Frank Mahovlich Was More Than Just a Maple Leafs Legend

Every once in a while, it is worth going back and looking at some of the players whose careers predated most of us paying attention. Frank Mahovlich is one of those players. Five years ago, the argument was made that Mahovlich was the greatest left winger in Maple Leafs history. That still feels like a pretty easy decision. The more interesting question today is whether younger fans really understand just how good he was.

Mahovlich landed in Toronto and quickly scored 20 goals.

Mahovlich arrived in Toronto in 1957-58 and immediately made an impression, scoring 20 goals and 36 points and winning the Calder Trophy. He quickly became known as "The Big M," and the nickname made sense. At 6-foot-1, he was a big player for his era, but he wasn't simply a big body along the boards. Mahovlich could skate, handle the puck and shoot it with real authority.

There is something familiar about that combination. In his day, Mahovlich was a little bit like Auston Matthews. Obviously, the game was completely different, and comparing players across six decades can get silly in a hurry. But the basic idea is recognizable. He was a big, gifted offensive player who could use his size, skating and shot to create problems that other players couldn't easily solve.

Mahovlich put up great numbers in more than 700 games in the Blue & White.

The numbers are impressive, too. Mahovlich played 720 regular-season games for Toronto and finished with 597 points, including 296 goals. He helped the Maple Leafs win four Stanley Cups during the 1960s and played in the playoffs nine times as a member of the organization.

But here is the part that can get lost. Mahovlich wasn't great simply because he happened to play on four championship teams. He was one of the players who helped make those teams championship teams. That difference matters.

It is easy to look backward at a successful era and give the organization credit as a whole. The Maple Leafs won four Cups, so naturally the stars from those teams become part of a larger historical picture. But Mahovlich wasn't a supporting character in that story. He was one of the main characters.

Mahovlich went on to play for two other Original Six NHL teams.

He eventually played for Detroit and Montreal as well, winning two more Stanley Cups with the Canadiens. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1981. Five years later, the point remains the same: Frank Mahovlich belongs near the very top of any discussion about the greatest wingers in Maple Leafs history.

And perhaps the best way to appreciate him isn't to compare his statistics directly with today's players. It is to remember what he represented in his own time — a big, powerful, highly skilled winger who could take over a game.

The game changes. Great players don't.