy , seldom had to show it but when he did ………..
Yea Hull was great at beating up his wives
Maurice (Rocket) Richard deserves at least a call out.
Terry O’Reilly, great to finally see him getting noticed
My first professional hockey game I saw was with the Halifax Voyageurs (IMSMC later the Nova Scotia Voyageurs). Larry Robinson and Terry O'Reilly have a historic fight, Robinson stepping in to protect another player. O'Reilly was as tough as they come, and no liability on the offensive sheet.
He’s the only player to goal score while sliding on his rear toward the net, before reaching the goalie so the goalie couldn’t write it off due to approaching ice blades,
Most feared.... so, excellent player and fearsome physical presence. Let's see.... all time line.
Lw Clark Gillies, Rw Rick Tocchet C Eric Lindros. d-men Behn Wilson, Larry Robinson. 1 goalie Billy Smith.
Didn't you forget Bobby Orr
scott stevens
I used to watch Wayne Cashman,Johnny " Pie Face" Mc'Kenzie,Dave Schultz being amongst my favorite players.
Having Wendel Clark on your list over Bobby Hull or Rocket Richard to name just a few truly feared players is pretty sad . In my opinion your criteria for feared is all askew.
I spent an afternoon with Gordie Howe in the Hartford Civic Center after he retired
A perfect gentleman. His daughter-in-law was expecting a baby. He was a proud grandpa to be. Pure class. I'm glad he spent time with the whalers, what a specimen of pure resilience 😊
Would add Scott Stevens here. That dude ruined careers with his dirty play and yet always walked away....
Konstantinov put fear in opponents so much so they wouldn't pass the puck near him. Such a great player but career cut way way too short!
Good choices.
Clark Gillies has to be in the top 10.
My father had a brief correspondence with Ted Lindsay via personal letters in the 1990's. He seemed like a chill guy. He always made time for fans in his post playing days and I always admire when pro athletes do that.
Have to agree with this entire list! I'm old enough to have seen Terrible Ted and Gordie Howe play heaps, and was in Canada long enough to see Terry O'Reilly play. Moved to NZ before I had a chance to see Clark or Messier, but got the Hockey News mailed to me for years before the Internet, and certainly couldn't disagree with their selection, especially Messier. The ones on this list were not only able to take you apart physically, but are legendary for their other skills, like scoring! Great list, mate!
No way that Probert should be omitted from a list like this one.
#1 or #2
or scott stevens
"Grodie" was the lesser known of the Howe brothers.
Haha. Good one! I noticed the misspelling too
Gordie and Ted Lindsay made a pointe to sign autographs clearly, neatly and legible. Unlike the unreadable chicken scratch today's athletes scribble. They knew these kids, and adults,would treasure their signatures for a lifetime. And yes,I still have mine from l970.
Seriously ... based on the same criteria ... how about some Habs ... Maurice "the Rocket" Richard, his brother Henri Richard [11 Stanly Cups], John Ferguson, Serge Savard, Chis Chelios and Larry Robinson.
Brendan Shanahan was no slouch either.
Awesome to watch the Oreilly game...crazy taz
You are awesome to mention Terry O Reilly , hockey player
I recall being at a Boston / Rangers game , I`m thinking it was the late 70`s in NYC. A fan tosses a beer on a Boston player.....off goes O`Reilly right up over the glass and he gets a hold of a guy,. He has him in a head lock & is beating the guy over the head with his own shoe....not a man to piss-off
I thought that was Mike Milbury?
Production line. Howe Lindsey and Able. Then Ullman took over Able's spot.
Wow you got Eddie Shore!
Two more stories about him I read in Hockey Digest.
Once in the Boston garden, he was up on a very high ladder, changing lights at the top of the stadium, and the ladder fell He calmly hung there by the rafter until someone came along, and he asked them to put the ladder back up.
and he once missed a flight to Montréal and was going to miss the game, but he got in his car and drove through a snowstorm. His windshield wipers broke, so he hung out the side window and cleaned the snow off the windshield as he went along. He got there the next stage just before the game played at scored the only goal to win the game. ❤
I'm a 80s Calgarian kid and even I'll admit Messier had skills.
Its pretty crazy Wendel Clark injured his back badly in his 3rd or 4th season too and still played hard. He says he was doing 3 hours a day on a therapy table from 1991 til he retired.
