Top 10 NHL Enforcers of All Time: No. 9 Stu Grimson

Say whatever it is about Stu Grimson that you have to but he does deserve a spot on my top ten list. The guy was nicknamed the “Grim Reaper” for heaven sakes!

Stu faced just about every other tough guy in the league during his days as he played around the league for the Calgary Flames, Chicago Blackhawks, Anaheim Ducks, Detroit Red Wings, Hartford Whalers, Carolina Hurricanes, Los Angeles Kings, and the Nashville Predators. That’s a lot of teams.

In 729 games in the NHL he raked up 2113 penalty minutes, collected only 39 points, and dropped the gloves 268 times.

The native of Vancouver, British Columbia was drafted 143^rd overall by the Calgary Flames in 1985.

Stu was always a tough guy from day one, but he didn’t really become one of the top NHL heavyweights until his days with Hartford. That’s when people say he added some muscle and worked a lot on his balance and technique as a fighter.

When the Whalers moved to Carolina to become the Hurricanes, we saw Grimson and New Jersey’s tough guy Krzysztof Oliwa, have a great feud. They fought a lot over the next few season and both put up some pretty good showings.

Later on when he played in Los Angeles he had some great feuds with Georges Laraque and Scott Parker.

His final season with Nashville wasn’t great for Stu, he suffered from post-concussion syndrome and couldn’t fight anymore, so he was forced to retire.

Stu had some great scraps with Bob Probert throughout his career. He even won a couple against him and Probert is as tough as they come.

Grimson was also known for his aggressive style of play and short temper. He did take a couple cheap shots and people and went crazy a couple times on the ice. But in the long run he was doing it all for his team. He was a great enforcer and made a big name for himself in the NHL.

Note: This is part two of a ten part series.

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