The 47 Greatest NHL Defensemen of All Time

Norris hoarders, stay-at-home bruisers and puck-moving pioneers share this blue line, spanning leather-skate days to the salary-cap era.

1. 1
   Nicklas Lidström

   Swedish Detroit Red Wings defenseman who won seven Norris Trophies and four Stanley Cups over 20 seasons.
   1000pts
2. 2
   Drew Doughty

   Los Angeles Kings defenseman who won Stanley Cups in 2012 and 2014 and the 2016 Norris Trophy.
   564pts
3. 3
   Cale Makar

   Colorado Avalanche defenseman who won the Calder, Norris and Conn Smythe Trophies and the 2022 Stanley Cup within three seasons.
   564pts
4. 4
   Al MacInnis

   Known for his slap shot, he won the 1989 Stanley Cup and Conn Smythe Trophy with Calgary and the 1999 Norris Trophy with St. Louis.
   564pts
5. 5
   Duncan Keith

   Chicago Blackhawks defenseman who won three Stanley Cups, two Norris Trophies and the 2015 Conn Smythe Trophy.
   564pts
6. 6
   Scott Niedermayer

   Won four Stanley Cups with New Jersey and Anaheim, the 2004 Norris Trophy and the 2007 Conn Smythe Trophy.
   564pts
7. 7
   Bobby Orr

   Boston Bruins defenseman who won eight straight Norris Trophies, three Hart Trophies and two Art Ross Trophies.
   518pts
8. 8
   Chris Chelios

   American defenseman who played 26 NHL seasons, won three Norris Trophies and lifted the Stanley Cup with Montreal and Detroit.
   518pts
9. 9
   Pierre Pilote

   Chicago Black Hawks defenseman who won three straight Norris Trophies from 1963 to 1965 and the 1961 Stanley Cup.
   518pts
10. 10
    Bill Gadsby

    Played 20 seasons for Chicago, the Rangers and Detroit and was named a first-team All-Star three times without winning a Stanley Cup.
    518pts
11. 11
    Allan Stanley

    Defensive anchor of the Toronto Maple Leafs teams that won four Stanley Cups between 1962 and 1967.
    518pts
12. 12
    Rob Blake

    Won the 1998 Norris Trophy with Los Angeles and the 2001 Stanley Cup with Colorado.
    465pts
13. 13
    Brent Burns

    San Jose Sharks defenseman who won the 2017 Norris Trophy after a 29-goal, 76-point season.
    465pts
14. 14
    Scott Stevens

    Hard-hitting New Jersey Devils captain who won three Stanley Cups and the 2000 Conn Smythe Trophy.
    465pts
15. 15
    King Clancy

    Small, fiery defenseman who won Stanley Cups with the Ottawa Senators and the 1932 Toronto Maple Leafs.
    465pts
16. 16
    Earl Seibert

    Rangers and Black Hawks defenseman who was named a first- or second-team All-Star ten straight seasons from 1935 to 1944.
    465pts
17. 17
    Zdeno Chara

    The 6-foot-9 Bruins captain who won the 2009 Norris Trophy and the 2011 Stanley Cup and played 1,680 regular-season games.
    465pts
18. 18
    Chris Pronger

    Won both the Hart and Norris Trophies in 2000 with St. Louis and the 2007 Stanley Cup with Anaheim.
    403pts
19. 19
    Serge Savard

    Montreal Canadiens defenseman who won eight Stanley Cups and was the first defenseman to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, in 1969.
    403pts
20. 20
    Jack Stewart

    Physical Detroit Red Wings defenseman who won Stanley Cups in 1943 and 1950 and was a first-team All-Star three times.
    403pts
21. 21
    Doug Harvey

    Montreal Canadiens defenseman who won seven Norris Trophies and six Stanley Cups in the 1950s and early 1960s.
    403pts
22. 22
    Phil Housley

    American offensive defenseman who scored 1,232 NHL points over 21 seasons, beginning with eight in Buffalo.
    330pts
23. 23
    Erik Karlsson

