Hockey has historically been a sport dominated by Canadian players, though in recent years it has become an increasingly international affair. But American players have always had a major role in the game, particularly in the National Hockey League.
We’ll be taking a look at the 10 greatest American players of all time, along with some honorable mentions. We’ll be judging based not only on a player’s NHL career but his or her contributions at the collegiate and international level, as well. Without further ado, let’s take a look.
10) Pat LaFontaine
Despite the francophone name, Pat LaFontaine certainly deserves recognition amongst the greatest American players of all time. Born in St. Louis, Missouri, and raised in Waterford, Michigan, his hockey career started in earnest in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), where, during his only season, he posted 104 goals and 130 assists for 234 points. That would win him the Jean Bèliveau Trophy as the league’s top scorer, beating out a fellow youngster with some incredible scoring prowess named Mario Lemieux. He also brought home a cabinet full of hardware, including the regular season and playoff MVP award, the offensive rookie of the year, the Mike Bossy Award, named after a player whose rookie goal record he broke that season, for the best professional prospect, and the CHL Player of the Year.
From the QMJHL, LaFontaine went on to play his entire career in the state of New York, with the New York Islanders, the Buffalo Sabres, and a final season with the New York Rangers. He would amass 1,013 points in 865 games, making five All-Star Games and winning the 1995 Bill Masterton Trophy before his career was cut somewhat short by concussions.
His 1987 series-clinching goal in the fourth overtime of Game 7 of the Patrick Division Semifinal remains one of the most iconic in Islanders’ history. He had two 100-plus point seasons, including a mind-bending 148-point total in 1992-93. He would also have six consecutive seasons with 40-plus goals from 1987-1993, adding a seventh in 1995-96.
LaFontaine was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2003 and was named one of the 100 greatest players in the history of the NHL in 2017. Not one to take it easy, since his retirement, LaFontaine has completed half a dozen Ironman triathlons. He is an incredible athlete, very worthy of a spot on this list.
9) Hobey Baker
Hobey Baker’s Hockey Hall of Fame profile describes him as “the first American-born hockey star.” There’s a reason why collegiate hockey’s top prize bears his name.
Baker was born in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, in 1892, and would go on to Princeton University, where he would become a decorated two-sport athlete. He would set several school records in football, excelling especially as a punt returner. With his help, Princeton would win a national championship in 1911.
But it was hockey where Baker made an unforgettable impression. He helped Princeton to two national championships, in 1912 and 1914, and is estimated to have surpassed 120 goals and 100 assists in his three seasons with the Tigers. He was, additionally, an incredible sportsman, visiting the opposing team’s dressing room to shake hands with every player after each game.
After his collegiate career, Baker joined the amateur St. Nicholas Club and won an additional national championship (at the amateur level) in 1915. He was even offered a $20,000 contract to join the Montreal Canadiens, then of the National Hockey Association, but declined it, preferring to remain an amateur.
Unfortunately, World War I arose and took Baker overseas. Even there, he excelled, rising to the rank of captain, leading his own squadron of 26 pilots and 180 enlisted men, and winning medals including the French Croix de Guerre. Tragically, hours before he was set to return home, he took one last flight and crash-landed, resulting in his untimely death at the age of 26.
Hockey and football weren’t the only sports in which Baker excelled. He was a scratch golfer, an elite swimmer, and an occasional track and field star. He is arguably one of the greatest American athletes ever, and the only reason he isn’t higher on this list is the relative brevity of his hockey career.
8) Neal Broten
On any list of the greatest American hockey players, there needs to be some recognition of the greatest moment in U.S. Hockey history, the 1980 Miracle on Ice. While Neal Broten did not record a point in that iconic semifinal game against the U.S.S.R., he did collect two goals and an assist in the tournament, en route to the United States’ gold medal victory.
Broten would go on to have the most successful professional career of any of the members on that 1980 roster. A native of Roseau, Minnesota, just south of the Canadian border, he would spend the first 13 years of that career playing for the team from his home state, the Minnesota North Stars. With them, he collected 796 of his 923 career points and played in 876 of his 1,099 games. In 1985-86, he became the first American to score more than 100 points in a season.
Broten would remain with the team for one and a half more seasons after the Stars moved south to Dallas before they traded him to the New Jersey Devils in Feb. 1995. That move would pay off in spades for him, as the Devils would go on to beat the heavily favored Detroit Red Wings in a four-game sweep to win the Stanley Cup. Broten would score the series-clinching goal, becoming the first-ever American to do so, ironically with Viacheslav Fetisov, a member of the 1980 Soviet team, once again on the ice for the opposition.
