Pete DeBoer was scratching his head.
The San Jose Sharks head coach indicated that he took issue with Joe Thornton's omission from the NHL's "Greatest 100" players list revealed Friday in Los Angeles as part of NHL All-Star weekend.
"I did expect him to be there," DeBoer said Saturday, according to Yahoo's Greg Wyshynski. "I was actually shocked that he wasn't there."
Forever underappreciated, Thornton is a top 25 scorer in the history of the NHL and second to only Jaromir Jagr among active players. And there's plenty left in the reserve.
Thornton tumbles below recognized forwards Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, and Patrick Kane when comparing production on a points per game basis, but his numbers are superior across the board to that of Jonathan Toews - one of three members of the Chicago Blackhawks dynasty to make the list.
Thornton isn't the only active player with damning evidence to suggest that he's deserving of one of the 100 slots. Evgeni Malkin's 1.178 points per game is 14th all time, and ahead of Ovechkin, Jagr, and Kane; Jarome Iginla ranks 16th all time in goals; and Zdeno Chara racked up six Norris Trophy nominations in the space of 11 seasons, wherein which he ruled with an iron fist.
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