    Swedish offensive defenseman who won Norris Trophies in 2012, 2015 and 2023 and scored 101 points in 2022-23.
    330pts
24. 24
    Jacques Laperrière

    Montreal Canadiens defenseman who won the 1966 Norris Trophy and six Stanley Cups.
    330pts
25. 25
    Roman Josi

    Swiss Nashville Predators captain who won the 2020 Norris Trophy and scored 96 points in 2021-22.
    330pts
26. 26
    J. C. Tremblay

    Montreal Canadiens defenseman who won five Stanley Cups in the 1960s before starring for the WHA's Quebec Nordiques.
    330pts
27. 27
    Sergei Zubov

    Russian puck-mover who won the Stanley Cup with the 1994 Rangers and the 1999 Dallas Stars and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2019.
    330pts
28. 28
    Babe Pratt

    Won the Hart Trophy in 1944 with Toronto and Stanley Cups with the 1940 Rangers and the 1945 Maple Leafs.
    330pts
29. 29
    Marcel Pronovost

    Detroit and Toronto defenseman who won five Stanley Cups, four with the Red Wings and one with the Maple Leafs.
    330pts
30. 30
    Ray Bourque

    Spent 21 seasons with Boston before winning the 2001 Stanley Cup with Colorado; holds the NHL career record for goals, assists and points by a defenseman.
    330pts
31. 31
    Eddie Shore

    Boston Bruins defenseman of the 1920s and 1930s who won four Hart Trophies, the most by any defenseman.
    330pts
32. 32
    Doug Wilson

    Chicago Black Hawks defenseman who won the 1982 Norris Trophy after a 39-goal season.
    330pts
33. 33
    Butch Bouchard

    Montreal Canadiens captain and defenseman who won four Stanley Cups between 1944 and 1956.
    330pts
34. 34
    Victor Hedman

    Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman who won the 2018 Norris Trophy, the 2020 Conn Smythe Trophy and back-to-back Stanley Cups.
    242pts
35. 35
    Brad Park

    Rangers and Bruins defenseman who was a first-team All-Star five times and a Norris Trophy runner-up six times.
    242pts
36. 36
    Börje Salming

    Swedish Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman of 16 seasons who was among the first Europeans to star in the NHL and entered the Hall of Fame in 1996.
    242pts
37. 37
    Mark Howe

    Philadelphia Flyers defenseman who was a Norris Trophy runner-up three times and entered the Hall of Fame in 2011.
    242pts
38. 38
    Paul Coffey

    Won three Norris Trophies and four Stanley Cups and set the defenseman record of 48 goals in a season with Edmonton in 1985-86.
    242pts
39. 39
    Larry Murphy

    Won four Stanley Cups, two with Pittsburgh and two with Detroit, and played 1,615 NHL games.
    242pts
40. 40
    Denis Potvin

    New York Islanders captain who won three Norris Trophies and four straight Stanley Cups from 1980 to 1983.
    0pts
41. 41
    Red Kelly

    Won the first Norris Trophy in 1954 as a Detroit defenseman and eight Stanley Cups across his Red Wings and Maple Leafs career.
    0pts
42. 42
    Rod Langway

    Washington Capitals captain who won back-to-back Norris Trophies in 1983 and 1984 as a stay-at-home defenseman.
    0pts
43. 43
    Larry Robinson

    Montreal Canadiens defenseman who won six Stanley Cups, two Norris Trophies and the 1978 Conn Smythe Trophy.
    0pts
44. 44
    Brian Leetch

    New York Rangers defenseman who won two Norris Trophies and became the first American to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, in 1994.
    0pts
45. 45
    Tim Horton

    Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman who won four Stanley Cups in the 1960s and played 1,446 NHL games.
    0pts
46. 46
    Shea Weber

    Nashville and Montreal captain, a three-time Norris Trophy finalist who won Olympic gold with Canada in 2010 and 2014.
    0pts
47. 47
    Harry Howell

    Played a Rangers-record 1,160 games and won the 1967 Norris Trophy.
    0pts

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