Bill Clement

When the lockout ended and new rules were added to increase scoring, the game opened up and many thought we were witnessing a major transformation in the NHL – one which would include the extinction of the enforcer.

The tough guys seemed an endangered species because it looked like in the new NHL they wouldn’t be able to compete at the level of the other players, who had the shackles taken off in order for them to showcase their talent, skating, and skill.

In the first season after the lockout fighting majors dropped from 789 to 466. But as the league has adapted to the new emphasis on offense, it hasn’t rid itself of the need for the tough guy. The age of the fighter might be coming back to the NHL, but the enforcer’s role has changed and to fill it nowadays a team’s tough guy has to be able to not only mix it up but also mix in and help his club in other ways.

With teams now wanting to play four lines and games in general tighter than in previous eras there can’t be any really weak links. Tough guys have to be able to play some hockey if called upon to do so. They have to hold their own on the ice when their fists aren’t flying.

The goons are gone from the NHL, but not the pugilists, who are around to protect and serve their teammates. Here are my super tough guys starting with a top five of all heavyweights, proving that size does matter when you’re in the role of an enforcer.

1. Georges Laraque
6-foot-3, 243 pounds
Penguins
A veteran who has played since the late 1990s, Laraque sits in the king’s thrown among the NHL’s tough guys. It’s like opposing enforcers bow at his feet before they drop the gloves with him. He fights less nowadays as is to be expected since he has developed so great a reputation that often his mere presence on the ice is enough of an impact.

A southpaw, Laraque, however, can throw with both hands. His balance and center of gravity are good and he is generally conceded to be the player other enforcers have to fight to be recognized as true heavyweight tough guys in the NHL.

Each season the players looked upon as new tough guys have had to challenge Laraque if they want to earn a spot on the NHL’s map of best fighters. Keeping to an honor and code among the tough guys, these new kids on the block have often had to ask Laraque if he would take them on. Laraque has to give an opponent his blessing before he’ll give him his fists.

2. Raitis Ivanans
6-foot-3, 263 pounds
Kings
Ivanans has hands so big he reminds me of Matt Johnson, a former tough guy in the NHL whose last season in the league was 2003-04. Ivanans’ hands may be the biggest I’ve ever seen and weapons like that are part of why he can fight with the best of them and is not shy about doing so.

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Ivanans has been a fighter at every level and in every league he has played in, mixing it up in the UHL, CHL, ACHL, and AHL. He had a season with New Haven in the UHL where he piled up 270 penalty minutes and another with Hamilton in the AHL where he was penalized 259 minutes.

The native of Latvia understands the evolved role of the enforcer. He is not as smart a tactical fighter as Laraque, but he is as strong as any player in the league. And you won’t find anyone more aggressive or more fearless than Ivanans.

3. Donald Brashear
6-foot-2, 235 pounds
Capitals
Brashear has a great sense of when his fighting skills are necessary and he picks his spots before dropping the gloves. He’s excellent at understanding when a bit of pugilism might well provide the push or nudge to get some momentum going for his team.

With his size and the physical nature of his play he skates along as one of the most intimidating players in the league. A lefty, but he’s excellent with both hands having worked over the years at making sure he can set up either way when squaring off with an opponent.

In his mid-thirties his agility remains good, although he’s getting long in the tooth for an enforcer, but he’s still extremely valuable to the Capitals. Brashear is really conscious of protecting his teammates.

4. George Parros
6-foot-5, 232 pounds
Ducks
He has a cult following in Anaheim and in the Stanley Cup finals fans were seen wearing clipped on black mustaches as a tribute to Parros, who had a black handlebar mustache before he shaved it off for charity.

Perhaps more than any other tough guy who has played in the NHL, Parros is able to intellectualize his role. Opponents not knowing his background might think he’s not such a bright light, but nothing is further from the truth as he attended Princeton University.

Parros is a fit with the Ducks since Anaheim preaches rough-and-tumble hockey. Anaheim general manager Brian Burke has said when teams come into the Ducks’ arena they had better be ready to fight. And the guy opponents have to be ready to take on is Parros.

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