Evaluating Steve Yzerman's 1988-89 season

[The Panther]

Since Yzerman in 1988-89 often gets brought up in diverse threads, it started me thinking: How do we go about evaluating Yzerman in 1988-89?

While he was obviously one of the greatest players of his era and probably a 'Tier-2' or at worst 'Tier-3' all-time center, let's just focus on his 1988-89 season. Where do you rank it in Yzerman's career, and/or in all-time seasons by forwards?

This is of course the year when he scored 155 points, still the most by any player in one season who isn't Wayne or Mario. 65 goals (24th most all-time, most-ever by a Red Wing), and there are only (I think) 11 players who have scored more goals than that in one year. Then, his 90 assists that season rank 26th all-time (30th, if per game is considered). But, it's more impressive than that sounds because only 9 players have ever had more assists in a season (and one, Lafontaine, needed four more games to get to 95).

What perhaps makes Steve's 155 point-season all the more remarkable is that he did it with little scoring talent in teammates. While there was one other elite talent at center (Adam Oates, although he hadn't peaked yet), the only scorers of note at wing were Gerard Gallant -- who had four good seasons between 1986 and 1990... all when he played on Yzerman's wing -- and veteran Paul MacLean. And that's it.

How did Yzerman's 155 points break down over the season? He had 37 points in the first 20 games, 45 in the next 20 games [i.e., 82 points at mid-season], 37 in the next 20 games, and 36 in the last 20 games [i.e., 73 points in the second half]. Despite a bit of a slow-down in the latter half of the season, his biggest game was a 6-point game in Edmonton on March 15th, and the next biggest game was a 5-pointer in Boston on January 14th (so, these two biggest nights were both on the road). He also had seven 4-point games (the Wings' record in these 4+ point games was 6-0-3). Conversely, he was shut out completely in 10 of the 80 games he played (the Wings' record in these games was 2-5-3). You might expect that Yzerman really feasted on the weaker Norris division, but that wasn't the case -- he had a higher scoring pace against ALL the other divisions. Notably, against the Patrick division, he had 43 points in 18 games (he scored 7 goals in 3 games against Philly).

As we know, however, despite these remarkable stats, Yzerman finished only 3rd in League scoring (to Lemieux and Gretzky) and 3rd in goals (to Lemieux and Nicholls). About his 82 points at mid-season: at the same stage (40 games played), Lemieux had 113 points; Gretzky (in his first year in L.A.) had 88 points; and Nicholls had 86.

It's weird to think of it, but Yzerman was actually in 4th in scoring at mid-season...

Is there any way to be more critical of Yzerman's record-setting season (aside from the more evident superlatives)?

1988-89, while not quite as high-scoring overall as six or seven years earlier, is the only season in history where three players scored 150+ points... and FOUR did it! And despite Yzerman's huge season, Detroit actually fell 13 points in the standings, from 93 points to 80 (.500 even). After a solid 17-9-4 start in the first 30 games, they went a rather poor 17-25-8 from mid-December to the end of the season, when they were then eliminated in 6 games by Chicago. So Yzerman's increased production wasn't reflecting in wins.

My feeling about that season that is Demers and Yzerman had a really good relationship by 1988, and that Demers probably tempered his 'defence-first' attitude in regards to Yzerman that year. What I mean is, Demers probably gave Steve more of a green-light to open up and score as much as he could, knowing that the Wings' lacked offensive depth. It all paid off for Yzerman, of course, though I guess the Wings just didn't have enough depth to support his talent up front.

Anyway, most points ever by a non-Wayne/Mario player... and yet at the same time he scored only 5 more points (and 5 fewer goals) than Bernie Nicholls.... it's kind of an odd season in relative terms.

Do you think 1988-89 is Yzerman's best season? And how do you rank it among, say, post-expansion seasons by forwards?

Click to read more...

 

[Voight]

Yes, its his best.

 

[GMR]

It's certainly his best season and if he scored, let's say, 130 points that year, it would likely drop his all-time rankings a little.

I'd like to see a breakdown of how many of those points were scored on the powerplay, as well as a breakdown of whether he stayed with the same linemates for the majority of the season.

Unfortunately, like much of Stevie's career, he was overshadowed by someone else at his position. Lemieux scored 199 points and did it with even worse linemates.

 

[Cursed Lemon]

1989 is definitely his best season, there's no Selanne situation with Yzerman.

