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Tribute Chris Neil

dumbdick

dumbdick

Galactic Defender
May 31, 2008
11,353
3,773
saskriders said:
Unpopular opinion, but I want 25 in the rafters. I've mentioned before, but I think 1000 games with the team should warrant number retirement. You don't reach that number without doing something right, and in 30 years we have only seen 3 guys do it so it isn't a common accomplishment. I know a lot of people only want to retire the numbers of "elite" players, but I would like to see players who played less flashy roles get the honour too. And hell I think one could argue Neil was "elite" in his role.

-1026 games with the club

-5 years as an alternate captain (by my count only Alfie, Phillips and Redden wore a letter for longer)

-Never getting suspended despite over 2500 PIMs and playing through eras where the grounds for suspension changed quite a bit

-176 fights (number 2 is Dennis Vial at 71 so his lead is more than anyone else has fought in franchise history)

-Just shy of the 100 playoff game mark, but he scored an OT winner and a Stanley Cup Finals goal


-Playoff highlights also included a fight that was hugely influential in winning round 2 in 2017 and being part of a line brawl against a rival

-He fought in the three biggest brawls we have seen in franchise history.


And I really believe we will never see a player like Chris Neil again, the game has just changed too much. In my opinion Neil exemplified the best parts of that kind of game. He was loyal and stood up for his teammates. He had more skill than many guys he would have fought against who were just out there to fight. He wasn't some cheap shot artist or head hunter like Tom Wilson or Matt Cooke. He was a leader on the ice. Even if he wasn't the best fighter ever or the best biter ever or the most talented player the Sens have seen nobody will ever fill the role of enforcer as well as he did.
Click to expand...
I'm all for tributes, but he doesnt deserve to have his number retired. Don't we have a ring of honour or something?

I'd be a fan of creating a really nice tribute for our best players. Make a big deal about it and put it somewhere visible.

Play up the roman senators theme. Make a fancy Roman themed hallway/room adourned with fancy curtains, marble floors, roman columns and 8-foot tall white statues of guys like Neil, Alfie, etc. Have the players walk through it as they're coming out onto the ice every game. Televise it on every broadcast.

Roman gladiators going out to battle.


Basically have them go out on the ice to start every game through this room, surrounded by screaming fans on either side. Offer it as a perk for STH fans.
merlin_200003478_4fb7ac00-52dc-46d9-b718-2e3485dda97b-articleLarge.jpg
 
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thinkwild

thinkwild

Veni Vidi Toga
Jul 29, 2003
10,880
1,542
Ottawa
It’s amazing how many women I know who said their favourite Sen was Chris Neil. He was an archetype of the position. You’d often hear other teams and fans saying they wish they had a Chris Neil like player.

I think he may have lost a couple bouts early in his career to Domi, but the only other real loss I remember was a fight he had with I think it was Jesse Boulerice. Boulerice managed to get the two of them swinging around in circles and then managed to connect with Neil’s jaw. Like Connor Brown recently, he didn’t know his jaw was broken until later, days later I think. And after that he learned to get inside tight during fights which made it harder to land haymakers but also protected him from losing. Its almost more impressive to me how seldom he lost a fight than how he never got suspended.

I think Neil may have almost got the most invisible assists. Plays like when he screened the goalie and caused mayhem in front which allowed us to score even though he didn’t get actually get an assist.

And like Volchenkov, sometimes the best response to another team taking liberties isn’t a fight but a huge clean check. Neil had some dandies too.
 
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saskriders

saskriders

Can't Hold Leads
Sep 11, 2010
25,065
1,608
Calgary
So it is kinda hard to find data on all time NHL fight leaders. The only think I could find was this HF thread. Which has a different number of fights for Neil than hockryfights.com has
Most Career NHL Fights

But going off that list the only guys who have more fights, goals, and points than Neil are Tiger Williams, Bob Probert, and Matthew Barnaby. Williams played entirely in the 70s and 80s, while Probert played a significant amount of his career before the dead puck era. If you are looking at only fights and points you can add Marty McSorley to the list, but of course this is another guy who played in the 80s and also played with Gretzky and a stacked Oilers team.
 
saskriders

saskriders

Can't Hold Leads
Sep 11, 2010
25,065
1,608
Calgary
Fenix Rises 2026 said:
I'm all for tributes, but he doesnt deserve to have his number retired. Don't we have a ring of honour or something?

