Marchand left off fan ballot for Mooseheads' top 25 of all-time

Mooseheads seeking fan input on all-time greats They can pick from a list of 25, but one notable name is not on the ballot. Natasha Pace reports.

The Halifax Mooseheads are celebrating their 25th anniversary this year and, as a way to commemorate the occasion, the team is turning to the fans to name their favourite players in franchise history.

But, there’s one famous former Moosehead that is not even on the ballot.

If you ask fans who have been the top players in the history of the QMJHL franchise, there's no shortage of names.

“I'm gonna say Nathan MacKinnon for number one,” said Jake Boudreau. “I don't know if it gets any better than him. He's the best of all time.”

“Giguere, the goalie, was good,” said Mark Lavers. “Oh, Jonathan Drouin should be on that list.”

Doug Taylor offered second votes for Jean-Sebastien Giguere and MacKinnon.

“As far as a fan favourite, Jody Shelley.”

The team is asking fans to select their favourite Mooseheads in franchise history from dozens of names to create a top all-time 25.

“It's a fun way to celebrate the 25th anniversary and engage the fans that made it possible,” said Brian Urquhart, the Halifax Mooseheads president. “So, we really hope the fans have a lot of fun with it making their choices.”

There is one notable name missing from the ballot: Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins who once played part of one season for the Mooseheads.

“You should still put him on there,” said Boudreau. “How much bigger do you get than Brad Marchand? He's up there for sure.”

The Mooseheads say they had to choose from hundreds of former and current players and Marchand only played for a short period of time.

"I mean Brad is obviously a great player, a great player at the next level, but we had to draw some lines in certain areas,” Urquhart said. “A guy like Nico Hischier spent his whole year here, played 57, 58 games was also a first-overall pick.”

While some fans may be surprised Marchand isn't an option, Alex Joseph, a former advisory board member for the Halifax Mooseheads, isn’t.

“He played 40 games and you can't measure the yardstick with a player that played 40 games,” Joseph said. “Some players progress later on. … Brad Marchand, when he was here, was just an average hockey player. He's now an impressive hockey player.”

Fans have until Nov. 30 to select their favourite players.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Natasha Pace.