PITTSBURGH — A question from my intergalactically popular Post-Gazette mailbag gave me great pause earlier this week:
Is Kris Letang a Hall of Famer?
That's like asking if Cam Heyward is a Hall of Famer. At one time, I would have said no, but as Heyward continues to bolster his résumé, I'm leaning the other way. He might be playing his best football as he heads into his mid-30s.
Letang, already in his mid-30s, might be playing the best hockey of his career — and here's the key: When it comes to the Hall of Fame for any sport, it's all relative.
Who else got in, and do you belong among any of them?
Harold Baines was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Therefore, anybody with a Baines-like résumé — his highest MVP finish was ninth — has a realistic case.
Bill Cowher wouldn't be in my personal Pro Football Hall of Fame, which would be reserved for the greatest of the greats. But based on who was already in — including multiple coaches who never won championships — Cowher belongs.
Marv Levy, Bud Grant and George Allen went a combined 0-8 in Super Bowls, yet they were inducted. So why not Cowher? He has a better résumé than George Allen.
I have to laugh when a name such as Letang's comes up, and the response is, "The Hall of Fame is reserved for the greats. It's not the 'Hall of Very Good.' "
Actually, it is the Hall of Very Good. They all have become that. If these places were reserved for legends only, the enshrinement shows would be awfully short.
Letang, 34, is on pace for a career-best 80 points this season. He appears to be getting better with age and is the kind of freakishly conditioned athlete who could thrive into his late 30s.
He has not won a Norris Trophy, but that is hardly a prerequisite for Hall induction. Sergei Zubov, Phil Housley, Brad Park, Mark Howe, Kevin Lowe and many other Hall of Fame defensemen did not win the Norris.
Also know that Leo Boivin, who had multiple years with zero goals and was minus-212 in his career, was inducted, largely because he was a master of the hip check. So this is hardly the exclusive realm of icons.
Let's take a closer look at Letang and Zubov, who was inducted in 2019.
Both are one-time Norris finalists. Zubov, a power-play wizard, finished his career with 152 goals, 619 assists and 771 points in 1,068 games. Letang has a chance to eclipse all of those numbers. In 904 games, he has 139 goals, 483 assists and 622 points.
Using a better metric, Zubov averaged 0.14 goals per game, 0.58 assists and 0.72 points. Letang's at 0.15 goals, 0.53 assists and 0.69 points. Not much of a difference, and Letang is having the second-best points-per-game season of his career. He's not exactly slowing down. He's speeding up.
Zubov had one season of 80-plus points, one above 70 and one above 60. Letang has one above 60 and could be headed for 70 or 80 this season. And he's better defensively.
Letang was robbed of what might have been an incredible age-25 season when a lockout cut the season to 48 games. He finished third in Norris voting that year with 38 points in 35 games.
I'm not necessarily saying Letang is as good as Zubov. But it's close. Look deeper into the metrics, and you'll find that hockeyreference.com has Hall of Famer Mark Howe as a close comparable to Letang.
I watched Housley his whole career. He was an offensive genius. He also was minus-53. I think Letang is a better player.
Now throw in that Letang has been a key part of two Stanley Cup-winning teams and scored a Cup-winning goal.
It's not a crazy thought, is all I'm saying. Let's see what Letang does the rest of this season and beyond. And remember: It's all relative.
