I know I'll be flamed for "pro-rating" stats, but let's just say he played all 82 games and put up:
16g 51a 67/68p +34
That plus/minus alone would put him right at the top of the heap with Chara, and the points would be second only to Karlsson. Yes, he missed 31 games, but if he was healthy, I would definitely have to say he would not only be a Norris finalist, he would be have what might be regarded as the best all-around season for a defenceman in Penguins history.
Hard to say, I think Letang's dominance stems a lot from the entire team.
Last year he was a powerhouse, then Sid and Geno went down and he didn't look as hot. No doubt he has the abilities to be a Norris candidate, even a winner, but I think he has to provide that dominance consistently throughout the entire year.
I'd agree with OP in that a healthy Letang likely wins the Norris. He was flat out dominant this season and had a lot of that success without Sid. Would have been close between him and Karlsson, though.
If you are a GM and you had the chance to have Letang, Chara, Karlsson or Weber for 1 season who would you pick? My order is Chara, Weber, Karlsson and then Letang
If you are a GM and you had the chance to have Letang, Chara, Karlsson or Weber for 1 season who would you pick? My order is Chara, Weber, Karlsson and then Letang
For one season? I'd go Chara, Weber, Letang, Pietrangelo, then Karlsson.
If Karlsson doesn't win the Norris something's really wrong. This isn't a Mike Green scenario where the kid is a liability on defense. He's actually very solid and led all defenseman in takeaways this year.
Pro-rated maybe there's a case for Letang, but in actual, real-life results this year...Karlsson clearly had the best season. He had 25 more points than the next closest d-man...what else does he have to do to make it a slam dunk?
If Karlsson doesn't win the Norris something's really wrong. This isn't a Mike Green scenario where the kid is a liability on defense. He's actually very solid and led all defenseman in takeaways this year.
Pro-rated maybe there's a case for Letang, but in actual, real-life results this year...Karlsson clearly had the best season. He had 25 more points than the next closest d-man...what else does he have to do to make it a slam dunk?
Yeah man...one of my favorite goals from this year...but in all fairness, there are probably only a handful of defencemen in the league who prevent that play from being either a Crosby goal or assist once he gets that puck. Not that I don't think that Karlsson has some serious defensive deficiencies though.
I think a healthy Letang wins the Norris hands-down this past season (it will get closer in future years as guys like Subban, Pietrangelo, Doughty, Karlsson, OEL & others round out their games).
He would have been 2nd to Karlsson in points, but as good in his own zone as guys like Weber & Chara. That makes him the winner this year, IMO.
If Karlsson doesn't win the Norris something's really wrong. This isn't a Mike Green scenario where the kid is a liability on defense. He's actually very solid and led all defenseman in takeaways this year.
Pro-rated maybe there's a case for Letang, but in actual, real-life results this year...Karlsson clearly had the best season. He had 25 more points than the next closest d-man...what else does he have to do to make it a slam dunk?
I like the guy, but he is a liability in the defensive zone. He is good at breaking up plays in the neutral zone with his skating, but in his own zone he's just too small to win battles along the boards.
He was the front runner when he went down (the first time), see no reason why it wouldn't have continued. He wasn't that far behind Karlsson in pts at the time, and noticeably better in his own end.
Letang was picked to play in the All-Star game after missing 21 games. He was then picked 5th in the "draft" by Lundqvist and Alfredson. It goes to show how much respect he has in the league from opposing players.
I know there were even some articles from the Flyers media that said that part of the Flyers game plan was to try and stop Letang.
Over the summer he usually works hard on some aspect of his game and he has improved steadily each season. If that is the case this summer, hoping his hip injury is taken care of, he may even take his game to another level.
So yes, a healthy Letang could win the Norris and would have had a pretty good shot this season if he had played the whole season.
I would definitely have to say he would not only be a Norris finalist, he would be have what might be regarded as the best all-around season for a defenceman in Penguins history.
what is the board consensus on Randy Carlyle's Norris winning 1980-81 season? his line was 16-67-83 in 76 games at age 24, but how was he defensively? he was 4th in the league in both Total Goals On-Ice For and Total Goals On-Ice Against.
I am still hunted by that five minutes open net and Tanger waiting for Bryzgalov to slide over and lift his glove so he can put it in....If that one was in, we would ne in different place today....
Hard to say, I think Letang's dominance stems a lot from the entire team.
Last year he was a powerhouse, then Sid and Geno went down and he didn't look as hot. No doubt he has the abilities to be a Norris candidate, even a winner, but I think he has to provide that dominance consistently throughout the entire year.
When Sid & Geno went down, Letang tried to do way too much and for a bit he was still effective until teams focused on him and basically rendered him useless...then when all you have to shut down is Staal and the next center is Letestu, it wasn't too hard to really keep the Pens at bay offensively.
Hard to say, I think Letang's dominance stems a lot from the entire team.
Last year he was a powerhouse, then Sid and Geno went down and he didn't look as hot. No doubt he has the abilities to be a Norris candidate, even a winner, but I think he has to provide that dominance consistently throughout the entire year.
Letang was still good when Sid and Geno went down. Defensively he continued to be a rock for us.
The offense dried up but how many defensemen would put up a lot of points with the forwards Letang had in front of him? I doubt Karlsson would have fared much better offensively with those forwards.
Letang was still good when Sid and Geno went down. Defensively he continued to be a rock for us.
The offense dried up but how many defensemen would put up a lot of points with the forwards Letang had in front of him? I doubt Karlsson would have fared much better offensively with those forwards.
I just can't agree with that. He's really sloppy. I love his compete level and that he gets back to break up a lot of break aways but he's just covering up for mistakes. IMO he was as bad as anyone in the playoffs.
At the start of last year he was playing a smart, composed game and points were just coming to him without playing that flawed game. Thats the player he needs to be because he to damn good to have so much waste in his game.
I just can't agree with that. He's really sloppy. I love his compete level and that he gets back to break up a lot of break aways but he's just covering up for mistakes. IMO he was as bad as anyone in the playoffs.
At the start of last year he was playing a smart, composed game and points were just coming to him without playing that flawed game. Thats the player he needs to be because he to damn good to have so much waste in his game.
I'll agree with this. He has so much raw talent and passion, but he often gets caught out of position and has to use his athleticism to make up for it. He needs to cut the sloppy crap and learn when to take chances. He's already a hell of a player. I can't wait till he puts it all together consistently.
He had a legitimate shot at it, but I think Karlsson's numbers were just demented enough that he'll probably win it regardless. Although at some point maybe we need an offensive D award separate from Norris which should be all-around best D... since we have separate award for best defensive forward, seems reasonable.
No. The Norris, like the Vezina, is a body of work award, which is why Lundqvist will win over and Quick, and why Weber will win the Norris. Letang could've been a finalist, which would make it more likely to win in the future, but he wouldn't have won it this year unless his numbers were Karlsson-esque.
