World's Best Hockey Player of All Time
by M Nishali
Updated Mar 27, 2024
World's Best Hockey Player of All Time
Deciding who the greatest hockey players are? But if we look at things like how skilled they were, what they achieved, how much they influenced the game and their lasting impact, here are ten players who are usually seen as the best in hockey history.
Below are the names of the World's Best Hockey Player of All Time. Read to know about their contribution to this amazing game and learn about their achievements.
Jean Beliveau
Jean Beliveau was one of the best centers in hockey. He won 10 Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens from 1956 to 1971. He scored 507 goals and was the league MVP twice. Beliveau was so good that he did not have to wait three years after retiring to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1972.
Name
Jean Beliveau
Date of Birth
August 31, 1931
Place of Birth
Trois-Rivières, Quebec, Canada
Date of Death
December 2, 2014
Place of Death
Longueuil, Quebec, Canada
NHL Team
Montreal Canadiens
Maurice Richard
Maurice Richard was a famous hockey player known as The Rocket. He broke many records in his career. He was the first player to score 500 goals and the first to score 50 goals in one season. Richard played for the Montreal Canadiens for 18 years and won eight Stanley Cups with them. He was known for playing aggressively and having a hot temper. Many French Canadians idolized him.
Name
Maurice Richard
Full Name
Joseph Henri Maurice Richard
Date of Birth
August 4, 1921
Place of Birth
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Date of Death
May 27, 2000
NHL Team
Montreal Canadiens
Terry Sawchuk
Terry Sawchuk was a famous hockey goalie. He played for 21 years and won four Stanley Cups three with the Red Wings and one with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He also won four Vezina Trophies for being the best goalie. Terry had 447 wins and made 103 shutouts which was a record until 2009.
He got hurt a lot and had 400 stitches. In 1966 a magazine made a picture showing all his injuries. Sadly, Terry had depression and drank too much. He died in 1970 after getting hurt in a fight.
Name
Terry Sawchuk
Birthdate
December 28, 1929
Place of Birth
North End of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Death
May 31, 1970
Mario Lemieux
Mario Lemieux was a tall and fast hockey player for the Pittsburgh Penguins. He won two Stanley Cups in 1991 and 1992. Even though he got sick he came back to play and later became the Penguins owner. He made history by winning the Stanley Cup as both a player and an owner.
Name
Mario Lemieux
Birthdate
October 5, 1965
Place of Birth
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Teams
Pittsburgh Penguins
Steve Yzerman
Steve Yzerman played hockey for the Detroit Red Wings. He helped the team become very good again. Yzerman won three big championships called Stanley Cups in 1997, 1998, and 2002. He was really good at scoring goals and defending. People liked him because he was a nice leader for the team and he did not show off too much.
Name
Steve Yzerman
Birthdate
May 9, 1965
Place of Birth
Cranbrook, British Columbia, Canada
Team
Detroit Red Wings
Bobby Orr
Bobby Orr was an amazing hockey player. He won eight big awards called the James Norris Memorial Trophy from 1968 to 1975. When he played for the Boston Bruins, he was the first defenseman to score the most points in the NHL in 1970. He was named the best player in the league three times from 1970 to 1972. Orr also won two Stanley Cups in 1970 and 1972.
Name
Bobby Orr
Birthdate
March 20, 1948
Place of Birth
Parry Sound, Ontario, Canada
Teams
Boston Bruins
Chicago Black Hawks
Jacques Plante
Jacques Plante was a famous goalie for the Montreal Canadiens. He made a big change in hockey by popularizing face masks. In 1959 he got hit in the face and needed 21 stitches. But he did not want to quit so he insisted on wearing a face mask to keep playing. Plante helped Montreal win five Stanley Cups in a row and was named the best goalie seven times.
Name
Jacques Plante
Birthdate
January 17, 1929
Place of Birth
Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel, Quebec, Canada
Date of Death
February 27, 1986
Place of Death
Geneva, Switzerland
Teams Played For
Montreal Canadiens
New York Rangers
St. Louis Blues
Toronto Maple Leafs
Boston Bruins
Edmonton Oilers
Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Gretzky was a fantastic hockey player known as "The Great One." He broke many records by scoring 894 goals and won four Stanley Cups with the Edmonton Oilers. Gretzky was named the NHL MVP nine times.When he joined the Los Angeles Kings he helped make hockey more popular in the United States.
Name
Wayne Gretzky
Birthdate
January 26, 1961
Place of Birth
Brantford, Ontario, Canada
Teams Played For
Indianapolis Racers
Edmonton Oilers
Los Angeles Kings
St. Louis Blues
New York Rangers
Gordie Howe
Gordie Howe nicknamed "Mr. Hockey" scored 801 goals and won four Stanley Cups with the Detroit Red Wings. He was tough and did not need help in fights. He inspired the "Gordie Howe hat trick" and played until he was 52 years old which is old for hockey.
Name
Gordie Howe
Birthdate
March 31, 1928
Place of Birth
Floral, Saskatchewan, Canada
Date of Death
June 10, 2016
Age at Death
88 years old
Place of Death
Sylvania, Ohio, US
Teams Played For
Detroit Red Wings
Houston Aeros
Hartford Whalers
Alex Ovechkin
Alex Ovechkin is a great hockey player from Russia. He won many top awards in the NHL like the Hart Memorial Trophy three times. Ovechkin scores lots of goals and leads the Washington Capitals. He even won the Stanley Cup in 2018. People like him because he is funny and does cool things like wearing funny hats during games.
Name
Alexander Mikhailovich Ovechkin
Date of Birth
17 September 1985
Place of Birth
Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
NHL Team
Washington Capitals
Former Teams
Dynamo Moscow
National Team
Russia