Had to have been something cause he played a game in Winnipeg it wasn't even the same guy never threw a hit all game
Probert should be one since he was the best ever enforcer of all time in the nhl. I get no awards or cups but this is the most feared players WTF?????
What about Maurice "Rocket" Richard who back in the day was a rival to Gordie Howe both in the physical play and goal scoring department.
Gordie was well known as a dirty player, and I saw that live in the 50's. In hose years there was only 3 cameras following the game, but at the other end of the rink things were happening... ask the mouth of the defense players or their ribs ...
What makes you think Richard comes close to any of these guys? Richard was neither a cheap shot artist nor a goon. Now if this list was for passionate players, then Richard would be numbers 1, 2, and 3.
@@andrewgodo9799 Richard was able to whip pretty much all the goons during his career. Only Howe and Lindsay could fight with Richard. Except those two, most guys either picked fights with Richard just to get him off the ice so Richard would score goals against him. It was a fight with Boston's Hal Laycoe and punching a linesman that led to the Richard Riot. If Richard wasn't one of the three baddest guys along with Howe and Lindsay, I can't see why not.
THE BEST WINNERS WIN CUPS AND ....
the ROCKET ... HAD LESS THAN 1/2 OF THE NATURAL TALENT OF HOWE ... HOWE HAS LESS THAN 1/2 OF THE DRIVE THAT ROCKET HAD .
ROCKET SCORED 6 OVERTIME GOALS ...>>>>>>>>>> GORDIE HAD >>> ZERO O T GOALS !!
THAT IS JUST ONE OF MANY STATS THAT ROCKET HAD OVER HOWE
IN A CLUTCH GAME I WOULD CHOSE ROCKET OVER GORDIE EVERY TIME ... WHEN THE MONEY WAS ON THE LINE ... ROCKET HAD IT ALL OVER HOWE ... * THAT'S A LEADER * . ROCKET HAD 8 CUPS ... GORDIE HAD ONLY 4 . FOR PLAYOFF S ROCKET HAS IT ALLLL OVER HOWE ... FOR THAT MATTER .. *.HENRI " RICHARD ACCOMPLISHED MORE PLAYOFF SUCCESS THAN HOWE .
IN A CLOSE PAYOFF GAME .. HENRI WAS AS GOOD A LEADER AS ROCKET WAS >>> AND BOTH HE AND ROCKET WERE bETTER LEADERS THAN HOWE ... just add up all the cups to see what I mean...
Rocket had 8 cups three cup winners
Henri had 11 cups .... 2 cup winners
Gordie had zeero cup winners
the prosecution rests your honor. - case closed
@@andrewgodo9799 HEY ANDREW ....... SEE ABOVE ABOUT HOWE AND ROCKET .
AS FOR HE BEST LEADER ???? HENRI HAS 11 CUPS TWO OT CUP WINNERS
...
ROCKET HAD 8 CUPS ... 6 O T GOALS ..... 3 CUP WINNERS ... 21 PLAYOFF HAT TRICKS
7 SERIES WINNERS .. 82 PLayoff goals that was not broekn for 30 years >>>> when playoffs wer onlt maz of 14 games ..
AS FOR LEADERS ?????????? I TAKE EITHER RICHARD BROTHERS OVER HOWE IN A HEARTBEAT .... IF YOU WANT TO WIN ... TAKE THE RICHARDS OVER HOWE IN A HEARTBEAT ... 19 CUPS BETWEEN THEM ...... GORDIE WHO ????? HAS ONLY 4
Interesting list. Could never narrow one down to just six. Clark Gillies should DEFINITELY be on it. He and Larry Robinson---who should also be on this list---are both hall of famers smart players went nowhere near. Ask Dave Schultz about Gillies,ask O'Reilly about him,ask just about anyone dumb enough to rattle his cage or that of Robinson. I'm 61 and remember those days well. And what about hall of famer Red Horner,the Leaf who kocked out Shore with one punch after the former had almost killed Ace Bailey with a cheap shot from behind? Anyway,as a Leaf fan it's nice to see Wendel Clark on this list. If he hadn't been injured for probably half his career,at least with Toronto,I think he could have ended up in the hall.
@mike196212 - Clark Gillies was some kind of tough, wasn't he? "Big Bird," a.k.a. Larry Robinson, too... I really enjoyed seeing Robinson beat the stuffing out of Dave Schultz of the Flyers... he had it coming....
For Hawks fans, Bob Probert is justifiably famous as one of the toughest men ever to play in the NHL and one of the toughest fighters, too.
