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As a skill player for the Philadelphia Flyer,s the speedy and undersized Andre Lacroix was a star but not necessarily a superstar. Lacroix was one of the many who took the pay increase to join the WHA, and the more open game worked towards his style of play. Lacroix may have bounced around that struggling league but wherever he went he was scoring profusely. Lacroix would go down in history as the all-time leading scorer of the World Hockey Association finishing with 798 points and six consecutive seasons hitting the 100 point plateau. Likely, because all his great moments were in the WHA (and with teams that were struggling even by WHA standards) his contributions have gone largely unnoticed. Had there ever been a WHA specific Hall of Fam,e however, Andre Lacroix would be on the first ballot.
It is always impressive when a man plays 964 games in the National Hockey League. What made Doug Jarvis’ 964 games so special is that he played them in a row setting the “iron man” mark for consecutive games played. Jarvis didn’t just play in those games: he was a gritty defensive-minded forward who was the master of the penalty kill. He didn’t light up the lamps, but that was not what he was paid to do. Considering he is the “iron man” of Hockey, an induction is not impossible.
The forgotten third center of the Montreal Canadians, Ralph Backstrom was a forgotten grinder on the great Hans team of the 60’s. As he was primarily on a checking line (and not French Canadian), he was not necessarily the poster boy of Canadians Hockey. Still, Backstrom was a multi time All Star and a pivotal member of many Stanley Cup wins. Like many, Backstrom bolted for the WHA and was a force there. Similar to others on this list, Ralph Backstrom’s tenure in the World Hockey Association might be to his determent for Hall consideration.
Likely because he played the bulk (and peak) of his career with the Washington Capitals, a lot of hockey fans were not watching Kevin Hatcher. The durable defenseman was able to score a lot of points and netted 34 goals in the 1992-93 campaign. On four occasions, Hatcher was able to achieve at least 50 points and was able to get 677 for his career. The five-time All-Star may not make the Hall in Toronto, but he should be able to rightfully gain entry into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame.