ScottM

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.

@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.

Pavelski was certainly a diamond in the rough, being taken in the 7th round, but he's not eligible for this particular list since he was chosen in the draft.

Very nice summary. It's that move from tragedy to triumph that made me decide to tell his story. People get so caught up in their difficulties and sometimes decide to give up. Malarchuk proved that while it may be tough, it is possible to fight through. He's trying to help others see that now, and I think he deserves to have that known.

@ruxpin You absolutely picked up on the point to my post. I'll build on it a bit more, though. After I finished typing it and looked back over it, something struck me. In the last two examples I gave, the two guys that I said I think should have been finalists were teammates with the winners, which makes me wonder even more what role a forward bias might have played.

Did the fact that Trottier was so good in 1979 push votes away from Potvin or Lafleur from Robinson? I don't really know if there's a way to prove or disprove the idea, but on the surface, it doesn't appear that being teammates with an MVP-caliber forward is any kind of help at all to a defenseman in a Hart race.

I won't fuss too much with that. Hasek had a great season, no doubt. I guess for me it all goes back to my ideas about when a goalie should win the Hart. Hasek was clearly the best goalie that season, but there were plenty of worthy candidates among skaters making it a little harder for me there. But yeah, Lindros had a great season, and it's not like I think his win was a travesty or anything like that.

Btw, though, Chris Osgood and Jocelyn Thibeault tied for second in save percentage that year with a .917.

Anyway, I'll stop there, because that's all another discussion.

@BluPuk I fully believe that the Leafs deserved that last place ranking I gave them last week, but they deserve this rise just as much. I say that to point out just how stark the turnaround has been. A little over a week ago, most fans would have seen Toronto on the schedule and assumed it to be a win. Now that they're one of the hottest teams in the league, that can no longer be done.

I believe the Habs are much more dangerous this year than last. Last season, if Max Pacioretty had gone down, the offense would have gone down with him, their scoring is far more balanced this year. It's nox Max, PK, Price, and then everybody else.

I knew the Sabres would be better, but in flashes, they've been better than I thought. I still don't believe they'll make the playoffs, but it may be closer than I expected.

@WordsOfWisdom I thought that would make your day. Lol

Thank you. I didn't want to let a day like yesterday pass without some sort of expression of appreciation on this blog.

@WordsOfWisdom It's a bit early to say for sure, but you may get your "wish" this week. We shall see for sure in about four days.

All of those are outstanding lines, and I agree that the Trio Grande is probably the closest comparison. I think that it's more than just the 1-2-3 scoring finish that makes the Production Line top the list, though. I mean, who would want to play against a line Howe, Lindsay, and both of their mean streaks staring back? Those guys were three complete players if there ever were such.

Actually, I have to defend Andersen. Things could be much worse if not for him. Since they're dead last in goals scored, they could be far, far worse than -14 in goal differential. Andersen has posted outstanding numbers so far. His goals against average is 2.03, and his save percentage is .934. He's been one of the best netminders in the league so far.

@BluPuk That surprises me a lot less. A lot of the choices are really hard to make, and sometimes there are four or five teams fighting for the same spot. Plus, there's the challenge of balancing overall performance and recent performance. But yeah, the main goal is trying to get some conversation started. That's always fun.

But, Habs #1? Seriously? And I think you should flip #6 and #7.

Well, like I said, I almost dropped the Habs, but they had put themselves so far ahead that I couldn't do it just yet. They seemed to return to form last night anyway.

Because of the nature of this kind of list though, if those are the only two disagreements you have with what I posted, I find that rather remarkable. I debated with myself more than that. Lol

"Tyler Seguin"

 

Who needs Tyler Seguin when you've got...... Full Kessel?  

 

#BrianBurkeTradeLegend

I literally laughed when I read that.

This list is a joke.  Vancouver at 24?  Tampa at 20?  And yes, Buffalo at 26?   I assure you check back in a month and see where the Sabres sit. I know one thing, they are above the Flyers right now

We've been down this road before on other lists, so I'm not going to debate you. You may not disagree with a list or a comment, but that doesn't make it a joke.

I'm not trying to be rude, but if you want to have a discussion in good faith, I'm all for it, and I'll entertain that discussion, but I won't have anything more to say otherwise.

I think it's funny that it seems that just about anytime you read anything about Taylor online, the legend that he once scored a goal backwards is mentioned. Supposedly, he once said while with Renfrew that he would score a goal backwards against his former team, Ottawa. They responded by vowing to keep him off the score sheet. The Silver Seven won that "challenge," but the legend refuses to die.

There were several teams that I thought had a legitimate argument for the number two spot, and the Caps are one of them, there were a couple of large groups of teams that were hard to sort out, and second through seventh was one of them.

The Hurricanes are definitely making a "strong case" for moving down, but the good news for them (and everyone else near the bottom) is Columbus. Even when they play better, that team still can't win.

Thanks a lot. I really would have liked to have included a bit more information about Demers's entry into politics, but it was kind of hard to find. I was glad to at least have the connection between him and Mahovlich to include.

@WingNut722 My apologies for being so slow in responding. Yeah, I don't think I'll ever forget that day. I think it left a mark on all of us. The feeling of having the air sucked out of a perfectly beautiful day is still chilling to me as well. It left a mark on those of us who lived through it.

Thanks a lot, guys.

Outside of sports, there was 9/11. At least for a while, everyone came together after that tragedy

The Miracle on Ice had a TV rating of 23.9/37, and while it wasn't broadcast live, the tape delayed broadcast drew 32.4 million viewers. People in areas which are certainly not hockey hotbeds watched the game. It was the feel good moment that we could actually beat the Soviets in something.

Even so, I still agree with you that in the sports world, it's hard to think of any time that an event had such an impact on the nation as the Richard Riot. In many ways. hockey is inseparable from the history of hockey. In a sense, the sport and the nation grew up together.

@yave1964 I agree that there was some ethnic bias against Richard because of being his being French, but I also believe that chip you mentioned caused it to be played up to more than it was. I really think it went both ways. But yeah, they are definitely a different breed in Quebec.

@WingNut722 I don't really think there is a clear cut comparison to hockey in Canada in the United States, though baseball would probably be the closest thing. Ironically, the most unifying sports event in American history is likely hockey: the Miracle on Ice.

You're very welcome, and thank you for the kind words. I think there may be some truth to what you said. If the current generation doesn't know about the events that trigger a situation, they may not have any feeling for the grievances, thus causing the issue to subside. Regardless, it's interesting to see how sports can affect an entire nation. Sometimes, they're of major cultural impact.

Honestly, despite all the negativity surrounding Yashin. I think it will be difficult excluding him as a candidate among the best Ottawa players...

He'd be down the list a bit for me. I'd certainly have Alfredsson, Karlsson, and Spezza in front of him at a minimum. Other players that maybe weren't as skilled might be ahead of him too, simply because they made good contributions to the team and didn't create any drama. He'll make my all-time Senators team when that comes around, but I'd certainly have a few guys above him if I were ranking players.

Yeah, I shed no tears over seeing Yashin go either. The great thing about it from my perspective as a Sens fan was that all the heartache made the team better in the end. They weathered the storm of Yashin's drama and got better pieces in the trade. I mean honestly, just a couple of years later, who would give up Chara or Spezza for Yashin one for one, let alone as two pieces of a package?

And yeah, I was going for the contrast with him and Alfredsson. The photo seemed appropriate for that reason and the fact that Alfredsson took over the captaincy from Yashin (and did a much better job in the role).