Washington Capitals: Top 10 toughest players of all-time

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Rod Langway, Washington Capitals ( Photo by Graig Abel Collection/Getty Images) /

#3 Rod Langway

Rod Langway was one of the best defensive defenseman to suit up for the Washington Capitals. He was a tough defender. He joined the Capitals in 1982-83 and made an immediate impact. He won the Norris Trophy that season for the league’s best defensemen. He would win it again in 1983-84.

Langway holds the Capitals franchise mark for plus/minus rating with plus 117. No other player is even in triple digits for plus/minus. He is one of only four Capitals players to have their sweater retired.

Joe Pelletier of WashingtonCapitalsLegends.com wrote more about the two Norris Trophies:

"“This is an amazing accomplishment when you consider how rare it is for a defensive d-man to win the award since the arrival of Bobby Orr in the late 1960s. Since Orr revolutionized the role of a defenseman from defender to attacker, the trophy almost always went to the best offensive defenseman. For Langway to capture the Norris trophy twice based on his defensive excellence and not his offensive elements is the best tribute to how good he was. And to make it even more impressive, Langway beat out superstars Ray Bourque, Denis Potvin and Paul Coffey. Coffey in particular dared to come close to Orr’s offensive exploits, yet the NHL recognized Langway’s great play over that. Langway was also the first American player to win the award.”"

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