ScottM

I like what Montreal is getting more than what Nashville is, since I'm higher on Weber generally speaking than Subban, but I understand what the Preds were probably going for. Subban is three years younger and has a bit more offensive ability, a la support for Rinne. Still, I think Montreal wins. Better leadership, and far more consistent play.

As always, thanks for the kind words, guys. Sadly, Gordie retired about 3 1/2 years before I was born, so I never got to see him play. I have only YouTube and articles to rely on. Still, I would consider myself remiss if I didn't study up on him. He's one of the game's greats, and I think everyone should be at least somewhat informed on him. It's only fitting.

Floral, Saskatchewan, is listed as a ghost town on Wikipedia. A local farmer maintains what is left of the town, which consists of now defunct church and school buildings. Much of the cemetery consists of unmarked graves, and it would surprise many to learn that many of the bodies in said graves bear a famous name. That name is one that is near and dear to all of us who call ourselves hockey fans. For, you see, although no one could have known it at the time, on this very date 88 years ago, the course of the sport of hockey was changed in that tiny, now abandoned village. That was the date that the world welcomed the great Gordie Howe. I always give my best effort to be open-minded when dealing with things such as player ranking lists. Like anyone else, I have my own opinions, and while it may be generally hard to sway me, I enjoy a good discussion centered around such lists. I can hear out a well-reasoned opinion even if I don't ultimately agree. There are few positions that I consider to be completely unassailable. However, there are only four skaters for which I could really consider any argument as the greatest ever. I would also find it very hard to stomach the idea of any one of those guys being ranked outside of the top four. It should go without saying that Mr. Hockey is one of those four players. No matter how you slice it, he is among the elite of the elite in the sport of hockey. If you want single-season performance, Gordie Howe is your man. Six times, he was named as the NHL's most valuable player six times and as the WHA's MVP once. He led the NHL in goals five times, assists three times, and points six times. He was named to the NHL's first or second all-star team a whopping 21 times and to the WHA's first all-star team twice. If you want longevity, the sheer number of all-star selections is a good starting point. Then, consider the fact that he played until he was 52 and was still effective right up until the end of his career. The second oldest player in NHL history retired at 48, and Jaromir Jagr, who is now the second-oldest forward in history is still eight years behind Howe. Is toughness important to you? Gordie Howe is still your man. The trifecta of a goal, assist, and a fight is called a "Gordie Howe hat trick." Scarcely has a player ever had such an impact on so many aspects of the sport. One man who testified to the complete, well-rounded nature of Mr. Hockey's game was a man who could probably fairly be called Howe's biggest rival: Maurice "Rocket" Richard. There were plenty of comparisons between the two. Both played right wing. Both wore jersey number #9. Both were known for their fiery tempers. If those things were not enough to permanently link the two to one another, an altercation during Howe's rookie season left it beyond any doubt. After being shoved by Richard during a game, Howe turned around and knocked the rocket out cold with a single punch. The Stanley Cup finals linker them further, with Howe's Red Wings and Richard's Canadiens squaring off four times in the 1950'sYet, despite the comparisons, the battles between their teams, and that run-in between the two, there was an immense respect. When Richard retired in 1960, he paid tribute to his former rival saying, "Gordie could do everything." Something that many are unaware of, however, is that Richard, and all of us almost did not get a chance to see what Mr. Hockey was capable of. In the 1950 playoffs, a failed attempt to check Toronto's Ted Kennedy sent Howe head first into the boards.The results were nearly fatal, not only to Howe's career, but to Howe himself. After the impact, he lay motionless on the ice, unconscious and bleeding. His skull was fractured, and surgery was required to relieve the pressure on his brain and save his life. As we now know, it took a lot more than a fractured skull to keep Gordie Howe down: the next season, he won his first scoring title and began to establish himself as -- at the very least -- the greatest player of his era. In 1971, Mr. Hockey retired, and the hockey world thought it had seen the last of its great superstar. His wrist was in bad enough shape that to continue to play would require surgery, and Howe found retirement preferable. He held nearly every offensive career record there was. There was nothing left to do, right? Wrong. Two years later, Mrs. Hockey, Colleen Howe came up with a plan to allow the Houston Aeros to choose 19-year old Marty Howe and 18-year-old Mark Howe in the WHA's professional draft, and then sign Gordie, allowing her husband to fulfill a lifelong dream of one day playing with his sons. Suddenly, the idea of the surgery seemed worth it, and Gordie returned to the ice. The WHA's MVP award was renamed in his honor, and he captured the trophy in the 1973-74 season. The trio of Howes would ultimately play together for seven seasons: four with the Aeros, two with the New England Whalers in the WHA, and one final season with the freshly renamed and now NHL member Harftford Whalers. The significance of that one final season in the NHL should not be overlooked. Since the season ended in 1980, it meant that Gordie Howe had played in the NHL for at leas part of each of five separate decades, establishing a legacy that looks untouchable. Sadly, I do not know how aware Mr. Hockey might be of the significance of this day. I do not know how sharp his memories of his career may now be. I had the privilege of personally corresponding with his son Marty several months ago, and I was sadly given the news that Gordie is unable to retain anything for more than about 30 seconds. The ravages of age, dementia, and a stroke have taken their toll on this once strong and proud man. Nonetheless, today, I wish you a happy birthday, Mr. Hockey. Even if you do not recall all of it, we do. We have not forgotten you or your accomplishments, and neither has the game. We never will.

