Who is the Greatest of All Time? Inspired by Sunday Night Football's promo featuring Bulls legend Michael Jordan, we've put together a Mount Rushmore of the greatest players in the history of all five of Chicago's teams. These are Chicago's GOATs.
There have been many Hall of Fame players to don an Indianhead sweater over the course of the Blackhawks' 92-year Original Six history, making it difficult to single out only four players for this exercise. But these are the four that immediately come to mind when factoring in just how much each of them impacted the franchise upon their arrivals.
Stan Mikita
Nobody resembled what it means to be a Blackhawk better than "Stosh." He spent 22 seasons in the NHL and all of them came in an Indianhead sweater for a total of 1,551 games, including playoffs. His 1,467 points ranks first in franchise history along with his 150 points in the postseason. Mikita is a two-time Hart Trophy winner, two-time Lady Byng Trophy winner, four-time Art Ross Trophy winner, a nine-time All-Star and helped lead the Blackhawks to their third Stanley Cup in 1961. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983.
Bobby Hull
Known as "The Golden Jet" for his ability to skate like the wind, Hull became the first player in Blackhawks history to score at least 50 goals in a season during the 1961-62 campaign and would end up doing it four more times in his 15 years in Chicago. Hull sits atop the franchise leaderboard in goals (604), game-winning goals (98) and ranks second in games played (1,036). He and Mikita teammed up to lead the Blackhawks to a Stanley Cup in 1961 and their contributions to the team led to the organization putting statues of the two legends outside the United Center.
Jonathan Toews
NHL
Drafted third overall by the Blackhawks in 2006, it didn't take long for the organization to realize they had selected a franchise-changing player. Toews was named the youngest captain in Blackhawks history on July 18, 2008 at 20 years and 79 days, which was the third-youngest in NHL history at the time. He's scored at least 20 goals in each of his first 11 seasons with the Blackhawks, but has also been a consistent finalist for the Selke Trophy as the best defensive forward and won it 2012-13. Toews etched his place in Blackhawks history when he compiled 29 points (seven goals, 21 assists) in 22 postseason contests in 2010 to help the Blackhawks break a 49-year Stanley Cup drought and was awarded the Conn Smythe for playoff MVP. He's the only captain in Blackhawks history to hoist the Stanley Cup multiple times (three).
Patrick Kane
The Blackhawks have held the No. 1 overall pick just once in team history, which came in 2007. And they haven't looked back since after selecting Kane, who won the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie in 2008. He already ranks fifth in franchise history with 846 points, fourth in postseason points with 123 and is tied with Hull and Mikita for most game-winning goals in Blackhawks playoff history with 11, which has included a Stanley Cup-clinching overtime winner and a double overtime winner to send Chicago back to the Stanley Cup Final. After a history 106-point season in 2015-16, Kane became the first player to win the Art Ross Trophy and Hart Trophy since Stan Mikita did it in 1967-68. He has consistently delivered in the biggest moments, which has led to three Stanley Cups for the Blackhawks in a six-year span from 2010-15, which included a Conn Smythe Trophy for the Buffalo native in 2013. Kane is arguably the clutchest player in Blackhawks history. One day, Kane and Toews will have statues just like Hull and Mikita.
Click here to download the new MyTeams App by NBC Sports! Receive comprehensive coverage of your teams and stream the Blackhawks easily on your device.