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Between the 1999-2000 and 2007-2008 NHL seasons, the legendary Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings won six Norris Trophies as the league’s best defenseman; during this stretch, the only other blueliners to take home the honors were Chris Pronger of the St. Louis Blues in 1999-2000 and Scott Niedermayer of the New Jersey Devils in 2003-2004. Both were outstanding players in their own right, Hall of Fame defensemen who dominated for well over a decade apiece, actually played together in Anaheim, and even won a Stanley Cup together. As among the best defensemen of their generation NOT named Nicklas Lidstrom and one-time teammates, this begs the question:
Who was better – Scott Niedermayer or Chris Pronger?
The Beginning
Niedermayer and Pronger were both elite junior hockey players in Canada and top NHL draft picks in the early 1990s; each would slowly, but surely establish himself as a quality defenseman in the league.
Born in Edmonton and growing up in British Columbia, Niedermayer took up hockey at a young age along with his younger brother Rob (who also later played in the NHL). As a junior, he spent three seasons with the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League (WHL), where he led the team to the President’s Cup as WHL champions, and was an All-Star and winner of both the Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Trophy as the WHL’s scholastic player of the year and the Canadian Hockey League Scholastic Player of the Year award. In the 1991 NHL Entry Draft, Niedermayer was selected third overall by the New Jersey Devils; he played four games for New Jersey in 1991-1992 before returning to the WHL, where he would win the 1992 Memorial Cup and earn the Stafford Smythe Memorial Trophy as MVP. After joining the Devils full-time in 1992-1993, Niedermayer had 11 goals and 29 assists for 40 points and a +8 +/- rating.
Meanwhile, a native of Ontario, Pronger played junior hockey for the Stratford Cullitons Jr. B club and was originally committed to play NCAA hockey at Bowling Green State University with his older brother Sean; however, he was drafted by the Peterborough Petes of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and ended up playing two years there, where he established himself as a top prospect. As a result, Pronger was drafted second overall in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft by the then-Hartford Whalers (now the Carolina Hurricanes) and had a solid rookie year with 5 goals and 25 assists for 30 points with a -3 +/- rating. Following the lockout-shortened 1994-1995 season, Pronger was traded to the St. Louis Blues for forward and fellow future Hall of Famer/tough guy Brendan Shanahan.
Career Comparison
For nearly two decades each and across multiple teams, Niedermayer and Pronger were among the best defensemen in the NHL, even teaming up on the same defensive corps later in their careers to form a truly formidable blueline.
As part of a stout New Jersey defense that included all-time wins leader Martin Brodeur in goal and fellow Hall of Fame defenseman Scott Stevens, Niedermayer improved to 46 points (10 goals and 36 assists) with a career-best +34 +/- rating in 1993-1994. Over the next couple of seasons, he settled into a scoring rate of around 0.5 points per game, though did record the only negative +/- rating during his time in New Jersey in 1996-1997: 5 goals and 30 assists for 35 points with a -4 +/- rating. Statistically, Niedermayer had his best season with the Devils in 1997-1998, putting up 14 goals and 43 assists for 57 points and a +5 +/- rating to finish fifth for the Norris Trophy, the best showing during his first decade in the NHL. This was followed by two more strong seasons around the 40-point mark, though he was suspended for 10 games late in the 1999-2000 season for swinging his stick at the head of Peter Worrell of the Florida Panthers (who would suffer a concussion).
As the calendar turned to the 21st century, Niedermayer was consistently solid, though perhaps unspectacular playing in the Devils’ defense-minded system, tallying three straight seasons of 30-40 points with at least a +10 +/- rating. Then, with injuries to Stevens and defenseman Brian Rafalski in 2003-2004, Niedermayer took on an even larger role – assuming the captaincy with Stevens out, he responded with 14 goals and 40 assists for 54 points (second among defenseman) and a +20 +/- rating, helping the Devils to a modern-day NHL-low of only 164 total goals allowed; for his efforts, Niedermayer won the Norris Trophy and also finished ninth for the Hart Trophy (league MVP). However, after going to arbitration with the team and then missing a full season due to the lockout, Niedermayer became an unrestricted free agent; citing a desire to play with brother Rob, he signed with the Anaheim Ducks, where he was immediately named as team captain.
As a member of the Ducks, Niedermayer would have some of his best statistical seasons. During his first year in Anaheim, he had 13 goals and 50 assists for 63 points with a +8 +/- rating, nearly winning the Norris Trophy again (second to Lidstrom) and also finishing eighth for the Hart Trophy. With Pronger joining the team in 2006-2007 (more on that shortly), Niedermayer had career-highs of 15 goals and 54 assists for 69 points with a +6 +/- rating, again finishing second in Norris voting (again to Lidstrom) and seventh in Hart voting. Over the last three seasons of his career, Niedermayer would have a negative +/- every year, but still posted two more top-10 Norris finishes, including another 50-point season in 2008-2009 (14 goals and 45 assists for 59 points with a -8 +/- rating). Following another strong season in 2009-2010 (10 goals and 38 assists for 48 points with a -9 +/- rating), he retired at age 36.