And as I mentioned in another post, Tim Horton (Maple Leafs, Sabres) was known not only for his Hall-of-Fame caliber play as a defensemen, but perhaps the strongest man ever to play in the National Hockey League. Playing when he did, alongside Gordie Howe and Bobby Hull, themselves two of the strongest ever to play the game - that is some accomplishment. Horton didn't get into fights once his reputation spread. You don't pull on superman's cape...
1. Scott Stevens
2. Larry Robinson
3. John Wensink
4. Zdeno Chara
5. Eddie Shore
6. Wendel Clark
7. Alex Ovechkin
8. Cam Neely
9. Gordie Howe
10. Maurice Richard
In my opinion, a feared player would be a threat in a fight as well as giving solid open ice hits. Also, that player should also be a good offensive or defensive player.
Messier was just a dirty player and a pu**y. Have a look at the footage out there. Larry Robinson outed him...
2 of 3 from the production line make the list. Says something.
These players don't strike fear in any other player!
Interesting how when Messier ever got in a fight he got the shit kicked out him.
messier?......lol
mr. "i think i'll run away."......lol
just ran his mouth.......lol
phony tuff guy.......lol
Seems video maker has never heard probert....he did points also but didnt let anyone fuck with hes team
Any NHL list with 'fear' in it has to include Scott Stevens or its a failed list - sorry. Hardest open ice hitter in NHL history.. period. Wasn't afraid to scrap, even against bigger players. Just a stud all around.
100 percent
i remember clark and nolan getting heated but knowing better of each other. that fight would never have gone to the ground.
"Grodie Howe"?? Decent.
that's a regular Catch 23 situation
Scott Stevens!
Going to point out that three of the six named in this video are from Saskatchewan. Gordie (Floral, SK), Eddie Shore (Ft. Qu'Appelle), Wendal Clark (Kelvington)
Hall of Fame defenseman Tim Horton may be best-known today as the moniker of the successful chain of donut & coffee shops in Canada and northern U.S. - but in his day, he was something special. Horton was the member of Stanley Cup winning teams while on the Toronto Maple Leafs, and later played for the Buffalo Sabres at the time of his death in a motor vehicle accident in February 1974.
Although he was not exceptionally large or heavy, Horton was legendary for his other-worldly strength. Horton didn't get into fights a lot because of this; no one wanted to wind up in one of his bone-crushing bear hugs. That's what Horton did to guys who took liberties with him or a teammate; he'd grab 'em in the corner or whatever and just start crushing them until they couldn't breath and stopped resisting. Cam Neely once tried to "walk" him, i.e., fake him out - but instead he found himself airborne off of his skates. Horton had picked him up - with one arm! "Don't do that sonny!" Horton said, and put him down.
Horton played a prank on a team-mate once by lifting one of those 400-lb. concrete traffic barriers by himself, unaided, and barricading the guy's car or whatever. Just picked it up like a sack of groceries.
Horton was known as the strongest man in the league during the heydays of Gordie Howe and Bobby Hull, themselves two of the strongest men ever to lace up skates. That's how impressive he was.
Chara. Terrifying player to play against.
Messier was the biggest coward who carried the biggest stick! He is the blindside champion of all time. When a tough guy tried to stand up to the coward Messier would grip his stick like a bat threatening the player with it. He is the one guy who never in his career stood face to face with a tough opponent…ha always turtles or gets ready to swing his stick. Nobody was afraid of him as a tough player…only as a cheap shot chicken shiite.
I think Rick Tocchet, Booby Clarke and cam Neely could all be in there as well.
Not Clark he wasn't Dirty, he was Filthy. Plenty of goons to protect him, like Wetsky!
Clarke although one of my favs was dirty af. Remember what he did to that Russian players ankle in the exhibition game. He was the guy that started fights and let his teammates finish them.
@@JamesHadfield-v3tI see what you did there lol
Bobby Clarke? He was a dirty rat who was protected by a gang of goons because he was their captain
Is it only me but I wouldn’t want to meet John Scott on the ice in his prime?
O'Reilly was a great all around player, talented and tough.
As a Leaf's fan I hated to see Wendel Clarke get traded but it brought the Leafs this guy named Mats Sundin. What a great player to watch.
Eddie Shore, great skater and mean. Immortalized in the movie Slap Shot (Old Time Hockey).
Ted Lindsey known for his toughness. He was not big but would never back down. In the meantime he racked up points and was part of 4 Stanley Cup Championships I believe.