I think the emphasis definitely deserves to be on Yzerman's lack of support. Adam Oates was obviously of zero help to him specifically, being the second line center and not drawing any kind of matchups given that he wasn't "Adam Oates" yet.

 

[GMR]

1989 is definitely his best season, there's no Selanne situation with Yzerman.

I think the emphasis definitely deserves to be on Yzerman's lack of support. Adam Oates was obviously of zero help to him specifically, being the second line center and not drawing any kind of matchups given that he wasn't "Adam Oates" yet.

That's why I asked about the powerplay. If they played together on the powerplay, then Oates would obviously help.

 

[Cursed Lemon]

That's why I asked about the powerplay. If they played together on the powerplay, then Oates would obviously help.

I wouldn't know given that I was 3 years old at the time But, I do wonder either Yzerman or Oates would've fared playing wing, even on the PP.

 

[billybudd]

What perhaps makes Steve's 155 point-season all the more remarkable is that he did it with little scoring talent in teammates. While there was one other elite talent at center (Adam Oates, although he hadn't peaked yet), the only scorers of note at wing were Gerard Gallant -- who had four good seasons between 1986 and 1990... all when he played on Yzerman's wing -- and veteran Paul MacLean.

Looks like you're ovelooking Petr Klima. Klima was sort of under the radar in being a pretty quality offensive player for a number of years. Of course, I've no idea what the line compositions were on a then-irrelevant team from the opposite conference 30 years removed from the situation, so I can't speak to whether/if Klima shared ice with SY or if he was part of a secondary scoring situation.

 

[K Fleur]

It's certainly his best season and if he scored, let's say, 130 points that year, it would likely drop his all-time rankings a little.

I'd like to see a breakdown of how many of those points were scored on the powerplay, as well as a breakdown of whether he stayed with the same linemates for the majority of the season.

Unfortunately, like much of Stevie's career, he was overshadowed by someone else at his position. Lemieux scored 199 points and did it with even worse linemates.

Yzerman scored 46 powerplay points(17 goals, 29 assists) in 88-89. Yzerman scored 101 EV strength points that year, more than Gretzky(100) and just behind Lemieux(102).

 

[mcauliffe]

1988-89, while not quite as high-scoring overall as six or seven years earlier, is the only season in history where three players scored 150+ points... and FOUR did it!

Not to be a stickler for details, but '88-89 is actually the only season with multiple 150-point scorers.

Jagr '95-96 149 pts
Gretzky '87-88 149 pts
Lafontaine '92-93 148 pts
Bossy 1981-82 147 pts

 

[Big Phil]

It is Yzerman's best season for sure. It is also one of the best seasons in NHL history.

Think about this for a second. We always point at the enormous gap Gretzky had between he and his 2nd place teammate in points. Yzerman had 155 to Gallant's 93. That's 62 points and very much "Gretzkyesque" in that regard.

For whatever reason he won the Pearson that year over Mario. I never understood that because Mario clearly had the better year but I guess it all came down to voter fatigue and when someone else comes close to Mario or Wayne they'll pick him.

 

[The Panther]

Not to be a stickler for details, but '88-89 is actually the only season with multiple 150-point scorers.

Isn't that exactly what I said...?

It is Yzerman's best season for sure.

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I'm not totally convinced it's his best season. I say this for a few reasons:
1) The team fell considerably in the standings

2) While an even-strength stud in scoring, Yzerman was also on the ice for 152 goals against, which is a LOT. The previous season, he'd been on-ice for about 1 goal-against per game, but in 1988-89 that jumped to nearly 2 goals-against per game. If you compare his total on-ice goals-for vs. goals-against for a few seasons:
1986-87: 125 / 87
1987-88: 132 / 75
1988-89: 189 / 152

This can perhaps partly be explained by his increased penalty-killing, but his overall +17 seems kind of average for a .500 team, given his points scored. I dunno, I sometimes think he was actually a more effective player in 1987-88, when he was actually 2nd in goals-per-game before a late-season injury cut him short. (Then again, the Wings did rather well without him in the playoffs, so...)

3) Relativity to peers -- as mentioned, he was third in scoring. While almost any elite player would be third to 20-something Gretzky and Lemieux, third is still third. Can it be one of the greatest seasons ever if the guy is third and his team falls in the standings? (just asking... I'm not really sure)

Think about this for a second. We always point at the enormous gap Gretzky had between he and his 2nd place teammate in points. Yzerman had 155 to Gallant's 93. That's 62 points and very much "Gretzkyesque" in that regard.

