For some, Clark “Jethro” Gillies does not have the numbers to belong in the Hall of Fame. For others, he is an obvious choice. See, Gillies is one of those players who contributions to team success are measured less with statistics and more with the intangibles. This is not to say Gillies could not put up numbers, because he could, but Gillies was the heart and soul of a New York Islanders team that dominated the NHL for a time until those pesky Oilers rose to prominence.

Let’s first look at his numbers. He scored 30+ goals six times including a stretch of four consecutive seasons. However, he never netted forty in a season. His career high in assists was fifty-six and he never cracked the 100-point barrier. He never finished in the top-ten in assists or goals and only once finished in the top-ten in total points with 91. During his fourteen seasons, he played in only one All-Star game. For his career, he finished with 319 goals, 378 assists for a total of 697 points in 958 games. Those are hardly the numbers of a Hall of Famer, right? And he even played in an offensive era. So why is he enshrined?

Gillies was a warrior and a winner. Few were tougher than Gillies and even fewer won as often. His Islander team won four straight Stanley Cups, beginning with the 79-80 season and ending with the 82-83 season. They would end up losing in the finals to the powerhouse Oilers the following season. During their Stanley Cup run, Gillies played in 66 games and tallied 47 points. Not too shabby, but that’s what Gillies did; he raised his game when it counted the most. During the 76-77 playoffs, he scored three consecutive goals, tying a record. 93 of his career goals came on thepowerplay,which account for nearly 1/3 of his career goals. In addition, 54 of his shots found the back of the net to decide a game. He was also named to two straight 1st NHL All-Star Teams.

Having said all of that, I think what benefited Gillies the most and helped him get into the HOF was the fact that he played on the same line as Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier, two no-doubt HOFers, which formed the feared Trio Grande line. When you have linemates putting up gaudy numbers (Bossy was averaging 60+ goals, while Trottier was averaging 40+), you are bound to look good. Add that to the four straight Cups and he looks like a HOF. It’s the same reason there are a lot of Montreal Canadiens in the HOF; they played on dynasties and their reputation is inflated a bit. I’m not saying Gillies isn’t a HOF, but I see why some people question his inclusion.

Gillies finished his career with the Buffalo Sabres, playing two forgettable seasons with them. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2002.

As for the card; I absolutely LOVE this set for autographs, maybe even more than I love the Inkredible set. The cards look real sharp and the signatures really pop. There is a bit of texture to the cards which, when I first heard about these made me wonder how they would read. In person, they look fantastic. I have a few guys from this set and they all look great. It’s interesting that they chose to go with a younger, non-mustachioed Gillies who captained the Islanders early in his career. Overall, the Brushstrokes autograph set gets an A+ from me!

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