NHL

Sizing up the NHL’s toughest customers

A look at the most intimidating fighters in a new era for enforcers

Jim Mcisaac / Getty Images file

Georges Laraque, right, of the Penguins sits on the king's throne when it comes to the NHL's tough guys, writes Bill Clement of MSNBC.com.

5. Derek Boogaard
6-foot-7, 254 pounds
Wild
By just his sheer size he is feared around the league but not in his own family. When Derek and his brother, Aaron, who is now playing minor league hockey, traded punches as kids, their mom smiled and snapped photos rather them pull them apart.

Boogaard is so imposing he flat out scares opponents. He has done as much damage as he has been damaged. His left hand is not as good as his right, but his right is so feared and damaging that when combined with his size acting as a defensive mechanism he doesn’t need to be good with both hands.

Those are my five toughest guys, but there are some others worthy of honorable mention.

Zdeno Chara
6-foot-9, 251 pounds
Bruins
The Bruins don’t want Chara fighting that often because of his playing ability and his value to the team. He once broke a bone in his hand in a fight and Boston doesn’t want that sort of thing happening again. But when Chara does drop the gloves, it is a sight to see. The only reason he’s not in my top five is that he doesn’t fight often enough.

Ian Laperriere
6-foot-1, 200 pounds
Avalanche
He’s a middleweight but he’ll fight anyone. He doesn’t always win as evidenced by the S-curves in his nose, but even though Laperriere has taken his share of pummelings he never backs down.

Riley Cote
6-foot-1, 210 pounds
Flyers
Cote is another middleweight and another enforcer who fears no heavyweight. The southpaw has to learn how to play under control to be of greater value to the Flyers. He was suspended for three games this season by the league so it’s clear he’s still learning his craft at the NHL level.

Colton Orr
6-foot-3, 220 pounds
Rangers
He’s a heavyweight just not as big as the others in that category. He doesn’t always choose to fight at the right time. He also doesn’t connect that often with his punches, but when he does he usually puts a hurting on an opponent.

Aaron Downey
6-foot-1, 215 pounds
Red Wings
Downey has trouble getting ice time because Detroit has a roster deep in skill players, but he is loved by his teammates. Downey is one of the most enthusiastic people you could ever meet and that enthusiasm also carries over to his fighting. Once he does get to mixing it up, he is fearless. Fans of hockey fights will remember Downey’s first-punch knockout of Jesse Boulerice.

Jody Shelley
6-foot-4, 230 pounds
Blue Jackets
If a team comes into Columbus and wants to start trouble it won’t be long before Shelley is involved. Shelley has had some notable knockouts in his career. Especially memorable is his one-punch KO of Derek Morris.

Eric Godard
6-foot-4, 220 pounds
Flames
Tactically not the best fighter in the league but his heart makes up for that. His intimidating size counts for a lot and he’s not shy about dropping the gloves early and often.

There are many other tough guys who didn’t make my list, but for most of those the reason was a lack of experience.

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