Gordie Howe (Mr Hockey).
Too vague. Most "feared" doesn't make sense. That's why everybody came with other names. A lot more than six could be equally feared.
Great list! I would have added Clark Gillies and/or Bobby Nystrom, based on the criteria.
What about Bobby Orr
what about Maurice Richard?
I think, based on what the criteria is for you video, Ovi could easily be on this list. Thanks for putting together!
Yes Ovechkin
Not saying anyone should be taken off this list but if one were to add a player to it the best candidate might be Newsy Lalonde.
He played only 5 seasons in the NHL because there was no NHL through most of his career and because he also played for a few years in a rival league to the NHL at a time when the NHL was not the only top level league.
Not sure that we should hold the era of his playing career against him.
He averaged well over a goal a game in top level leagues, likely the best scorer until the Rocket came along.
Also, even though it was hard to be credited with an assist in his day he is third in NHL history in points per game at 1.6667
(and the NHL didn't even exist till he was 30 so he was not a young man then).
Onky Lemieux and Gretzky are ahead of him.
Plus he apparently had a mean streak and was not shy about using violence on the ice.
In one league he had 359 penalty minutes in only 108 games.
So even though he was like Ted Lindsey not a big man he was still very much feared both for his scoring and for his fisticuffs and other rough activity.
Other honourable mentions: Sprague Cleghorn, Eric Lindros, Cam Neely, Zedeno Chara,
Tim Horton (though it was more his strength than dirty play or fighting - Gordie Howe said it was hard to play against Horton because he was so strong).
Between me, you and a lamppost, "the Moose" got his nickname for his massive hammer. Thats a true story.
The Leafs need a player like Wendel Clark again. Mental and physical toughness with a scoring touch. He would put the fear of god into the current players.
“Grodie Howe”?! 😂
Great great players!
John Fergason should be on the list before some of the aformentioned ,scoered goals and no one tougher and also #9 Richard he did it all
Not surprised to see two Bruins on the list, but am surprised one of them isn’t Cam Neely!
Neely unfortunately didn't have a long enough career.
really enjoyed the report
Kharlamov 72 summit series was killing team Canada until clark slashed him and broke his ankle that guy was a beast
Don't mess with Gordie Howe!!
Damn straight Mr. Hockey is No.1 😁
100 PIM meant absoutely nothing in the 80'S. Scott Stevens, Chris Pronger, Eric Lindros, Ulf Samuelsson and Rick Tocchet could have been on that list too
This is just a who’s feared through popularity. There are a few little known players who people were shit scared of and in my opinion, Nick Fotiu was the worst. He fought a few times his rookie year and a little his second year but very little after that. He was truly a feared man who didn’t even like to fight unless pissed off. He had a long fuse and only protected teammates. Rumour has it even Probert avoided him when Fotiu approached to fight him, I’ve seen the video, Probert keeps his gloves off, he broke a bone in Craig Coxe face and coxe went toe to toe with Probert and Tim Hunter claims he could hear the punch from the bench. They say he was to nice a guy to be an all-time goon and never had high penalty minutes. He mauled Paul Holmgren, rocked Behn Wilson and Gillies and Semenko just stayed away. Never seen him get hurt or dropped in a fight and when he had a couple of draws it was guys who were on top of him along the boards and dropped the gloves before him and held on with little rabbit punches to the side and back of his head, during these minor scurmish he seemed completely uninterested and never got hurt. In my opinion, definitely the toughest and best fighter I ever saw and I watched everyone through the 70’s and 80’s and early 90’s. It was reported he was the New York City golden gloves champion boxer before joining the NHL, which would explain his toughness and power when he wanted to really fight, which wasn’t often.
Bob Probert- Dave Brown- Tony Twist- George Larouque-Joey Kocur are the Most FEARED NHL Players of All Time!
Good list but no Scott Stevens.
Even Gretzky stated in numerous interviews that Gordie was the GOAT.
Gretzky was just deferring to Howe out of respect
Bob Probert deserves a spot on this list.
Terry O'reilly was the inspiration behind Happy Gilmore
Ole Howe had his own hat trick named after him and i believe he only had 2 of those Hat tricks himself 😂😂…..
Where the hell is Clark Gillies of the New York Islanders. He's in the HOF and kicked Terry O'Reilly's ass in the 1980 playoff series.
