Detroit Red Wings: Top 10 toughest players of all-time

After being established in 1926, the Detroit Red Wings have had countless amounts of tough guys making some better than others.

From Bob Probert to the Grind Line, the Detroit Red Wings have had no shortage of toughness.  In their 92 years, they have had an endless supply of gritty players. Of all the players that have been in the Wings organization, it is hard to identify who were the toughest of the tough.

To solve this dilemma, the use of analytics, stats and accomplishments must be used to identify the top 10 tough guys in Wings history from both past and present. Here are the 10 toughest players to ever play in Detroit.

10. Niklas Kronwall

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Niklas Kronwall defines what it means to be a physical defenseman. Hockey fans and players everywhere have come to know the infamous “Kronwalled” hits produced by Niklas Kronwall on opponents.

A “Kronwalled” hit is where an opponent skates down the ice, with the puck, not paying attention when suddenly they are met by an opponent’s backside.  These hits helped establish Kronwall as one of the most feared defensemen in the league as well as revolutionized the game in terms of body checks.

He really made a name for himself on May 5, 2009 in the Western Conference Finals against the Chicago Blackhawks. Blackhawks winger Martin Havlat was charging up the boards about to receive a pass when he immediately he got decked by Niklas Kronwall.

The hit was so forceful that it knocked him out cold and created a scrum between the Wings and Blackhawks.  Ever since that hit, Kronwall was looked at in a different light. Fans loved him and players feared him.

Along with the number of hits Kronwall has produced, he has also found ways to find individual and team success. His list of accomplishments include:

• Elitserien champion (2000, 2001)
• Elitserien Junior Hockey League Player of the Year
• Silver medal winner at the 2003 World Championships
• Eddie Shore Award (given to the best AHL defenseman) in 2005
• Member of the AHL First All-Star team in 2005,
• Gold medal winner at the Winter Olympics in 2006
• Gold medal winner at the World Championships in 2006
• Awarded the best defender and MVP of the 2006 World Championships
• Member of the World Championship All-Star team in 2006
• Stanley Cup winner (2008) won the Stanley Cup with the Red Wings in 2008
• Silver medal at the Winter Olympics in 2014.

Currently, Kronwall is 37 years of age and is on the last year of his contract with the Red Wings.  It seems as if Kronwall’s glory days are behind him. Nevertheless, Kronwall has made a lasting impact on the Red Wings and the rest of the NHL.  It is because of Niklas’ bruising body checks and physical play that has defined him as one of the Detroit Red Wing’s toughest players of all time.

8. Brendan Shanahan

Averaging about 1.63 penalty minutes a game, there is no questioning Brendan Shanahan‘s toughness. The Hockey Hall-of-Famer spent nine years with the Detroit Red Wings, accumulating three Stanley Cups and countless memories. The memories Shanahan implemented in people’s minds were both his craftiness with the puck and his physical play.

Before arriving to the Red Wings during the 1996-97 season, he spent nine seasons with othe teams. This included the St. Louis Blues (four seasons), New Jersey Devils (four seasons) and Hartford Whalers (one season).

In all of those seasons, Shanahan registered over 100 penalty minutes and over 25 points per season. So when the Red Wings acquired him, they got not only a point-producing winger but a physical one as well.

As a member of the Detroit Red Wings, Shanahan found immediate success both individually and as a team. In his first regular season with the Wings, he played 79 games, scored 46 goals, registered 41 assists and clocked 131 penalty minutes. Going into the playoffs, Shanahan remained hot, playing a flawless two-way game, helping the Wings win their first cup since 1955.

The rest of his career in Detroit was just as successful as his first season with them. In 1998 and 2002, Brendan won two more Stanley Cups with the Wings, accumulating a total of three Stanley Cup wins in nine seasons in Detroit.

Winning the Stanley Cup three times did not come easy. Shanahan had to fight for it, literally. His fight card includes heavyweights such as Bob Probert, Matthew Barnaby, Marty McSorley, Jim Cummins and Adam Foote. The most memorable scrap that Shanahan was involved in was on March 26, 1997, when the Detroit Red Wings took on the Colorado Avalanche.

After taking an absolutely idiotic cheap shot on Draper, Claude Lemieux of the Avalanche knew he was a walking dead man going into Hockeytown. In the opening minutes of the game, Darren McCarty, the Red Wings enforcer at the time, went after him. As McCarty was pummeling on Lemieux, Colorado’s goaltender Patrick Roy tried to blindside tackle him.  As Roy skated over to the fight, he was joined along by Avalanche defenseman Adam Foote who had the same idea in mind.

