Canadiens Great Doug Jarvis’ Case to Be Inducted into Hall of Fame – Hockey Writers – Canadiens History

Former Montreal Canadiens player Doug Jarvis only knew championship glory in his first four seasons in the league as a member of the team’s 1970s pedigree. That alone isn’t worth a ticket to the Hockey Hall of Fame, if only for the fact Jarvis hasn’t been inducted. You still have a lot of guilt to find a phone that will do that, though.

Consider how former Canadien teammate Shea Weber was recently released (and added to the team’s Ring of Honor prior to their 5-1 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on November 16) without winning a championship. Especially in this day and age, with so many teams in the league to the point where winning it all is so difficult, Stanley Cup success is not the be all and end all.

Related: Canadiens Well Represented as Weber Inducted into Hockey Hall of Fame

If you look at the flipside of the coin, and the power defense that exists, which every other Jarvis’ teammate on those powerful Habs teams does, there should be a tendency to want to draw the line somewhere. Jarvis was the wrong name to do that.

Jarvis’ Ironman Streak Flew Under the Radar

As it stands, 10 players from that Canadiens dynasty have been awarded induction into the Hall of Fame: Yvan Cournoyer, Guy Lapointe, Jacques Lemaire, Serge Savard, Ken Dryden, Bob Gainey, Guy Lafleur, Rod Langway, Larry Robinson and Steve Shutt. None stand out as undeserving, and, if Jarvis were to eventually join the list, he would be among many, but only to those who are not well aware of all his accomplishments.

For example, Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki is the team’s third-longest hitting streak with 391 among players still playing (Brent Burns, 859; Ryan Suter, 471). Those tend to be less publicized, like Jarvis’ streak of 964, which finally made headlines a few years ago when Keith Yandle broke the record and Phil Kessel quickly broke his own.

Perhaps it’s not the most flattering title one can have, like some of the goalscoring records that exist these days. However, it is worth celebrating. That’s true, even if it’s because of how memorable it is that Jarvis was named the recipient of the 1987 Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, after breaking Gary Unger’s record.

Jarvis may no longer own it. However, that his streak ended in October 1987, literally days after Kessel was born, and that Yandle started a new one in January 2022, more than 34 years later, is part of the point. Made a healthy scratch for the first time in his three-game career in the 1987-88 season, Jarvis never played another (from ‘A Tribute to the NHL’s Ironman – Doug Jarvis,’ Modern NorthumberlandJan. 25, 2022).

Jarvis Wins Masterton

Finally, for a long time, Jarvis had a piece of NHL history. He undoubtedly set the standard for endurance, yes, but also commitment. In fact, his name was immortalized because of it, as evidenced by the aforementioned trophy, which is awarded to the player who best exemplifies dedication to the game.

Some against his induction into the Hall of Fame might argue that one trophy doesn’t do the job, at least for the rest of the Hall of Fame. However, what the streak was supposed to be: consistency from when he started for the Canadiens as a newly drafted rookie in 1975 (No. scratched.

Think about that for a second. Jarvis never played another NHL game, meaning he never missed one either. A member of the Hartford Whalers organization at the time, he finished his career with their American Hockey League affiliate in Binghamton with 24 more games as a player coach, transitioning to his second job behind the bench. After decades there, he added two more Stanley Cups as an assistant coach (Dallas Stars, 1999; Boston Bruins, 2011) to his four as a player.

A Key Member of the 1970s Canadiens Dynasty

The root of the argument is that, for the longest time as a player, nearly 1,000 games, Jarvis has been seen as one of the NHL’s top defensive centers. Gainey, a teammate (and teammate on the side of Jimmy Roberts/Rick Chartraw), made his bones as one of the best defensemen in NHL history, winning the Frank J. Selke Trophy for that reason his first four years. The fact that Gainey entered the Hall of Fame despite never being a great scorer, with a career-best 47 points in 1980-81, shows that Jarvis shouldn’t continue to be held back if that’s not actually going to happen to him (a. career-best 48 in 1981-82 on record).

In terms of relationships, Gainey’s praise actually speaks to Jarvis’ ability as an institution, including celebrities to deal with. That skill not only helped earn him a spot on those star-studded Canadiens teams of the 1970s as a rookie, which is crazy in itself, but it stuck in the NHL. And, yes, in case there was any doubt, he ended up getting his own Selke (1984).

So, it’s not just one trophy with Jarvis’ name on it. Two… and six trophies in total. It almost seems like his name in the Hall of Fame should be just a habit. Of course, it doesn’t work like that. In fact, based on how much time has passed since Jarvis left the game as a player, that call may never come. Jeremy Roenick, who was eligible for years, was selected along with Weber in 2024, offering hope that Jarvis could finally get it.

If Jarvis does, it certainly won’t just be for the Cups, but his entire resume. Looking at his NHL career, they were just the beginning. Sticking to the game in various capacities since, as in his time as a game iron, there is no end in sight. Hopefully this specific chapter will bring him closure one day, though. The right way.