Broten holds the rare distinction of winning an NCAA championship with the University of Minnesota, an Olympic gold medal, and a Stanley Cup. He scored the game-winning goal in the NCAA Championship and won the Hobey Baker in 1981.
Despite retiring in 1997, he scored six points in three games in a brief return to the ice for the U.S. Team in the 1999 Ice Hockey World Championship. He was voted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2000, his number 7 is retired by the Stars, and in 2009, he was voted by Minnesota fans as the greatest-ever player from the state.
7) Connor Hellebuyck
The choice of the greatest American goalie of all time was a hard one. John Vanbiesbrouck is one of just four Americans to win the Vezina Trophy since 1942. Ryan Miller previously led all Americans in career wins with 391, as well as one of the most impressive Olympic performances in U.S. history. In previous installations of this list, the nod has gone to two-time Stanley Cup winner Jonathan Quick. But due to recent developments, it’s time to pass the torch to a new king between the pipes.
Connor Hellebuyck has been the greatest goaltender alive for several seasons running, and last season, he became the first goaltender since Carey Price to win the Vezina Trophy and the Hart Trophy simultaneously. The Commerce, MI native has been unbeatable for a long time, dating back to his 2019-20 Vezina Trophy win, the first of three, making him only the fourth goaltender and first American to claim a third. He joins Dominik Hasek, Martin Brodeur, and Patrick Roy on the Mt. Rushmore of goalies to have accomplished that feat, showing exactly where he stands in the all-time ranks.
Hellebuyck sits at 331 career wins, and, barring injury, he will retire well within the illustrious 400 club, and probably ahead of any other American goalie (Quick is the only American to reach 400, and he currently sits at 407). The one thing that still eludes Hellebuyck is postseason success, and the reputation that he isn’t a big game performer has haunted his career somewhat. But he could eliminate that argument entirely in a few months when he will be a core player for the Americans at the first Olympics with NHL players in a decade. If he helps his country win gold, there is no question he belongs on this list, and maybe even higher up it.
6) Auston Matthews
Even though his recent falloff is becoming more and more noticeable, it’s hard to deny Auston Matthews‘ place on this list. The seventh American drafted first overall, he became one of the league’s elite goal-scorers the moment he stepped on the ice — even potting four goals in his NHL debut, the first player in the modern era to do so. He finished that season with 40 goals and 69 points, winning the Calder Memorial Trophy with 164 of 167 first-place votes.
He dominated the all-Canadian North Division during the 2020-21 season, scoring 41 goals in 52 games, easily winning the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy for the league’s top goal-scorer. That season currently sits in a tie for 22nd in NHL era-adjusted goal-scoring seasons all-time. He also won the 2022 Hart Trophy as league MVP with 60 goals and 106 points in 73 games.
Though he’s just 28, he already ranks 11th all-time amongst American players in goals (416) and 28th all-time in points (754). Despite his recent slowdown, he still has a real chance to reach the 500 goal mark before he turns 30. If he does, he’ll join only Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy as the other two players to accomplish that feat. Even if he falls just short, that company shows the kind of rarified air Matthews is playing in. As long as his career doesn’t take a sharp downturn, he will retire very high on this list.
5) Brian Leetch
The ninth overall pick in 1986, Brian Leetch is synonymous with the New York Rangers. He is arguably one of the more underrated defensemen in the history of the NHL. With Paul Coffey, Al MacInnis, Bobby Orr, and Dennis Potvin, he became just the fifth defender to record 100 points in a single season (he hit 102 in 1991-92), and he was the last blueliner to reach the milestone until Erik Karlsson did it in 2022-23.
In 1,205 career games, all but 76 with the Rangers, Leetch recorded 247 goals and 781 assists for 1,028 points. 71 of those points came as a rookie when he took 42 of 63 first-place votes and won the Calder Trophy. Over the course of his career, that trophy would join two Norris Trophies, which he would win in 1991-92 and 1996-97.
The biggest addition to his trophy case would become the Conn Smythe Trophy for postseason MVP in 1994. He led all players in those playoffs with 11 goals and 34 points in 23 games. He was the first American to ever win a Conn Smythe trophy.
Over his career, Leetch would go to nine All-Star games. He won a silver medal in 2002 and retired officially in 2007. His number 2 was retired by the Rangers the following year, the same year he would be inducted into the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. One year later, he would be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. But none of these accolades can capture Leetch’s importance as much as his teammate Mark Messier’s words in his NHL 100 greatest players video:
He was magic to play with… He was, in my opinion, and is the greatest Ranger of all time.