In the southern United States, where I live, football reigns supreme. In SEC country, you could make a strong argument that college football is THE sport. People down here eat, breathe, and sleep football. Thus, when a couple of teams from the region have a dominating run, it is a very big deal. When those two teams are bitter rivals, it is an even bigger deal. That is exactly what has happened in my neighboring state of Alabama recently. Either the Alabama Crimson Tide (Roll Tide!) or the Auburn Tigers have played in six of the last seven National Championship games, with Alabama winning titles in 2009, 2011, 2012, and 2015, and Auburn winning the 2010 title and finishing as runner-up in 2013. Such accomplishments are rare, but the province of Alberta accomplished something very similar in the NHL back in the 1980s, when the Oilers won five Stanley Cups in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990, and coming in as runners-up in 1983, and the Calgary Flames won the 1989 Cup while coming in as runners-up in 1986. In cases like these, the stakes are much higher than bragging rights merely within the borders of Alabama or Alberta, but for complete dominance of the sport itself. This then, is the story of how the Battle of Alberta became the battle for the sport of hockey. When the Edmonton Oilers reached the Finals in 1983, it marked the first time that one of the former WHA teams had advanced that far. The series certainly did not go the way Edmonton hoped, since the Islanders won their fourth consecutive Cup in a sweep, but it set up what would be a dramatic changing of the guard the next season. The teams rematched in 1984, and the Oilers' five game win marked the end of one dynasty and the beginning of another. In fact, the Oilers did not just win the series, they dominated, outscoring the Islanders 21-12, and picking up three wins of three goals or more. The Oilers picked up another dominating win in 1985 against the Philadelphia Flyers, but hit a road block in 1986: their arch-rivals, the Calgary Flames. The Oilers won their fifth consecutive Smythe Division title in 1985-86, in addition to winning the President's Trophy. So dominant was their performance on the season that they finished 30 points ahead of the Flames (who took second in the division). But of course, when the playoffs begin, the regular season no longer matters. When the rivals squared off in the postseason, the Flames took a hard-fought seven game win, and eventually made their way to the Stanley Cup Finals. Unfortunately for Calgary, they ran into the Montreal Canadiens and the rookie phenom goalie Patrick Roy and dropped the series in five games. The Oilers would return to the top in 1987, but it would not be easy. They breezed through the playoffs en route to the Finals, losing only two games in the first two rounds. The Finals, however, were a much different story. The Oilers once again met the Flyers, and this time, Philly would push them to the brink. Philadelphia fought back from a 3-1 series deficit to force a seventh game, and took an early lead in game seven. The Oilers, however, bounced back to win the game and the series. An unusual feature of the series was the fact that Ron Hextall, the Flyers goalie, won the Conn Smythe Trophy despite his team's losing the series. The 1988 Finals were fought between the Oilers and the Boston Bruins, and hold a unique distinction. The series is the only five game sweep in NHL history. The Oilers won the series 4-0 in five games. Yes, you read that correctly. With the Oilers leading the series 3-0, game four had to be called and rescheduled late in the second period with the score tied 3-3 because of a power failure in Boston Garden. Despite the cancellation, the game was still considered official, leading to the unusual distinction of the series. The Oilers had a rematch of their 1985 series against the Flyers in 1987 and would have a rematch of their 1988 series against the Bruins in 1990, but they were not the only Alberta team that faced repeat Finals opponents in the province's run of dominance. When the Flames returned to Finals in 1989, they once again faced the Montreal Canadiens. The storyline was much different than the first meeting, as the Flames won the series 4-2. It was the end of a storybook run for not only the Flames, but for one of their co-captains, Lanny McDonald. Having earned his 1,000th point and 500th goal during the regular season of his last campaign, he finally accomplished the one goal that trumps all others: winning the Stanley Cup. The image of McDonald holding the Cup over his head is still one of the sport's most enduring moments. Alberta had one more year of its stranglehold left. The Oilers made another trip to the Finals, but the former face of the franchise was gone. Having been traded to the Los Angeles Kings, Wayne Gretzky was no longer part of the team, and Mark Messier had taken over the captaincy. It made little difference however, as the Oilers won the series in five games. One feature of note for the series was that it was the last Finals appearance for Ray Bourque until he finally won the elusive trophy in 2001. Since that time, each of Alberta's NHL teams have made the Finals just once (in back-to-back series, incidentally). The province's control of the sport is now long gone, but the run that the Flames and Oilers combined to create is one for the ages. In fact, I am unaware of any similar run for any state or province until Alabama's recent run in college football. It is a memory now, but for just shy of a decade, the Battle of Alberta was more than just that. It was the Battle of the World.

@yave1964 The more I think about it, the more I agree that those should have been separate points. I mentioned the 31-4 penalty minute advantage the Soviets had in game five above, and that alone could probably account for the Canadian loss in that game. @BluPuk I think you're absolutely correct to credit the Canadian fans present in Moscow. There was a big difference between being booed off the ice in Vancouver after game four and hearing the cheers and singing of "O Canada" after game five. Did that give the team the boost needed to fight through all the garbage that they went through? Possibly, I'd say.

@yave1964 I did include the officiating under gamesmanship I guess, though you are correct that it could have been another point. IIRC, in game five, the Canadians were whistled for 31 penalty minutes while the Soviets got four. Those were the officials that the Soviets were fighting to have in game eight. While I obviously don't condone Parise's near assault of an official, it's really not hard to understand his level of frustration. I didn't want to disparage the Soviet team, because they were great, but I've long felt that the Canadian team doesn't get the credit due.

The 1972 Summit Series between the Canadian and Soviet national teams was one of the most monumental events in hockey history. On top of that, the game-winning goal by Paul Henderson to complete the Canadian comeback is now considered one of the most iconic moments in the sport's history. Despite the fact that the Soviet team had already begun its impressive Olypmic gold medal run, it was still a coming out party of sorts for the "Big Red Machine." The Summit Series left no doubt that the best Soviet players could hold their own with the best Canadian players and that North America no longer had a stranglehold on the top levels of the sport. That said, in this post, I want to give a few reasons why I do not think that the Summit Series would have been quite as close as it was with all things being equal. Reason #1 Unreasonable Expectations Say what you want about the players being professionals. Having the weight of the expectations of a country -- or the weight of the Western world, in some respects -- is a tough load for anyone to carry. Thanks to the "us versus them" mentality of the Cold War, that is exactly where team Canada found themselves. While it is true that the Soviet team would have felt that pressure to some degree, there was something that added to the pressure on the Canadians: they were not only expected to win; they were expected to win big. After all, hockey was Canada's sport. In fact, no less of a name than goaltending legend Jacques Plante brashly predicted that the Canadians would sweep all eight games. So sure was he of that prediction and that Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak would be embarrassed that he offered advice to Tretiak that he thought would help to temper that. Allan Eagleson agreed. "We gotta win in eight games. Anything less than an unblemished sweep of the Russians would bring shame down on the heads of the players and the national pride." I say all of that to say this: had the Summit Series been a true exhibition series with no pressure on, I believe that would have helped the Canadians a little. Reason #2 Soviet Gamesmanship This one took a lot of different forms. Perhaps there was some suggestion of what was to come when the Soviets downplayed their chances by stating they were playing merely to learn. During the course of the series, the Soviets practically threw a fit after game two, blaming the officials for their loss and demanding a change of officials for game four. Before game eight, they nearly reneged on an officiating agreement hoping to have two officials that had heavily favored them in game five. It took a threat of the Canadians pulling out to force a compromise. During games played in Moscow, the goal official sometimes refused to turn on the goal light after Canadian scores. In fact, Canadian coach Harry Sinden went as far as to send his entire team onto the ice to ensure that Henderson's goal in game seven would be counted. The gamesmanship was not restricted to the on