All-Time Most Feared Fighters in the NHL

Switchdoctor
Updated September 2, 2022 58.5K votes 7.0K voters 268.9K views

Fighting has been a part of the NHL for as long as the league has existed. Considering this, there's likely a great deal of fans out there who watch hockey just to see the best fighters in the NHL really go at it. 

Call 'em hockey goons if you dare, enforcer type skaters are often one of the most popular players on their respective teams both with fans and with their teammates. With that in mind, who are the all-time most feared fighters in the NHL?

Check out the list of top NHL fighters below and vote up the ones you'd fear most. You can also add any that didn't make the list. 

  • 1
    2,858 VOTES

    Bob Probert

    Bob Probert
    Video: YouTube
    Robert Alan Probert (June 5, 1965 – July 5, 2010) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward. Probert played for the National Hockey League's Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks. While a successful player by some measures, including being voted to the 1987–88 Campbell Conference all-star team, Probert was best known for his activities as a fighter and enforcer, as well as being one half of the "Bruise Brothers" with then-Red Wing teammate Joey Kocur, during the late 1980s and early 1990s. Probert was also known for his off-ice antics and legal problems.
    2,858 votes
  • 2
    2,104 VOTES

    Joey Kocur

    Joey Kocur
    Video: YouTube
    2,104 votes
  • 3
    1,712 VOTES

    Dave Schultz

    Dave Schultz
    Video: YouTube
    David William "The Hammer" Schultz (born October 14, 1949) is a Canadian businessman and former professional ice hockey coach and player. Schultz is renowned as one of hockey's greatest enforcers and holds the NHL record for most penalty minutes in a single season, at 472. Schultz was born in Waldheim, Saskatchewan, but grew up in Rosetown, Saskatchewan.
    1,712 votes
  • 4
    1,886 VOTES

    Tie Domi

    Tie Domi
    Video: YouTube
    Tahir "Tie" Domi (born November 1, 1969) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player. Known for his role as a grinder, he played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers and Winnipeg Jets over a sixteen-year NHL career. He has more penalty minutes than any other player in the history of the Maple Leafs (see Maple Leafs records) and third overall in penalty minutes in NHL history.
    1,886 votes
  • 5
    1,173 VOTES

    Clark Gillies

    Clark Gillies
    Video: YouTube
    Clark Gillies (April 7, 1954 – January 21, 2022) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He played for the New York Islanders and Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League between 1974 and 1988. Gillies served as captain of the Islanders from 1977 to 1979, and won the Stanley Cup four years in a row with them, from 1980 to 1983. In 958 career games, Gillies recorded 319 goals, 378 assists, and 1,023 penalty minutes. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2002.
    1,173 votes
  • 6
    1,496 VOTES

    Marty McSorley

    Marty McSorley
    Video: YouTube
    Martin James McSorley (born May 18, 1963) is a Canadian former professional hockey player, who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1983 until 2000. A versatile player, he was able to play both the forward and defense positions. A former head coach of the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League (2002–04), aside from his hockey career, McSorley has worked as an actor, appearing in several film and television roles. McSorley was a valued teammate of Wayne Gretzky during their years playing together for the Edmonton Oilers and Los Angeles Kings, where he served as an enforcer. In 2000, his on-ice assault of Donald Brashear with his stick, in which Brashear suffered a severe concussion, led to McSorley's suspension and eventual retirement from the NHL.
    1,496 votes