I'd be a fan of creating a really nice tribute for our best players. Make a big deal about it and put it somewhere visible.

Play up the roman senators theme. Make a fancy Roman themed hallway/room adourned with fancy curtains, marble floors, roman columns and 8-foot tall white statues of guys like Neil, Alfie, etc. Have the players walk through it as they're coming out onto the ice every game. Televise it on every broadcast.

Roman gladiators going out to battle.


Basically have them go out on the ice to start every game through this room, surrounded by screaming fans on either side. Offer it as a perk for STH fans.
merlin_200003478_4fb7ac00-52dc-46d9-b718-2e3485dda97b-articleLarge.jpg
Click to expand...

I'd like to see a ring of honour, and that room players walk through would be amazing to see in a new arena. I still want 25 retired, but I'm well aware I'm in the minority on that.
 
Neiler

Neiler

Registered Loser
Jul 16, 2006
2,195
786
This thread is so much different from the GDT's a number of years back. Nice to see some love for Neil. I also agree I'd like to see his number in the rafters.
 
Tuna99

Tuna99

Registered User
Sep 26, 2009
14,931
6,986
thinkwild said:
It’s amazing how many women I know who said their favourite Sen was Chris Neil. He was an archetype of the position. You’d often hear other teams and fans saying they wish they had a Chris Neil like player.

I think he may have lost a couple bouts early in his career to Domi, but the only other real loss I remember was a fight he had with I think it was Jesse Boulerice. Boulerice managed to get the two of them swinging around in circles and then managed to connect with Neil’s jaw. Like Connor Brown recently, he didn’t know his jaw was broken until later, days later I think. And after that he learned to get inside tight during fights which made it harder to land haymakers but also protected him from losing. Its almost more impressive to me how seldom he lost a fight than how he never got suspended.

I think Neil may have almost got the most invisible assists. Plays like when he screened the goalie and caused mayhem in front which allowed us to score even though he didn’t get actually get an assist.

And like Volchenkov, sometimes the best response to another team taking liberties isn’t a fight but a huge clean check. Neil had some dandies too.
Click to expand...

i want to second this. My Mom knows nothing about hockey but she always liked Chris Neil and was the only player besides Alfie she could ever identify. when I asked her why she liked Neil she said “because he’s pugnacious” - she’s never watched a second of hockey in her life she just knows he’s pugnacious from his face. What a beauty Neiler is. She also asks me how he’s playing when she sees a game on - doesn’t know and doesn’t care that he’s retired.

Chris Neil’s jersey is also a jersey you could wear to a Sens game in 2061 and it would still be cool
 
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aragorn

aragorn

Do The Right Thing
Aug 8, 2004
28,607
9,121
My kids went to gymnastics with Neil's kids & I saw him the other day at the Icelynds Skating Trails in Stittsville driving a zamboni. Super good guy.
 
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Berri UQAM

Registered User
Apr 15, 2022
122
144
RAFI BOMB said:
I created a compilation of Chris Neil's best fights. It was a lot of fun to go back and watch them. Enjoy the content.
Click to expand...

That fight against Perrott at around the 0:40 mark was pretty wild. It looked like Neil took a few solid punches around the time that he lost his balance. I imagine that some players in his situation might have looked hurt or shocked. Perhaps some would have gone down to the ice. However, Neil seemed totally unphased and got back on his feet and gave Perrott even nastier punches. Not only could Neil throw good punches, but must of had an iron jaw or something like that because he could take a punch as well as anyone.

On an unrelated note, I am amazed at how often he fought players who were bigger than him. He seemed to do really well in most of these middleweight vs. heavyweight boughts.
 
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bicboi64

Registered User
Aug 13, 2020
4,459
2,799
Brampton
I loved Neil. He could play the actual game without having to be in the roster solely due to his role as an enforcer.

He stood up for us, but he was never a dirty scumbag like other enforcers can be
 
The Expert

The Expert

Registered Expert
Aug 31, 2008
13,314
1,318
BC
Tuna99 said:
Chris Neil’s jersey is also a jersey you could wear to a Sens game in 2061 and it would still be cool
Click to expand...
I'll be wearing my Neil black heritage third jersey to every game I go to. Got a few shoutouts at the game in Vancouver this past season, lots of Sens fans there.
 
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