Meanwhile, in St. Louis, Pronger teamed with Al MacInnis to form a potent one-two punch from the blueline and blossomed into one of the league’s best defensemen. After a ho-hum first year with the Blues and additional improvement the next season, Pronger was named captain in 1997-1998 and responded with 9 goals and 27 assists for 36 points with a league-best +47 +/- rating to finish third in Norris voting. Following a fourth-place Norris finish in 1998-1999 (13 goals and 33 assists for 46 points with a +3 +/- rating), Pronger had a career-year in 1999-2000: with career-highs of 14 goals and 48 assists for 62 points with a league-best +52 +/- rating, he not only won the Norris Trophy, but also took home the Hart Trophy in the then-closest finish ever (he edged out Jaromir Jagr by just one point); moreover, he was just the second player ever to win the Norris and Hart Trophies in the same year, after Bobby Orr, who accomplished the feat in three consecutive seasons during the late 1960s/early 1970s. As an encore, Pronger was actually on pace for his highest scoring season ever, but only ended up playing in 51 games in 2000-2001 due to injuries and finished with 47 points (8 goals and 39 assists) with a +21 +/- rating. This was followed by another top-five Norris finish the next year, but he would then miss all but five games in the 2002-2003 season; nevertheless, Pronger bounced back with 14 goals and 40 assists for 54 points with a -1 +/- rating to finish third for the Norris Trophy in 2003-2004.
Post the 2004-2005 lockout and with new salary cap restrictions in place, the Blues traded Pronger to the Edmonton Oilers for Eric Brewer, Jeff Woywitka, and Doug Lynch. As Edmonton’s defensive anchor, he had a strong year in 2005-2006, totaling 12 goals and 44 assists for 56 points and a +2 +/- rating. Despite leading the team to the Stanley Cup Finals, however, he requested a trade after just one season and was thus sent to the Anaheim Ducks for Joffrey Lupul, Ladislav Smid, a 2007 first-round pick (later sent to the Phoenix Coyotes and used on Nick Ross), and a conditional first-round pick (based on the Ducks reaching the Stanley Cup Finals within the next three years; they did and Edmonton then used the pick on Jordan Eberle).
In his first season with Anaheim in 2006-2007, Pronger was third in Norris Trophy voting (13 goals and 46 assists for 59 points with a +27 +/- rating), finishing behind Lidstrom and his new teammate Niedermayer. With Niedermayer holding out early in the 2007-2008 season, Pronger would assume the captaincy that year and ultimately spent three years with the Ducks, posting at least 40 points each season with two top-10 Norris finishes. However, after the 2008-2009, he was traded once again, this time with Ryan Dingle to the Philadelphia Flyers for Joffrey Lupul (again), Luca Sbisa, two first-round draft picks, and a conditional third-round draft pick. Once again, he started off strong in a new environment with yet another top-five Norris Trophy campaign (10 goals and 45 assists for 55 points with a +22 +/- rating) in 2009-2010. Unfortunately, injuries limited Pronger to just 63 total games over the next couple of seasons, and he would retire post the 2011-2012 season at age 37.
Though both defensemen played 18 NHL seasons, Niedermayer’s better durability resulted in approximately 100 additional games played – as a result, he produced slightly more career goals, assists, and points than Pronger, albeit with a slightly worse +/- rating; conversely, on a per-game basis, Pronger eked out a tiny lead (0.60 points per game vs. 0.59). Pronger also had more All-Star Game selections (6x vs. 5x) and won the Hart Trophy, but Niedermayer won a Conn Smythe. Given the similarities in their career numbers and achievements, Niedermayer and Pronger were both selected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in their first year of eligibility, the former in 2013 followed by the latter in 2015.
Regular Season Statistics
| Scott Niedermayer | Player | Chris Pronger |
| 18 (1991-2010) | Seasons | 18 (1993-2012) |
| 1,263 | Games Played | 1,167 |
| 172 | Goals | 157 |
| 568 | Assists | 541 |
| 740 | Points | 698 |
| +167 | +/- | +183 |
| 5x | All-Star Games | 6x |
| – | Hart Trophies | 1x |
| 1x | Norris Trophies | 1x |
| 4x | Stanley Cups | 1x |
| 1x | Conn Smythes | – |
| – | Other Awards | – |
| 2013 | Hall of Fame Induction | 2015 |
Source: Hockey-Reference.com
During their long and storied careers, both Niedermayer and Pronger made multiple trips to the Stanley Cup Finals and together, helped lead the Ducks to their first (and currently only) title in franchise history.