There is a story in one of the canada/Russia hockey series that a Russian player saw an old man in the corner and he went in there to take the puck away. Came out holding his ribs.
Grodie Howe? Hmmmm, never heard of him. ;)
If you leave Howe out, the other 5 had 12 Cups. That's one more than Henri Richard !
Messier??????
Hahahahahahaha i needed a good laugh
Didn’t Wendel Clarke also play for the NY Islanders for 58 games?? Guy was good Hockey player , grit , team player & scored goal’s!!
O'Reilly on this list is a joke. I watched him be Clark Gillies personal punching bag for years.
Clark Gillies was not the NHL. The joke is no Schultz,
Ya ok pal
Bure has the mother of all elbows , but Messier is the father of all elbows
Who's Grodie Howe?
Don’t disturb Messier because he already is.
HE IS ( WAS ) .... A ...LITTLE ... NUTS ... NO DOUBT ABOUT IT .'
I BELIEVE HE WOULD >>>> S E R I O U S L Y INTENTIONALY MAIM SOMEONE .
Messier was a tour de force. His combination of speed, finesse, leadership, and toughness were second to none.
I would have had an honorable mention for the Rocket, for myself 😉
I agree with all except Howe. He doesn't belong in this video. Howe's entire fighting rep comes from that one Fontinato fight and nothing else. In the 50s (when Howe got into 95% of his career fights), he took some bad beatings in fights from Fern Flaman and Larry Cahan and others. Funny how Gordie's fans never discuss his losses. He also lost fights to Bill Ezinicki, Fred Shero and Noel Picard. The biggest joke is the "Gordie Howe Hat Trick" as he only had one in his entire career! Rick Tocchet had 18.... 18!!! Howe could have had more of these "Hat Tricks", but around 1960, Howe stopped dropping the gloves and started using his stick instead. Even Howe's son Marty ridiculed the statement "Gordie Howe Hat Trick" when he commented... “The Gordie Howe hat trick should really be a goal, an assist, and a cross-check to the face,” he told Luke Fox of Sportsnet. “That might be more accurate.” I think Marty knew his dad better than anyone and he was sure right about this.
Boy are you a Howe hater, a man everyone calls Mr. Hockey. He must of done a terrible thing to you.
It's funny that when you simply mention documented accurate facts about Howe, the Howe fans say you hate him. Why is that? Everything I stated is accurate and documented, so where does "hate" enter into this? And what about that statement from Howe's son, Marty? Do you think Marty hated his dad too? Please give me one fact that I stated that isn't accurate? @@larryjoe1357
@@larryjoe1357 Could you please explain where "hate" or even "dislike" comes into this? Everything I stated in my comment is fact, and all the stats and information I stated are accurate and documented. How are accurate and documented facts hateful? And what about the statement by Gordie's son? Do you think Marty hates his dad? No... just like my statements, Marty is simply setting the record straight by making an accurate statement. Or do you think maybe Gordie did a "terrible thing" to Marty? Please show me what parts of my comments (or Marty's comments) were inaccurate. It's funny that Howe fans love the hyped up exaggerated statements about him,. but dislike it when honest accurate facts are posted.
Ask Wayne Gretzky what he thinks about Howe. totally different from your view. Howe hater LOL @@b.walter6646
Darren McCarty
dereck sanderson
D E R E K
Billy Smith, goalie. Ron Hextal, goalie.
I GUESS it about all around playing but the best fighter i ever saw was John Ferguson who in the 19 71 Stanley cup series went around Bobby Orr to score a game winner
Ferguson was known as the dirtiest player by his contemporaries.
No way Ferguson could go around Bobby Orr, Furguson was not that talented. Orr must have caught an edge and fell.
@@larryjoe1357 watch the video
Ted Lindsay was 5'8" 165lbs?!?! the guy's legend makes him out to be 7' 300lbs! i cant believe he's small.
Non Messier fans didn't have him on their team
Cam Neely should have made your list. As a Bruin fan, he was a far better player than Terry O'reily and he was tough as nails.
Agree with all of them.
Little known conversation in hockey is teams feared the Bob Clark Flyers not just for fighting but the body checking. They hit anything that moved and most teams hated it. Montreal Solution was Bob Gainey and Larry Robinson who hit them back harder. And best them in both ways...
Bob Gainey - what a player that guy was! And "Big Bird"? What more can be said about Larry Robinson?
What about John Ferguson?
wasn't that talented
"Grodie" was a secret nickname 😁 10:31