the ice product. It reached as far as the players' wives. Originally, arrangements were made to house the Canadian players and their wives in separate hotels, nearly leading to a boycott by the Canadians. Even after new arrangements were made to house both the players and their wives in the Intourist, the poor treatment of the wives continued. They were fed substandard food and resorted to going to the dressing room looking for more food. Reason #3 Missing Players Part of this could be avoided; part of it could not. The team was without Bobby Orr, who was injured. Sinden wanted Bobby Hull on the roster, but the NHL insisted that WHA players be ruled ineligible, guaranteeing that Hull could not suit up for Canada. Before the tournament began, Gerry Cheevers, Derek Sanderson, and J.C. Tremblay all became inelligible for the same reason. Harold Ballard, the owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and no fan of the WHA argued for the inclusion of WHA players. Hockey Canada governor Phil Reimer resigned over the controversy. No less of a name than Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau waded into the conversation, hoping to guarantee that Canada put out its very best, but it was all for naught as Hockey Canada refused to back away from its agreement with the NHL. There can be no doubt that if those involved could have moved past hurt feelings and grudges that names like Hull could have played. In no way could that be called unavoidable. As for Orr, injuries are definitely a part of hockey, but if we are going to consider a perfect environment for the series, he would have been there too. If the Summit had been held at the right time, under the right circumstances, Team Canada could have been a bit better. Reason #4 Poor Conditioning Consider the fact that after game five, Gilbert Perreault asked to return home in order to get into shape for the upcoming NHL season. That tells you all you need to know about the conditioning of the Canadian team. Several of the Canadian players commented on how poor their conditioning was compared to their Soviet counterparts. However, Bobby Clarke also commented on how the series changed as the physical shape of Team Canada improved. "Our conditioning was poor. But once we got into shape and were at the same level of physical conditioning as them, we were able to handle it. And once we got into the same condition as them and had some games under our belt, they couldn't handle us." Clarke's comment makes sense when the Canadian and Soviet portions of the series are compared. The Canadians went 1-2-1 in Canada and 3-0-0 in Moscow. Would they have fared better had they started the series in better shape? It seems highly likely. Reason #5 The Soviet Team The last word is the key word: team. Ostensibly, they were amateurs. Officially, many of them were in the army. In reality, they were hockey players. They were amateur in name only. In fact, the rosters of the Soviet National Team and the dominant Soviet League team, CSKA Moscow were largely the same. Therefore, in addition to training together as the national team, many of the players were familiar with one another as teammates on the club level. That fact was key in helping the Soviets establish their dominance in Olympic and World Championship competitions. There was, of course, no such set up for the Canadians. There were 14 teams in the NHL at the time, and the top players were spread out across those rosters. Since "professionals" were not allowed to play in the Olympics in those days, there was no "Canadian National Team" in the same sense as the Soviets had one. The Summit Series was then, a true team playing against a group of scattered all-stars. There can be no doubt that the Soviets proved their mettle. There can be no doubt that they outperformed expectaions, and they are certainly worthy of recognition for such. They certainly had some of the best players in the world. But, all things said, I think the Canadians were better than their record indicated. Then again, maybe we owe the Soviets some thanks. After all, they proved to us North Americans that we are not the only ones who can play great hockey.