There is an interesting, albeit predictable, thing that happens every year around this time, after the most recent class is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame where we start to look to the future in hopes of celebrating the players of the past who make up the HHOF inductees of the future. Of the many things that comes from this, perhaps one of the most notable and talked about is the delineation between players who should be in the Hall of Fame and those who should be in the Hall of Very Good. Well, for a lot of fans that differentiation can leave out a lot of the players they have enjoyed the most in their time watching the sport. This is where the practice of teams retiring jerseys/numbers of former players comes into practice.
A player doesn’t need to be hall of fame worthy to get his sweater hoisted to the rafters, all that matters is what he meant to that particular fanbase while he was there, and often, long after he was gone. However, if you are going to honor a player to such an extent that it removes their number from circulation for the rest of forever, then that player should, in the eyes of many fans, hit a certain mark or have reached a particular level. But what about the ones that don’t? What about the players that mean everything to the fans but for any number of reasons don’t quite reach the level of jersey retirement? Are we just supposed to let them exist in the space reserved for myths and urban legends? Nay-nay says I. This is where the idea of a Ring of Honor comes into play. Letting teams celebrate the players who helped to build a franchise up to what it is today without necessarily honoring them in such a way as to make them deities. With the Anaheim Ducks in the midst of their 30th season as a franchise, I decided to take a look at which players from Orange County hockey history would be worthy of inclusion in the inaugural induction class for the Ducks’ Ring of Honor.
Note: For this exercise, we are not considering any active players. All stats courtesy of Hockey-Reference.com
Steve Rucchin, Center (1995-2004)
616 GP, 153 G, 279 A, 432 Pts, 140PIM
This always has been and always will be a league built around stars. And while I am certainly not here to dissuade anyone of that notion, I would be remiss not to point out that for many stars, its the players who do all of the other things that allow them to be their best and reach their full potential. This is where one Steve Rucchin enters the conversation. Taken second overall in the 1994 NH supplemental draft, Rucchin quickly emerged as a crucial member of the then Mighty Ducks centering Paul Kariya, and later Teemu Selanne, one Anaheim’s top line. A strong two-way player who garnered some minor Selke consideration over the years, Rucchin found himself with the best seat in the house to watch one of the most dynamic duos in the history of the league take the league by storm. That being said, he was a fair bit more capable than perhaps most fans remember or appreciate. He currently sits at sixth all time in games played, goals, and assists as well as fifth in points for Anaheim. There is also perhaps no greater tribute to his importance and status in Ducks lore than the fact that he was named captain for the 2003-04 season, bridging the gap between the Kariya era and the Scott Neidermayer era.
Bobby Ryan, Right Wing (2008-2013)
378 GP, 147 G, 142 A, 289 Pts, 251 PIM
The second most famous number 9 in the history of the Anaheim Ducks, Bobby Ryan leaves behind a complicated legacy, largely through no fault of his own. Drafted second overall in 2005, Ryan is indelibly tied to the great “what if” that comes from his being taken with the pick immediately after Sidney Crosby. Still, despite not being The Kid, Bobby Ryan was one of the most exciting and dynamic offensive players to dawn the webbed D. Combining elite puck skills with a disgusting mixture of size, speed, and power Ryan used his incredible talent and abnormally long stick to score buckets of goals in the early 2010’s for Anaheim. The third and final piece of the “RPG Line”, Ryan found himself playing with Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry for the majority of his time in Anaheim, forming one of the most dominant top lines in the entire league. Whether off the rush or on the cycle, Bobby Ryan’s absurd goal scoring talent helped establish the Ducks as one of the preeminent powers in the West during his time in Southern California. Although he was ultimately traded to the Ottawa Senators for a package that included future Ring of Honor inductee Jakob Silfverberg, Ryan’s four straight 30 goal seasons to start his career included a number of highlight reel plays in both the regular season and the playoffs.