No doubt it was a great season, and totally team-dominant in offense. Well, with Gretzky, we're usually looking more at the gap between him and #2 in the League, not just on his team.

For whatever reason he won the Pearson that year over Mario. I never understood that because Mario clearly had the better year but I guess it all came down to voter fatigue and when someone else comes close to Mario or Wayne they'll pick him.

I think too much gets made of the Pearson/Lindsay on this Forum. Maybe it's taken on a higher status since the 80s, but I really don't think the players/League takes it that seriously. It's kind of like a token award the players get to vote on, but I don't think they attempt to be as objective as Hart voters do.

 

[mcauliffe]

Isn't that exactly what I said...?

Well, you wrote it was the only season with three (3) 150-point scorers, and it was actually the only one where we even got two (2) of them. Judging by your reaction, it is probably what you meant all along, and it's obviously no biggie. I thought it was worth correcting because it emphasizes your point about that season's scoring race being weird and top-heavy. Four players with 150+ points, and nobody else above 115. If we cherry-pick a couple of years for comparison's sake, in '92-93 nine players scored between 123 and 148 points. In '81-82, six players between 117 and 147.

You bring interesting points about Yzerman not having his best year in '88-89, but in the end, there's just something about having the best scoring season by anybody in history not wearing 99 or 66. Yzerman scored 62 goals and 127 points the following year and reached 137 points in '92-93, and nobody ever talks about those two seasons. 155 just stands out. Until he won the Cup, it was his career-defining season, and it probably still is anyway.

 

[toob]

It's an underrated ssn.

It usually gets the oh it was only 3rd in scoring and Nicholls was right there. Usually people are smarter about the 3rd in scoring bit so i wont go into that as much, but to discuss Nicholls a couple of things should be remembered:

1) Scouting reports in 88 before Gretzky paint the picture of a guy like Nicholls who is at the top of the pack behind guys like Yzerman, Messier, Savard, Stastny. Hawerchuk's stock dropped at that time for various reasons. Seemingly nobody considers Carson (or Robitaille) to be the best King. A guy like Francis isnt considered to be in Nicholls tier.

2) Lots of ppl point to Nicholls drop in scoring when hes traded to the Rangers and thats supposed to be proof that hes a product of Gretzky. What they forget is how defensive minded Neilsen's Rangers were. Articles around the time talk about the adjustment Nicholls needs to make, not going away from Gretzky, but playing in a defensive system. For another look at what going to a more defensive system does to scoring stats (not nearly like what Nicholls had to go through) look at Yzerman under Murray in 91 and 92. My guess is if Nicholls goes to an offensive minded team hes not scoring a bit above a ppg hes scoring like 120ish ppg clip.

Going back to Yzerman what is forgotten is all of the problems that the Red Wings had. Check the legal troubles of Probert, Klima. Check the substance problems of those guys as well as others. It was a total breakdown of the rally that Demers began when he joined in. This was a very different team that rallied after Yzerman got hurt in 88. The team stopped believing and playing for Demers and each other. It was Yzerman's play basically alone that guided them (Klima's line heated up briefly for the start of the secon half of the ssn it should be noted but then went back down).

For the wingers first of all Gallant was a good winger for Yzerman. If youre going to be like some ppl who say Hornqvist is holding Crosby back in pts then you could argue otherwise for Yzerman but i think thats dumb and just like Hornqvist is a good winger for Crosby so was Gallant for Yzerman. Maclean was a decent winger as well. Check out the next ssn for what happens when Yzerman loses Maclean. Or 91 where he has a revolving door of wingers. 91 is likely Yzerman's poorest year due both to change in teamstyle as well as the winger issue. That being said both those guys sputtered out at the second half of the year. Check Maclean's splits. Gallant's is betters but still down.

What hurt Yzerman most was the lack of good offensive D. Mario had Coffey. Gretzky had Duschene.

Oates wasn't much of a factor point wise. Yzerman and Oates were on a goal together 14 times. 13 on the PP and 1 at EV. 8 times they both assisted on someone's goal (all PP), 4 times Oates assisted on Yzerman's goals (all PP), and twice Yzerman assisted on Oates goal (1 PP 1 EV).

