JagerMeister Posted February 22, 2016 Share Posted February 22, 2016 This is one of those comparisons where you have to decide what you value more, a longer prime or a better peak? I thought this comparison would be fun, we have a player who's career was shortened because of injuries, and a player who quickly faded into irrelevancy after his reputable years. This is essentially what this comparison comes down too, but first here are the aspects that each player clearly has over the other. Guy Lafleur -Better playmaker. Has six top ten assist finishes, five of his six top assist finishes range from 1-3. Mike Bossy although underrated as a playmaker, "only" had 3 top ten assist finishes. -Had the better peak as a point producer. Even removing Gretzky and Lemieux out of the equation, Bossy would have won one art ross. -Better peak in general Mike Bossy -Despite only having a ten year career, he had nine top ten goal scoring finishes to Lafleur's six. Also had more impressive goal scoring finishes, Bossy led the league in goals twice in addition to being a runner up to Gretzky twice to Lafleur's one occasion where he led the league in goal scoring and having 3 runner up's to Esposito. It's safe to say Gretzky was more difficult competition then Esposito or Dionne. Bossy wins in goal scoring. - Had a longer prime then Lafleur as a point producer, eight top ten point finishes to Lafleur's six. As for playoffs...well, the same applies. Lafleur had better runs but Bossy was a significant contributor for longer... as i have stated, this comparison is essentially what you value more, a longer prime or a better peak.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yave1964 Posted February 23, 2016 Share Posted February 23, 2016 Bossy was forced to retire early, a friend once said he was the forward version of Orr or Dryden, no decline phase to his career. I voted for Lafleur but coulda went with either. Solid one here sir, veryhard to pick from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JagerMeister Posted February 23, 2016 Author Share Posted February 23, 2016 27 minutes ago, yave1964 said: Bossy was forced to retire early, a friend once said he was the forward version of Orr or Dryden, no decline phase to his career. I voted for Lafleur but coulda went with either. Solid one here sir, veryhard to pick from. Its true that Bossy's stats are deceptive, but even during his last season with an injury he still had an adequate season. I think he would have remained elite for a few more seasons, but since that's just speculation what I am certain of is that he wouldn't have declined as fast as Lafleur...that was one rapid decline. Still, Lafleur's peak is one of the most phenomenal outside of the big 4. Also, its good to hear that this is a difficult poll. That's what I aim for. But hopefully not too difficult that no one votes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottM Posted February 23, 2016 Share Posted February 23, 2016 19 hours ago, JagerMeister said: This is one of those comparisons where you have to decide what you value more, a longer prime or a better peak? I thought this comparison would be fun, we have a player who's career was shortened because of injuries, and a player who quickly faded into irrelevancy after his reputable years. This is essentially what this comparison comes down too, but first here are the aspects that each player clearly has over the other. There's another question here as well: do you want a more complete player or a guy who, while still definitely a good player, certainly specialized in one particular aspect of the game? I view Lafleur as a very complete player, and Bossy is certainly one of the greatest goal-scorers ever. It's a tough call to me. I'm going to think a bit more before I vote. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JagerMeister Posted February 23, 2016 Author Share Posted February 23, 2016 7 hours ago, ScottM said: There's another question here as well: do you want a more complete player or a guy who, while still definitely a good player, certainly specialized in one particular aspect of the game? I view Lafleur as a very complete player, and Bossy is certainly one of the greatest goal-scorers ever. It's a tough call to me. I'm going to think a bit more before I vote. So I suppose the question here is, does Bossy's specialized mastery of goal scoring outweigh Lafleur's all around offensive ability? I would personally say no... Lafleur was a top 5 goal scorer and playmaker of his generation. Still, I have to think on this one as well... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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