Mark Messier describing Brian Leetch
4) Cammi Granato
Of all the players on this list, no one has had more international success than the Downer’s Grove, Illinois native Cammi Granato. She is a two-time Olympic medalist, winning gold in Nagano in 1998 and silver in Salt Lake City in 2002, all while captaining both teams.
Granato also saw incredible success at the IIHF Women’s World Championship, where she won one gold medal (2005) and eight silver medals (intermittently between 1990-2004). She also took gold twice at the Four Nations Cup, in 1997 and 2003, taking home silver five other times.
Granato was much more than a passenger on these teams: she was a star. Here is how Nathaniel Oliver, our former Buffalo Beauts writer and an expert on women’s hockey, described her career:
“At the close of her NCAA career at Providence College, she had scored an astounding 139 goals and 117 assists for 256 points in only 99 games. Her Olympic totals amount to 10 goals and eight assists for 18 points in 11 games from Nagano and Salt Lake City combined. Her 43 games in the IIHF Women’s World Championship saw her average 1.81 points per game from her 44 goals, 34 assists and 78 points. Think about it – 44 World Championship goals in 43 games!”
“A 15-year member of the U.S. Women’s National Team beginning in 1990,” Oliver continued, “Granato is the program’s all-time scoring leader with 343 points (186-157) in 205 games, and she captained both the Nagano and Salt Lake City squads.”
“When you take all of that into consideration, it is no wonder that she has been inducted into the International Hockey Hall of Fame (2008), the US Hockey Hall of Fame (2009) and the Hockey Hall of Fame (2010). Granato was one of the first female inductees into the Hockey Hall of Fame, alongside Angela James.”
Though it is hard to place Granato’s career into perspective with some of her fellow American athletes, given that she obviously does not appear in NHL record books, there is no denying that she is one of the greatest to ever lace up skates in a Team U.S.A. jersey. She belongs near the very top of this list.
3) Patrick Kane
The first first-overall draft pick in the history of the Chicago Blackhawks, the Buffalo, New York native Patrick Kane is one of two active players on this list, but he is undeniably worthy of the honor. At age 36, he has 1,366 points in his career and two 100-plus point seasons under his belt (106 in 2015-16, and 110 in 2018-19).
Related: Kane Is Already the Greatest American-Born NHL Player of All-Time
Readers are likely to be more familiar with Kane’s accomplishments than many on this list, but they are impressive: he won the Calder Trophy with 72 points in his rookie season, beating out Nicklas Backstrom, Carey Price, and teammate Jonathan Toews. He scored the game-winning and series-clinching goal in overtime of Game 6 to win his first of three Stanley Cups in 2010. In 2013, he won the Conn Smythe Trophy, leading the Blackhawks with 19 points in 23 games.
Kane’s most decorated season was 2015-16. He collected 46 goals and 60 assists, won the Hart Memorial Trophy for league MVP, the Ted Lindsay Award for Most Outstanding Player (voted on by the players), and he became the very first American to win the Art Ross Trophy for leading the league in points in a single season.
When Kane was named one of the NHL’s 100 Greatest Players in 2017, it was highly controversial, partially due to some off-ice issues. But as time has passed, fewer and fewer folks have debated his spot in history. At this point, if there is any argument about his inclusion on this list, it is most likely to be surprise that his name isn’t higher.
2) Mike Modano
Mike Modano is not only one of the most iconic players in Dallas Stars history, but he is also one of the greatest American players in the history of the game. He is second amongst all American-born forwards in games played (1,499), and all American NHL players in goals (561), points (1,374), and playoff points (146). Born in Livonia, Michigan, Modano built his reputation playing as a teenager in the Canadian Hockey League, but it was the last time he would ever call a Canadian team his own.
The North Stars drafted him with the first overall selection in 1988. In his rookie season, he would record 29 goals and 46 assists for 75 points and would finish second in voting for the Calder Trophy behind Sergei Makarov. That decision would create controversy, as Makarov was a 31-year-old coming over from the KHL, a professional league in Russia. The NHL would change eligibility for the Calder Trophy to exclude players older than 26 the following year.
Losing the Calder Trophy under arguably unfair circumstances wouldn’t stop Modano from having an incredible career. He would go on to play in seven All-Star Games, winning silver at the 2002 Olympics, and taking home a Stanley Cup in 1999. He played in every game of that Stanley Cup Final, despite breaking his wrist in Game 2, and he notched assists on each of the final five goals of the series.