Stu Grimson, Left Wing (1993-1995; 1998-2000)
231 GP, 5 G, 8 A, 13 Pts, 583 PIM
Stu “The Grim Reaper” Grimson was a fourteen year NHL journeyman and who played less than 250 games in Anaheim. That being said his 231 games in Southern California, albeit across two stints with the team, are the most games he played for any single franchise. The 6’4″ 240 lb winger was one of the most feared and formidable enforcers in the history of the game, and he plied his wares in Anaheim during their very first year in existence. Not only would did he make a name for himself in around the league as one of the league’s premier pugilists, but it’s hard to argue his presence on that very first Mighty Ducks squad didn’t set a precedent for Anaheim to almost always have a true heavy weight on the team as the years went on. Players such as Todd Fedoruk, Brad May, George Parros, and Nic Deslauriers are might as well all have been rostered with the Stu Grimson Scholarship Program. While Grimson isn’t perhaps the sexiest or most obvious choice for the final forward spot, the blood he left on the ice night after night has become engrained in the DNA of this franchise. And for that, he enters the Ducks Ring of Honor as a plank-owner.
Francois Beauchemin, Defenseman (2006-2008; 2011-2015; 2018-2018)
592 GP, 56 G, 140 A, 196 Pts, 360 PIM
Franky “Boom Boom” Beauchemin played almost 600 games over three separate stints in Anaheim. His rugged defensive game and overpowering slapshot from the point made him a fan favorite from the jump. While he only cracked 10 goals and 30 points once (and not in the same season by the way) he was a staple in the Ducks’ top-four, averaging over 22 minutes a night in all but one of his seasons in Anaheim. While he was understandably overshadowed by the presence of future Hall of Famers Scott Neidermayer and Chris Pronger, Beauch was an integral member of the Ducks’ team that saw Anaheim capture the first and only Stanley Cup in franchise history. The Quebec native is ninth all-time (third amongst defensemen) in games played for Anaheim, as well as fourth in goals, assists, and points amongst defensemen. The hard-hitting blue-liner finished his career having appeared in 101 playoff games for the Ducks, recording 10 goals, 29 assists, and at least one incredibly memorable fight.
Ruslan Salei, Defenseman (1996-2006)
594 GP, 29 G, 79 A, 105 Pts, 735 PIM
One of only two defensemen to play more games than Beauch, Ruslan Salei was the Ducks’ first real franchise defenseman. Drafted 9th overall in 1996 and pushed to the front of Anaheim’s slow build to relevance after the Ducks traded Oleg Tverdosky to Winnipeg for Teemu Selanne, the Belarusian blue-liner found himself playing over 20 minutes a night in his sophomore season and never looked back. Salei was everything good and bad about late 90’s defenders. He had an incredible knack for taking just about the worst penalties you can imagine while simultaneously being able to shutdown opposing team’s best forwards using his 6’1″ 210lb frame around the net. While he never produced offense at an elite level, he scored one of the biggest goals in Ducks history during the 2003 playoffs against the Devils in the finals, leading to the birth of the phrase “The House that Rusty Built” in regards to the then Arrowhead Pond. Funnily enough that goal would be quickly overshadowed by another game winner from a fellow mid 90’s Ducks draft pick, but we don’t need to get into that right now. For now we can just remember the big hits, the big goals, and the giant personality that was Ruslan Albertovich Salei. Or, as I prefer to remember him, Rusty.
Guy Hebert, Goalie (1993-2001)
441 GP, 173 W, 27 Shutouts, .911 SV%, 2.76 GAA, 5 Pts
For many fans, no one seems to embody the earliest era of the Mighty Ducks quite like Guy Hebert. While Selanne and Kariya grabbed the most headlines in those early years, Guy Hebert was tasked with backstopping the struggling expansion team throughout their most difficult stretch. The Original Mighty Duck was 27 years old in Anaheim’s inaugural season and was largely tasked with providing some (read: any) amount of legitimacy and consistency to a team that saw Bob Corkum emerge as the leading goal scorer in year one, nothing a robust 23 goals in 76 games. To his credit Hebert ultimately ended his tenure in Anaheim with by receiving Vezina votes three separate times, his best being a 4th place finish in 1996-97 in which he also received a single fifth place Hart Trophy vote. Nowadays Ducks fans can find Hebert on the Ducks broadcast where he provides humorous and insightful commentary before and after games, and during intermission as well. On the list of players who ultimately won’t have their numbers retired but will forever hold a special place in the hearts of fans and the lore of the franchise, Hebert is firmly at the top.
So there you have it folks, the first ever class inducted into the Anaheim Ducks’s Ring of Honor. Anyone you think was left out? Anyone you think shouldn’t have been included? Let me know in the comments below or on twitter @anacalling_fhf and @TheHockeyBoomer. If I don’t hear from you, I can only assume you agree with all of my choices and I should assume I’m perfectly correct and justified in my assessment as always.