Before the two players could even make it over to the scrum, they were absolutely leveled by Shanahan. He took out the two with a single body check. After laying the two Avalanche players out, Shanahan exchanged punches with both Roy and Foote. The goalie broke off soon after to go after the Red Wings goaltender, Mike Vernon. In the meantime, Shanahan fed Adam Foote haymakers, absolutely clobbering him.

This moment defines his tenure in Detroit. The brawl showed that Shanahan was a team-first player in the essence that he contributed offensively, defensively and physically. Playing over 1,000 games in the NHL and averaging 1.6 penalty minutes a game is no simple feat. It takes grit. And Shanahan, without a doubt, had the toughness and grit to make him one of the toughest Wings in history.

7. Reed Larson

After getting suspended from the University of Minnesota’s hockey team for assaulting a referee, Reed Larson joined the Detroit Red Wings. At 20 years of age, Reed Larson was pinned to be the NHL and Red Wings’ next superstar defenseman. Growing up in a working class, he knew what it took to be a Red Wing and a tough guy, making him a fan favorite in Hockeytown.

In 904 games in the NHL, Reed scored 222 goals, had 463 helpers and a whopping 1,391 penalty minutes. He was the quintessential modern-day hockey player because he could produce points as well as bring a high level of physicality.

After playing 10 effective seasons with the Detroit Red Wings, Larson played for the Boston Bruins, New York Islanders, Minnesota North Stars, Buffalo Sabres and Edmonton Oilers.

With 1,124 penalty minutes for the Red Wings in a span of 708 games, Larson proved to be a force to be reckoned with.  Reed made the top ten list because of his astonishing amount of penalty minutes as well as because he was one of the only positives to come out of numerous weak Detroit teams in the late 70’s and early 80’s.  Not to mention he is number eight in Red Wings history for the most penalty minutes.

6. Gerard Gallant

Before becoming the head coach of the Vegas Golden Knights, Gerard Gallant was one of the toughest players to ever play hockey. At 5’10” and 190 pounds, Gallant was not a daunting figure on the ice, but he packed a big punch. In nine seasons with the Red Wings, he clocked 1,600 penalty minutes, placing him fourth overall in penalty minutes for Detroit.

What made Gallant unique as a player was that he could score and fight. In today’s standards Gallant would be portrayed by players like Corey Perry, Tom Wilson, and Max Domi. The genius part about his playing style was that he would take smart, strategic penalties that hardly ever left his team at a disadvantage. It is because of his team-first mentality that won over fans and helped him get a coaching job.

When Gallant was in the lineup, the Red Wings would play with more comfort and swagger. His playing style was very unique and admired by his team and hated by the opponents. Gerard could beat and tire any opposing team whether it be physically, with puck skill or his astute hockey knowledge.

Currently, he has successfully transitioned his playing style into his coaching style which has produced massive amounts of success, as shown through the Vegas Golden Knights.

5. Darren McCarty

Darren McCarty might as well be Detroit’s heartbeat. His career as a Red Wing is symbolic of the city of Detroit making him an idolized treasure by fans. Sitting with the sixth highest penalty minutes in Red Wings history (1,302), there is a lot to admire about Darren.

In his career, McCarty has gone from beating the daylights out of some of the toughest players in the NHL to scoring a Stanley Cup Final clinching goal. When drafted by the Detroit Red Wings 46th overall in the 1992 NHL draft, expectations were high for the 6’1” and 219-pound winger to produce.

In his rookie season with the Wings (1993-94), McCarty proved to be a grinder with his physical play, ironically enough earning him a spot on the Grind Line with Kirk Maltby and Kris Draper.

The Grind Line proved to be a force to be reckoned with for numerous seasons. McCarty, in-particular, stood out to fans because he showed signs of brilliance with the puck as well as with his fists. When people think of him, they probably see the image of him beating down on a cowering Claude Lemieux.

That fight against Lemieux showed the dominance of both McCarty and the Red Wings. Together, they won four Stanley Cups.

McCarty’s fourth Stanley Cup was no simple feat. After struggling with alcohol and substance abuse issues after playing with the Calgary Flames in 2007, he attempted a comeback with the Red Wings in 2008. After spending time with the Grand Rapids Griffins, McCarty clawed his way back to the Red Wings where he proved to be a vital factor to the teams Stanley Cup win.

Darren McCarty embodies hard work and determination, much like the city and people of Detroit. It is because of that work ethic that made fans embrace McCarty as one of their own. Not only is McCarty one of the toughest players to play the game, but he has one of the greatest stories to come through the NHL.

4. Gordie Howe

Not only is Gordie Howe arguably the greatest hockey player of all time, but he was one of the toughest in the NHL and Detroit Red Wings history. In 1,687 games with the Detroit Red Wings, Gordie Howe had 1,643 penalty minutes, making him third overall for the most penalty minutes in Red Wings history.

