The count ended at eight and one can wonder if one day there will be a new defenseman who can reach 1,000 career points in the National Hockey League.
• Also read: An achievement that has been unattainable for CH players since 1981
25-year-old Cale Makar would be a good horse to bet on. The Colorado Avalanche player has 287 points in 268 regular season games. He is also the only active defenseman in the NHL to average more than a point per game.
Quinn Hughes, who has 285 points in 318 games with the Vancouver Canucks, represents another logical candidate since he is only 24 years old.
While we wait to see what the future holds for Makar and Hughes, it is still surprising that Swede Nicklas Lidstrom remains the last defender to enter the 1,000-point club on October 15, 2009, over 14 years ago has been recorded. The guard collected two assists that evening at the Joe Louis Arena and was an accomplice in the goals of his compatriots Tomas Holmstrom and Henrik Zetterberg in the Detroit Red Wings' 5-2 win against the Kings from Los Angeles.
Erik Karlsson: next?
Among active defenders, it is a Swede, Erik Karlsson, who could be next to score his 1000th point. At 33 years old, the Pittsburgh Penguins guard currently has 783 points, thanks in particular to his impressive 101-point haul in the 2022-2023 season with the San Jose Sharks. Quebecer Kristopher Letang, who recorded six assists with the Penguins on Wednesday night, totaled 714 points. He is 36 years old.
Erik Karlsson Photo Justin Berl/Getty Images via AFP
Brent Burns of the Carolina Hurricanes has 852 points to his name, but at 38 years old, soon to be 39, he is in danger of running out of time. It should also be noted that Burns was also occasionally used as a striker throughout his career.
Among great NHL defensemen, Larry Robinson, who played 17 full seasons for the Canadians before ending his career with the Kings, scored a total of 958 points. The legendary Bobby Orr, who played only 657 games due to a knee injury, scored 915 points, scored more than 100 points in six consecutive seasons and won the Art Ross Trophy twice.
Eight defensemen with 1,000 points or more in the NHL (regular season)
1 – Raymond Bourque…1579
2 – Paul Coffey…1531
3 – Al MacInnis…1274
4 – Phil Houseley… 1232
5-Larry Murphy…1217
6 – Nicklas Lidstrom… 1142
7 – Denis Potvin… 1052
8-Brian Leetch…1028
Bruins defenseman Raymond Bourque, at the Colisée in Quebec in 1993. Archive photo / Le Journal de Quebec