Am I wrong about Messier?

  • Thread starter Randall Graves*
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XploD

Registered User
Jun 2, 2006
3,243
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Stockholm, Sweden
The point is that you have to prove you DO HAVE leadership skills. Not prove that you don't have them. Having not played a single NHL game comparing his leadership to Messier's is far more misguided than to compare his physical skills to Messier.
He HAS proven he has leadership qualities. Nowhere have I said you should compare his leadership qualities to Messier's. You just can't make a definite statement that his leadership potential isn't as good as Messier's was at his age. You can make assumptions, and a good one is that it isn't, but it's still not definite.
 

EventHorizon

Bring Back Ties!

You have to love how the average Devil fan would rather see the Rangers lose than the Devils win. Despite about 7 - 10 years of their team dominating the Rangers, they still feel an inferiority complex. And then they wonder why they get little to no respect.




*disclaimer* - this post is not directed toward any of the fine posters on this board who are Devil fans, most of whom I have a great deal of respect for. In fact I think most of them would agree that my assesment in this post is accurate; after all, my fiancee (her family being Devil season ticket holders since the team moved from Colorado) agrees and so do many of the season ticket holders who sit in her section.
 

VanIslander

A 19-year ATDer on HfBoards
Sep 4, 2004
35,135
6,429
the next guy basically said Malkin could meet or exceed Messiers intimidation and physical dominance factor.
:biglaugh: :biglaugh: :biglaugh:

I've seen Malkin play exactly nine games internationally and he NEVER for a moment demonstrated the nastiness, grit or physicality of the Moose.
 

The_Eck

Registered User
Jan 5, 2006
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0
Montreal
Messier was an all time great, but he was an all time great cheap shot artist as well (especially later on in his career). I'll admit i was never really a messier fan and I never bought into the messier hype (largely built up by the NY media), but i do recognize that his leadership and determination qualities were legendary.
 

The_Eck

Registered User
Jan 5, 2006
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Montreal
What's the most telling about guys like Howe, Messier and Scott Stevens?

A few (misguided) fans rant about them up and down for their "mean, dirty" ways. Coaches and peers, on the other hand, speak virtually unanimously in terms of respect.

Brian Leetch, in a videotape at Messier's number retirement at MSG last season, talked about #11 skating by him in one of his first NHL games and nearly taking his head off with a cross-check. Why? Because he could.

Leetch was smiling as he told the story.

I beg to differ about putting stevens in the howe and messier category. Stevens was not a dirty player like those two were. His body checks, although caused many concussions, were clean hits. Messier on the other hand was plain dirty.

I remember an incident versus the habs where he speared koivu in the ribs for no apparent reason. Then during the post game interviews, that buffoon tom renney when asked about the incident said "ahhh, messier is just a wiley veteran...'. What an idiot.
 

Trottier

Very Random
Feb 27, 2002
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I beg to differ about putting stevens in the howe and messier category. Stevens was not a dirty player like those two were. His body checks, although caused many concussions, were clean hits. Messier on the other hand was plain dirty.

I'm not going to get into a debate over who was dirty or not. Will simply say that #11 and Stevens had (have) this fan's utmost respect as hockey warriors and winners. (I was too young to see/appreciate Gordie Howe.)

The reason why I placed Stevens in the discussion is because among some fans here, Stevens is characterized as a "dirty player". I personally find the comment naive, but now you know why I included him in this discussion.
 

The_Eck

Registered User
Jan 5, 2006
3,034
0
Montreal
I'm not going to get into a debate over who was dirty or not. Will simply say that #11 and Stevens had (have) this fan's utmost respect as hockey warriors and winners. (I was too young to see/appreciate Gordie Howe.)

The reason why I placed Stevens in the discussion is because among some fans here, Stevens is characterized as a "dirty player". I personally find the comment naive, but now you know why I included him in this discussion.

True.
 

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