Between the Devils and the Ducks, Niedermayer played in the postseason 15x (11x New Jersey and 4x Anaheim), making it to five Finals and winning four Stanley Cups (including four and three with the Devils, respectively):
- 1995: swept Sergei Fedorov and the Detroit Red Wings; had 4 goals and 7 assists for 11 points with +11 +/- rating in the playoffs, though the next season, the Devils would become the first defending champions to miss the playoffs in 26 years
- 2000: beat the Mike Modano, Ed Belfour, and Brett Hull-led Dallas Stars in six games; tallied 5 goals and 2 assists for 7 points for a +5 +/- rating in the postseason
- 2001: looking to repeat, but fell to a star-studded Colorado Avalanche team led by the likes of Patrick Roy, Joe Sakic, Peter Forsberg, and Ray Bourque in the full seven games; no goals and six assists with a +7 +/- rating during the playoffs
- 2003: beat a Ducks team that included Paul Kariya and Scott’s brother Rob in seven games; put up two goals and a playoff-leading 16 assists for 18 points with a +11 +/- rating in his final Stanley Cup with New Jersey
As members of the Ducks, Niedermayer and Pronger would guide Anaheim to its first-ever Stanley Cup, beating Daniel Alfredsson and the Ottawa Senators in five games in the Finals; as a result, the Niedermayer brothers fulfilled a childhood dream of winning the Stanley Cup together. Individually, Niedermayer had 3 goals and 8 assists for 11 points with a +2 +/- rating and won the Conn Smythe for postseason MVP; meanwhile, Pronger tallied 3 goals and 12 assists for 15 points and a playoff-best +10 +/- rating, but was suspended for one game each in both the Western Conference Finals and the Stanley Cup Finals for two separate dangerous hits on opposing players.
Additionally, during Pronger’s 15 total postseason appearances (9x St. Louis, 3x Anahaim, 2x Philadelphia, 1x Edmonton), he made two other Stanley Cup Finals, but fell just short of the title both times. In his lone season with Edmonton, he led the team with 5 goals and 16 assists for 21 points and a +10 +/- rating in the playoffs to guide them to the 2006 Finals vs. the Carolina Hurricanes (the team’s first Finals appearance since Mark Messier led them to their last title in 1990); however, the Oilers lost in seven games to the Hurricanes, though Pronger did score the first penalty shot goal in a Finals game. In 2010, Pronger helped lead the Flyers to the Finals vs. the Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews-led Chicago, but Philadelphia would fall in six games; overall, he had another strong playoff showing with 4 goals and 14 assists for 18 points with a +5 +/- rating.
As members of Team Canada, Niedermayer and Pronger were both part of the gold medal-winning teams at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and the 2010 Games in Vancouver (where Niedermayer was named team captain). In addition, Niedermayer won both gold and silver medals at World Cups, while Pronger was part of a gold medal-winning World Championships team.
Playoff Statistics
| Scott Niedermayer | Player | Chris Pronger |
| 202 | Games Played | 173 |
| 25 | Goals | 26 |
| 73 | Assists | 95 |
| 98 | Points | 121 |
| +20 | +/- | +40 |
Source: Hockey-Reference.com
Every athlete goes through a natural career lifecycle, from starting off as a rookie to reaching peak years of performance and finally, declining into the inevitable retirement due to a combination of age and/or injury; Niedermayer actually remained an effective player for essentially the entire duration of his career, while Pronger was plagued by injuries in his later playing days, which ultimately forced him to retire. For Hall of Fame caliber players across sports, I like to look at a concept I call a “decade of dominance.” The thinking behind this is that for most Hall of Fame type careers, there are roughly 10 great seasons that define an athlete, though due to injury or other factors, they might not be 10 consecutive years.
Decade of Dominance
| Scott Niedermayer | Player | Chris Pronger |
| 1997-2000, 2001-2004, 2005-2009 | Decade of Dominance | 1997-2002, 2003-2004, 2005-2008, 2009-2010 |
| 753 | Games Played | 736 |
| 118 | Goals | 112 |
| 365 | Assists | 393 |
| 483 | Points | 505 |
| +99 | +/- | +195 |
Source: Hockey-Reference.com
The decade of dominance numbers are just as close as their overall career statistics, but lean a little bit more in Pronger’s favor – Niedermayer scored a few more goals, but Pronger had more assists and total points (in slightly fewer games, no less) and had a significantly better +/- rating (no doubt helped by the two seasons in St. Louis where he led the league in +/- rating).
My Thoughts
In terms of playing style, Scott Niedermayer and Chris Pronger were a study in contrasts – Niedermayer was known for his finesse style and superb skating abilities, whereas Pronger was a menacing physical presence at 6’6” and 220 pounds (though sometimes known for being dirty). Different as they were, the on-ice results were similar, so who to choose? Niedermayer was definitely the more accomplished team player as part of four Stanley Cup-winning teams, but as clearly skilled as he was, he often took a backseat for much of his Devils career to the likes of Brodeur and Stevens; it was not until towards the end of his New Jersey tenure that he truly blossomed into a leader and go-to guy, which carried over into his time with the Ducks. Meanwhile, Pronger was consistently the type of centerpiece player you could build a team around, from being just the second defenseman ever to win the Norris and Hart Trophies in the same year to guiding a previously mediocre Oilers team to the Stanley Cup Finals in his first (and only) season with the team; while he was not always healthy, and sometimes the best ability is availability, Pronger was a truly dominant player when he took the ice.
Thus, after weighing their careers against each other in terms of statistics, achievements, and impact, the winner of this faceoff is:
Chris Pronger
As always, vote for your choice and leave your thoughts and comments below.
Further Reading
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