Goalies knees tremble when they are face the men represented on this list of the top 10 hardest slapshots in the NHL. Goaltenders have good reason to be afraid. Each of the NHL players listed has the capability to unload a slapshot in excess of 100 MPH. Imagine a piece of frozen, vulcanized rubber coming at you at that velocity. It’s no wonder they wear such large pads. The guys with the hardest slapshots in the NHL are the true rock stars of hockey. The first thing every kid practices when they get on the ice is the slapshot. They all want a howitzer like Phaneuf or Ovechkin. Every player in the NHL, right down to the 4th line goon, who plays only 2 shifts a game, has a harder slapshot than most of us mere mortals, but the men represented on the list of the top 10 hardest slapshots in the NHL have taken the slapshot to an art form, perfecting a blend of power and technique that allows them to exceed the magical 100 MPH barrier. Here are my picks for the hardest slapshots in the NHL:
10 – Chris Pronger
Known primarily as being one of the meanest, nastiest competitors in the sport, this former Hart trophy winner’s game is so deep, that his devastating slapshot is rarely talked about, being just a a small facet of his dominant overall game. Still, this Anaheim duck d-man can unload a slapshot that routinely approaches 100 MPH, is low and accurate, and results in numerous powerplay goals for his team.
9 – Bryan McCabe
Though, he didn’t show it this past season as much as he has in the past, Bryan McCabe possesses, without question one of the hardest slapshots in the NHL. The combination of Tomas Kaberle’s slick passing skill, combined with McCabe’s devastating one-timer slapshot, make this duo one of the deadliest powerplay combinations in the NHL. McCabe’s powerful slapshot was such a weapon it forced defending teams to adjust their penalty kill, cheating over to McCabe’s side of the ice to prevent him from winding up. It is most likely this adjustment that resulted in McCabe’s lower numbers this past season.
8 – Daniel Alfreddson
This skilled Swede might be a surprise entry on the list of the top 10 hardest slapshots in the NHL, but watch him wind up and crank a bullet from the point, and you will see why he earned a spot. With a smoothness, and a swing speed that any golfer would envy, Alfredsson puts every ounce of his 205 lb frame behind the puck when he tees off. It is rare for a forward to play the point on the powerplay, but Alfreddson’s shot is so hard and accurate that Ottawa is willing to chance the occasional defensive breakdown to have him there.
7 – Evgeni Malkin
Another example of a forward with such a hard slapshot that his team is willing to trust him on the point of the powerplay. In this case, it is even more surprising as Pittsburgh’s all-star defenseman, Sergei Gonchar possesses a respectable cannon of his own. With’s Malkin’s hulking size he can put a lot of mustard behind a slapshot, and though he is known more for his highlight reel goals, goalies around the league will tell you it is Malkin’s slapshot they fear more than any other aspect of his impressive offensive game.
6 – Alexander Ovechkin
Is there anything this guy can’t do? He can skate, hit, stickhandle, has a blistering wrist shot, and, oh yeah, he also possesses one of the top 10 hardest slapshots in the NHL. No wonder Alexander the Great scored 65 goals this past season. His accuracy, combined with the incredible velocity of his slapshot, and the speed with which he gets it away, make him the most feared shooter in the game today. There’s simply no way to shut this guy down.
5 – Dion Phaneuf
The most devastating open ice hitter since Scott Stevens, Dion Phaneuf’s physical prowess overshadows his offensive contributions, but this tough-as-nails Calgary blueliner can rip a slapshot with the best of them, and he’s bulged the twine on 54 occasions so far in his brief NHL career, most of those goals coming on blistering slapshots from the point.
4 – Brian Rolston
This unrestricted free agent is going to command big dollars this off-season, and a big part of the reason is because of the incredible slapshot he possesses. Not only is his shot hard, but it is always low and accurate, making it hard for goalies to get across in time when he unloads a one-timer. So confident is he in his slapshot, Rolston actually teed up during a shootout last year. The goalie, unprepared for such a move, could only flinch in surprise as the puck blew past him.
3 – Ilya Kovalchuk
This Russian sniper has already eclipsed the 50 goal plateau twice in his brief career, and many of those goals came on blasts from the point, where he unloads on a regular basis on the powerplay. With the exception of Ovechkin, no other shooter is as feared as Kovalchuk. When he isn’t driving the puck past goalies with his 100 MPH slapshot, he is beating them cleanly with his blink-and-you-missed-it flick wristshot. Truly one of the greatest pure shooters in NHL history.
2 – Sheldon Souray
Sheldon Souray spent the bulk of last season in the press box nursing injuries, but the season before, as a member of the Montreal Canadiens, he absolutely shot the lights out. This entry at number 2 of the top 10 hardest NHL slapshots can’t be argued by anyone who watched Souray play that season. He set an NHL record for powerplay goals by a defenseman, and all credit has to go to his incredibly lethal slapshot. With the incredible positional play and lateral movement of today’s goaltenders it is almost impossible for even the hardest shooters to beat them cleanly from the point, yet Souray accomplished the feat again and again, routinely blowing pucks into the open side of the net before the helpless goalie could so much as wave an arm.
1 – Zdeno Chara
Standing 6’9″ tall (~7 feet on skates) and weighing 260 lb, this Slovakian giant puts every ounce of his towering frame behind a slapshot, and is a no-brainer for the top spot on the list of the top 10 hardest slapshots in the NHL. His power has translated to success in the all-star game skills competition and he is now the perennial winner of the hardest shot competition, much like Al MacInnis was before him. When he has time and space to wind up, goalies can only crouch at the top of their crease and hope it hits them.
