Lawless: Praise for the Defensive Defenseman

They are defensive defensemen and they are among the most overlooked players in hockey.

Coaches covet them. Teammates revere and respect them. Championships are not won without them. They’re on the ice in the waning minutes with a slim lead to protect. They block shots and lock down wins. Goalies love them.

The evolution of the defenseman at the NHL level has given us three types of players with all kinds of shades in between. The offensive defenseman, the two-way defender and the defensive defenseman. They are different and the top in each of these roles are elite and valuable. The best in each role should be recognized and the current state of NHL awards for defensemen is flawed and requiring of an update.

The Norris Trophy has become a scoring race with points often the most impactful measurement among voters. All but two of the last 10 Norris winners have finished the season first or second in scoring for their position.

In the early 80s, Rod Langway won the trophy in back-to-back seasons finishing 43^rd in scoring amongst D both times. The criteria among voters has shifted and offense rules the day.

This isn’t a ‘get off my lawn,’ column. Times change and every team wants an offensive defenseman. They should have an award all to themselves. The case has been made often and well argued. The Bobby Orr Trophy is a natural for the league’s best offensive defenseman.

The Norris Trophy should go the top two-way defender in the NHL. The player who can create offense at one end and shut it down at the other.

Finally, there should be an additional trophy awarded to the best defensive defenseman in the NHL chose from players who block shots, pile up the hits and takeaways while playing big minutes at both 5-on-5 and the penalty kill.

The NHL’s all-time winningest coach, Scotty Bowman, says the award should be named after Montreal Canadiens legend and HHOF defenseman Serge Savard.

“Serge was air-tight as a defender,” said Bowman over the phone. “Bobby Clarke told me he was the hardest defenseman in the NHL to play against. He was strong, he was 6-3 which was tall and long at that time and he was smart. He knew where to be and he was unbeatable at times.”

Savard won seven Stanley Cups with the Habs in a career that spanned over 1,000 regular season games and 130 playoff games.

Bowman has an encyclopedic knowledge of the NHL past and present. He also mentioned defensemen Bob Goldham as a potential namesake for such a trophy. Goldham won three Cups with the Red Wings in the 50s totalling 28 goals and 171 points over 648 regular season games.

“Goldham was on the ice whenever Detroit needed to close things out,” said Bowman. “A lot of people won’t remember him but he was so important in Detroit when they were winning.”