Another nice Steve Simmonds article....

[jammer2]

Another fine story by one of my favourite NHL writers, Steve Simmonds. The guy seems kinda nerdy when he's on Off the Record, but I love how historically accurate his articles are. He just seems to remember the NHL the way I did as a kid. He rasies some excellent points here.....

http://www.torontosun.com/2013/06/20/bruins-blackhawks-of-today-set-to-stand-with-stars-of-the-past

[flyercanuck]

@jammer2

Nice article jammer. I think guys like Toews or Chara are probably looked upon with equal fascination by todays younger hockey fans as we looked at Orr or Clarke. But for some reason to us they just don't seem as good.

[fishbulb]

I hate him in person... he just irks me. I think it's his mannerisms. I don't mind his writing though.

[jammer2]

@jammer2

Nice article jammer. I think guys like Toews or Chara are probably looked upon with equal fascination by todays younger hockey fans as we looked at Orr or Clarke. But for some reason to us they just don't seem as good.

It's funny how that works, huh? For example, somebody my age would most likely think that Denis Potvin is a better all round d-man than Doug Harvey. But, ask somebody 10-15 years older, in the late 50's to early 60's and they would pick Harvey 9 times out of 10. Almost everyone thinks the stars they saw from day one in thier era are better, it's a familiarity thing along with, in some cases, not having an ability to cross compare eras. Myself, I think Harvery revolutionized the position before Orr did.....Bobby took it to a new level, but Harvey was the first guy who really started playing like a forward from the defense position. He literally redefined what an elite all round defensemen was. I'm thinking Toe Blake had a lot of influence here, getting the most out of Doug that he could....daring him to become better.

Same thing would apply when comparing Potvin to Bourque, the older the guy, the more likely he'll pick Potvin. Personally, I put Larry Robinson and Potvin a bit higher than Bourque and Coffey just because the latter really lacked a physical edge that Potvin and Larry brought to the table.

I missed Mikata and Hull in their primes for the most part, (but have watched them in older games repeated on the NHL Network) but I really get what Steve is saying here....as much as I respect Toews and Bergeron, I can't put them on the level Mikata or Phil Espisoto for that matter (really, if it was me writing this, I'd have at least mentioned Johnny Bucyk also, pretty sure Steve mistakenly ommitted him). So, to me at least, it's a historical oddity that both these guys have the chance to bypass or tie the older greats.

Of course, even though it was a six team league....the real reason why Boston and Chicago didn't win more cups was Montreal having an unfair advantage, automatically getting every player from Quebec, which really upset the balance of power in the NHL for decades.