2022 Matthews is still not as good as peak Bure. Imagine having 45 more goals and 55 more poitns than your next highest teammate.
But due to injuries, matthews will most likely have the better career.
Disagree. Bure did what was asked of him that season, but he was certainly a much bigger cherry-picked than usual so his overall effect on the game was lacking compared to Matthews who was a dominant possession player this year and much better defensive player.
Besides that, the teammate factor gets overrated a bit due to injuries. Kozlov was a good player at the time, but missed 1/3 of the season, which hurt his final totals, and the team in general had lots of players moving in and out of the lineup and Bure played parts of the season with numerous players. If his linemates were more consistent, they likely would have scored more but it wouldn’t have made him any better or worse. It’s just the nature of opportunity through a lineup. Given how he would blow the zone for breakaways, and the fact that he also played huge minutes that season, with nearly 27 a game, I don’t think his team held him back as much as people want to believe.
Bure was 7th in points and only 11th in points per game. Matthews was 6th in points, but third in points per game, and not far off from a prime McDavid. Bure was nowhere near a prime Jagr’s points per game. Matthews also won the Hart and Lindsay. Bure was 9th in Hart voting and wasn’t a Lindsay finalist.
Now, Bure’s 99-00 year was a better comparison, as he did finish 2nd in points and 3rd in points per game, while still playing high, but more reasonable minutes, and was a better all around player for a half decent team. He also was a Hart and Lindsay finalist. It was also a pretty weak year for forward competition, while this year was a very good one, and again, his points per game was considerably behind a prime Jagr, while Matthews was much closer to a prime McDavid.
I love Bure, and grew up watching him on the Canucks, but he tends to get overrated on here. Matthews’ scoring was slightly better and his possession game this year was dominant. While he isn’t as fun to watch, he was just a more effective player overall.