While most players were out seeking a hat trick, he was searching for his own Gordie Howe Hat Trick. A Gordie Howe Hat Trick is when a player scores one goal, gets one assist and one fight.  To accomplish the feat, a player must have goal-scoring ability, flawless teamwork chemistry, and toughness. His popularity in the NHL derived from the fact that he was not only a goal scorer, but a physical player as well.

Howe’s rough and tough play along with his offensive ability, lead to him grasping four Stanley Cups. Mr. Hockey excelled in every facet of his game which lead to him, sometimes, single handily wearing down opponents. On every Red Wings team Howe was on, he was the leader, goal scorer, ultimate team player and tough guy. It was because he was capable to play every position that exploited Gordie Howe’s toughness.

3. Ted Lindsay

When anybody looks up the word “tough” in the dictionary, there should be a picture of Ted Lindsay next to the word. As a member of the “Production Line” that consisted of Sid Abel and Gordie Howe, it was hard for him not to find success. In 862 games with the Red Wings, Lindsay had 335 goals, 393 assists and 1,423 penalty minutes.

As the fifth-highest leader for penalty minutes for the Detroit Red Wings, there is no questioning Lindsay’s toughness. In fact, his toughness and skill irritated many opposing fans to the point one Toronto Maple Leafs fan threatened to shoot him during Game 3 of the 1952 Stanley Cup final.

After the Wings dismantled the Leafs for numerous years, Toronto fans hit a tipping point. In an attempt to throw Lindsay and Howe (the Red Wings best players at the time) off their games, a Leafs fan threatened to shoot them in game 3 of the 1952 Stanley Cup final. Well, that threat backfired because both Howe and Lindsay scored, ultimately leading to a Red Wings win.

After Lindsay heard about the death threat from the Leaf fan, he did not get scared. Rather he got very angry.  And in return, Lindsay put on an impressive performance, which led to a Wings win, and he also got his revenge on the person who threatened him leading up to the game.  Without question, this shows the grit of “Terrible” Ted Lindsay.

In an era where players did not wear helmets, Lindsay embodied what it meant to be tough.  His Hall of Fame career is one of great stories and moments.

2. Joey Kocur

Joey Kocur has fists comparable to that of King Kong’s. And the devastation of Kocur’s fist would be sizable to that of a 10 magnitude earthquake. In fact, he threw punches so hard it would knock out teeth, break faces and break helmets. Just ask Donald Brashear who had his helmet broken by the mighty right hand of Kocur.

He was one of the toughest players in the league and grew to be famous for his dangerous right-handed punch. His right hand was so strong that he broke New York Islanders skater Brad Dalgarno‘s orbital bone, jaw, and cheekbone.

Kocur also handed a beating to tough guy Brashear. In one punch, he broke Brashear’s helmet and left him injured all over his face and his gums. It was because of his fighting and checking ability, that made Kocur the Red Wings’ ultimate protector.

Kocur was such a protector that following his initial departure from the NHL in 1996, Red Wings captain at the time, Steve Yzerman, begged management to bring Kocur back. Management answered the captain’s request and brought back Kocur for three seasons. And in the 1998 season, he won the Stanley Cup with the Wings for the third time in his playing career.

He stands only behind Bob Probert as the most penalized player in Detroit Red Wings history.  In comparison to the NHL, Kocur sits at 21st overall with the most penalty minutes in league history.

1. Bob Probert

Bob Probert was the toughest player in the NHL of all time, no questions asked.  Probert was well known and respected as the NHL’s heavyweight champion because of his impressive fighting skills.  Currently, Probert holds the Red Wings record of most penalty minutes with 2,090 minutes.  Not only does Probert hold a Red Wings penalty minutes record, but also NHL record for the 5th highest penalty minutes with 3,300.

Probert fought some of toughest players in the NHL such as Tie Domi, Marty McSorley, Joey Kocur, Scott Parker, Donald Brashear and many more.  Although he was a great fighter, Probert was also a great goal scorer and leader.  In fact, Probert was such a good all-around player that he made it to an NHL All-Star game showing that he was more than just an enforcer.

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Whether it be his career-long battles with Tie Domi or his 100-second fight with Marty McSorley, Bob Probert was as tough as they come.  Unfortunately, Probert passed away on July 5, 2010, from a heart attack.  On April 9, 2017 (the Detroit Red Wings’ last game at Joe Louis Arena), Probert’s family spread Bob’s ashes in the Red Wings penalty box as his final resting place.  To this day, Probert will forever be accumulating time in the penalty box, his second home.