Modano is the greatest player in the history of the Stars, either in Minnesota or Dallas. His number 9 jersey was retired in 2014, the same year he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. He holds the Stars’ records for games played, goals, assists, and points. He is the greatest American forward in the history of the game.
Honorable Mentions:
Brett Hull
Brett Hull’s exclusion from this list has nothing to do with his accomplishments and everything to do with his dubious claims to being an American player. Hull was born in Belleville, Ontario, the son of controversial Canadian hockey legend Bobby Hull. After being passed over by Team Canada early in his career, he chose to play for the United States, which landed him on many lists of the greatest American players. And with 741 career goals and 1,391 points, it’s easy to see why. With that said, we’re ultimately deciding that Hull is NOT an American player, and thus not eligible for this list.
Keith Tkachuk
Poor Keith Tkachuk is arguably one of the most overlooked players in NHL history. He’s reached many of the ideal hockey milestones, with 1,000 points and 1,000 PIMs, over 500 goals, and a 2002 silver medal. He even won gold at the 1996 World Cup. But he sits perpetually on the Hockey Hall of Fame bubble, and now he finds himself on the bubble of our list as well. His greatest contributions to American Hockey might be his sons, Matthew and Brady. They’re keeping the Tkachuk legacy strong. In fact…
Matthew Tkachuk
Some will mark this in the “way too early” column, but Matthew has a real shot to surpass his father’s legacy and become an all-time great American player if he can stay healthy and help the U.S. win Olympic gold. When the Calgary Flames sent Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers, he instantly upgraded the franchise, helping them win back-to-back Stanley Cups. He doesn’t have any individual hardware yet, but he’s the kind of player every franchise would consider their superstar, and he’s got a good shot to build an unforgettable reputation in the NHL.
Phil Housley
Phil Housley put up incredible numbers in both games played (1,495) and points (1,232). He went to seven All-Star games. He was a runner-up for the Norris Trophy in 1992, won gold at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey, and silver at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics. He is a member of both the Hockey Hall of Fame and the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. He is currently an assistant coach with the Arizona Coyotes after a stint as the head coach of the Buffalo Sabres.
Quinn Hughes
We really are in the golden age of American hockey, and everything we’ve seen so far suggests that Quinn Hughes may well be on his way to being the greatest American hockey defenseman of all time, or certainly in that upper echelon with Leetch and #1 on our list. He’s just a little too young to warrant inclusion yet. At 26, Hughes already has a Norris Trophy to his name and will represent the U.S. on the game’s grandest stage at the Olympics for the first time later this year. With his recent trade to the Minnesota Wild, he also no longer has the burden of being the only star in town. The future is very bright for the Orlando native.
1) Chris Chelios
No American player’s career can match the longevity or the success of the Chicago-native defenseman, Chris Chelios. He is one of the greatest defensemen ever to play the game, and he belongs at the top of this list.
Chelios is eighth all-time in NHL games played, the highest of any American player. In 1,651 games, he collected 185 goals and 763 assists for 948 points. He is also 18th all-time in career plus/minus, at a plus-351.
Few trophy cases are as overloaded as Chelios’. He went to 11 All-Star Games, including five straight from 1990-1994. He won the Norris Trophy in 1989, 1993, and 1996, and was given the Mark Messier Leadership Award in 2007. Like many on this list, he was part of the 2002 Silver Medal team, and he took home gold at the 1996 World Cup of Hockey. Most importantly, Chelios won three Stanley Cups, one with the team that drafted him, the Montreal Canadiens (1986), and two with the Red Wings (2002, 2008).
All told, Chelios’ career spanned four decades: he was drafted in 1981 and debuted in 1983, and he played his final NHL game with the Atlanta Thrashers on Apr. 6, 2010. He was inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame three years later, along with longtime Red Wings teammate Brendan Shanahan. He has been part of both the Red Wings and the Blackhawks’ front office and remains a key figure in the hockey community.
The Future Is Bright
The future of the American game has never been brighter. An American player has been drafted in the top 10 in each of the last 10 NHL Drafts. Two of the last 10 first-overall draft picks have also been Americans, with Matthews in 2016 and Jack Hughes most recently in 2019. The NHL is littered with American stars 25 years old and younger. In 2021, Adam Fox (23) won the Norris Trophy, and Jason Robertson (21) was runner-up for the Calder Trophy.
In 10 years, this list might look radically different. There will be new faces, and hopefully, many new international accomplishments. There has never been a better time to be a fan of the American game.
