Sorry I know I saw a thread with someone talking about this a while ago, but I looked and couldn't find it.
Anyways.. YES. The best news I've heard in a while, I just saw an ad on the NHL Network, it's a 6 DVD boxset available at HMV..
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Anyways, sorry I couldn't find the old thread but I wanted to share since people were hoping for one to come out.
http://www.hmv.ca/Products/Detail/594619.aspx
$50 Canadian.
Just picked up my copy, it includes that old VHS movie, Mario, Mike & The Great Gretzky. That's pretty cool for them to include that, I have that on tape and it's a full length documentary about the tournament. Unreal package. Has all 9 Canada games.
Lemieux - Messier - Gretzky
Coffey - Bourque
Has there ever been a PP as frightening as that? Holy lord..
The biggest treat for me was watching Gretzky. His athletic skill gets so underrated sometimes. At least in this tournament, he was very agile, very fast (Looked like it, at least) and very flashy. He actually had some very nice dangles. Easily the best player of the tournament.
For someone who only started watching hockey in 2002 (Olympics), this DVD is very interesting. I've watched Canada vs Czech and Canada vs Finland so far and just have some interesting observations:
1. You have to watch Gretzky play in an actual game to realize what a special player he is. He has some kind of magical aura around him that can sense anything that moves. Previously, I only watched highlights of him, and wasn't all that impressed to be honest.I watch him in a junior tournament when he was 16 and couldn't believe what I was seeing.Nobody's been like him
2. Lemieux is ridicously talented and looks two feet taller than anyone on the Finnish team. He just weaves through people without even trying and looks almost lazy/bored doing it. However, he does seem a little undiscplined at this point (before CC87 I only watched him in his mid-late 30's) which is perfectly understandable considering he's only in his early twenties. He was all offense at that point.It was also before his persistent back injuries.
3. Dominik Hasek was Dominik Hasek even then (flopping everywhere, playing without a stick, picking up the puck with his blocker hand).
4. Is it just me or are there no set lines on Canada? For example, I'm pretty sure I've sure Gretzky play with Lemieux, Messier, Hawerchuck, Propp, Tocchet and others.
5. Some of these Europeans I've never heard about are pretty good - good enough to play in the NHL. Damn straight-love the Swedes and Czechoslovakians
6. The wood sticks made a much different sound than the new graphite sticks. The overall velocity of the shot, is not that different it seems, but the biggest difference is the puck doesn't appear to fly off the stick nearly as fast.
7. There seems to be a lot more slapshots, especially close to the net.
I think the graphite makes a difference here.You can get a good flex on a wrister which you'd have to slap with a wood stick.
8. The defensive system back then doesn't seem as good.
WHAT defensive system?This was total firewagon hockey (and thank God for that).
9. Jari Kurri wasn't very impressive, suprisingly (although it was only one game).
He was expected to be the leader on that team.IMO he was more comfortable as a supporting cast member.He was also on the downside of his career-you should've seen him at the Lake Placid Olympics.
For someone who only started watching hockey in 2002 (Olympics), this DVD is very interesting. I've watched Canada vs Czech and Canada vs Finland so far and just have some interesting observations:
1. You have to watch Gretzky play in an actual game to realize what a special player he is. He has some kind of magical aura around him that can sense anything that moves. Previously, I only watched highlights of him, and wasn't all that impressed to be honest.
2. Lemieux is ridicously talented and looks two feet taller than anyone on the Finnish team. He just weaves through people without even trying and looks almost lazy/bored doing it. However, he does seem a little undiscplined at this point (before CC87 I only watched him in his mid-late 30's) which is perfectly understandable considering he's only in his early twenties.
3. Dominik Hasek was Dominik Hasek even then (flopping everywhere, playing without a stick, picking up the puck with his blocker hand).
4. Is it just me or are there no set lines on Canada? For example, I'm pretty sure I've sure Gretzky play with Lemieux, Messier, Hawerchuck, Propp, Tocchet and others.
5. Some of these Europeans I've never heard about are pretty good - good enough to play in the NHL.
6. The wood sticks made a much different sound than the new graphite sticks. The overall velocity of the shot, is not that different it seems, but the biggest difference is the puck doesn't appear to fly off the stick nearly as fast.
7. There seems to be a lot more slapshots, especially close to the net.
8. The defensive system back then doesn't seem as good.
9. Jari Kurri wasn't very impressive, suprisingly (although it was only one game).
Let us know what you think of game 2! And a question to those who have the entire tournament on DVD: which game (besides any of the final games vs Russia) is Gretzky at his most dazzling? I remember seeing highlights from the Sweden game in which Gretzky completely faked out the Swedish defenders, cutting tightly inside the blue line with a fake slapper, before sending an amazing pass to Lemieux with Coffey looking on in awe...Just bought this the other day. After watching game 1 of Canada vs. Russia which was nothing short of amazing I'm honestly so excited to see game two, which I'm about to watch right now!
Looks like I have to add something to my Christmas list.
For someone who only started watching hockey in 2002 (Olympics), this DVD is very interesting. I've watched Canada vs Czech and Canada vs Finland so far and just have some interesting observations:
1. You have to watch Gretzky play in an actual game to realize what a special player he is. He has some kind of magical aura around him that can sense anything that moves. Previously, I only watched highlights of him, and wasn't all that impressed to be honest.
2. Lemieux is ridicously talented and looks two feet taller than anyone on the Finnish team. He just weaves through people without even trying and looks almost lazy/bored doing it. However, he does seem a little undiscplined at this point (before CC87 I only watched him in his mid-late 30's) which is perfectly understandable considering he's only in his early twenties.
3. Dominik Hasek was Dominik Hasek even then (flopping everywhere, playing without a stick, picking up the puck with his blocker hand).
4. Is it just me or are there no set lines on Canada? For example, I'm pretty sure I've sure Gretzky play with Lemieux, Messier, Hawerchuck, Propp, Tocchet and others.
5. Some of these Europeans I've never heard about are pretty good - good enough to play in the NHL.
6. The wood sticks made a much different sound than the new graphite sticks. The overall velocity of the shot, is not that different it seems, but the biggest difference is the puck doesn't appear to fly off the stick nearly as fast.
7. There seems to be a lot more slapshots, especially close to the net.
8. The defensive system back then doesn't seem as good.
9. Jari Kurri wasn't very impressive, suprisingly (although it was only one game).
Just found the play - at 8:47: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tsalE30Xco&feature=related
Just found the play - at 8:47: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tsalE30Xco&feature=related
That's exactly what I was talking about earlier, everyone talks about Gretzky as if he was a small, slow, boring passing machine, but in this tournament he was incredibly quick and agile. He blew me away with his skating at times, which surprised me.
One of the best teams ever assembled, and still, notable players left off:
Yzerman
MacInnis
Roy
Francis
Ciccarelli
Savard
Trottier
Bossy
Dione
Robitaille
Stevens
Wendel Clark