For Klima, Yzerman assisted on 3 of his goals (2 EV, 1 PP). Thats it

For the Norris/other division splits it has been shown multiple times. For his prime the only year when Yzerman didn't score less in the Norris i believe was 93 (when the Norris was probably the strongest division). The Norris which by the late 80s was quite improved and struggled way more offensively than defensively was not padding Yzerman's stats at all year by year this is the case, and in 89 he scored at a 120 point pace in the Norris and a 180 point pace in the other 3 divisions.

For the D situation, Demers defensive system collapsed in 89 and esp in 90. Yzerman was certainly more offensive minded in 89 and 90. Demers coaching almost became throw Yzerman out every second shift. Also 91 even though it was a defensive system it didnt look like Yzerman was super comfy in Murray's system to begin. He got going after a rough start in 92 and was probably turning in a better 2 way year than 88, same in 93 (after the Coffey/Carson trade he got way more offensive). In 94 with the back injury playing the wing he wasnt as defensive again.

But a guy like Rick Meagher who probably checked Yzerman as close as anyone says it the best:

"They are the obvious guys-Gretzky, Lemieux and Yzerman - who I see the most," Meagher says. "Yzerman is just a tremendous hockey player and what's really good about him is he plays both ends of the ice. When he gets the puck, he comes back behind his own net. Gretzky and Lemieux look for that breakaway pass quite a bit. They'll be up by the blue line or the red line or something. It seems a little easier to cover them because you know where they're going to be. Somebody like Yzerman or Savard is tougher to watch because they go back into their own end and use guys to set up screens. It's a little more skating, a little more work covering them. Those four guys are the toughest simply because they are the best. Those four guys stand out because they're centermen and I see them quite a bit."

Meagher notes of Lemieux, "I wouldn't want to see him eight times a year. Against us last year, he scored a goal with two guys on his back, still deked the goaltender and put the puck in the net. He's so big and strong. He takes one stride and he's gone. If he's got his back to the red or blue line, and if he takes half a turn and gets the puck right there, there isn't a guy in the League that can catch him. He's got those legs and in two strides it's 'See you later.' When Savard gets going, he's going 150 MPH-spinning. Yzerman is just a great all-around player, one of the best in the game. He's a big offensive threat."

 

[toob]

a couple more contextual things

Yzerman admitted knee still bothered him while walking in 89. Hes not the guy you think what if about a lot but he literally lost some of his speed and quickness as he entered his prime and would continue to have further knee problems

He went to the WCs after the playoff loss which was probably the strongest team to that point that Canada sent over (similar in 90). He was the standout player there. Not Messier, Hawerchuk.

The Hart voting too often follows team's results. There was a Detroit Free Press poll in March that had about a third of the writers giving Yzerman the Hart. Yzerman's points slowed down a lot after that point and the Wings went on a skid from well above .500 to at it. That hurt. In 88 the team did well and Yzerman was a strong Hart candidate (it hurt him that the team rallied after he went out). In 90 he wasnt a Hart candidate at all due to the team result. Despite still being widely considered the 3rd best player in the game and for example having the Hockey Scouting Report saying there's a strong argument that hes the best.

 

[DisgruntledGoat*]

I think its slightly overrated.

I've seen way too much of, 'well, that's the most points ever besides Gretzky or Lemieux so Yzerman must be third best' reasoning to say otherwise.

Also, I find the ability of a lone offensive star on a bad team to rack up points by being on the ice constantly is underrated around here. Yzerman benefited from basically being able to play whenever (and wherever) he wanted that season... As did Jagr at times in Pittsburgh.

By contrast, it seems like players who won and contributed to great teams are almost punished for it.

 

[The Panther]

Well, you wrote it was the only season with three (3) 150-point scorers, and it was actually the only one where we even got two (2) of them. Judging by your reaction, it is probably what you meant all along, and it's obviously no biggie.

I see what you were saying now, and you were right. Sorry, my bad.

You bring interesting points about Yzerman not having his best year in '88-89, but in the end, there's just something about having the best scoring season by anybody in history not wearing 99 or 66. Yzerman scored 62 goals and 127 points the following year and reached 137 points in '92-93, and nobody ever talks about those two seasons. 155 just stands out.

Probably, yeah. But I guess I'm a bit influenced by looking at how successful the team was... which leads me to toob's point...

The Hart voting too often follows team's results. There was a Detroit Free Press poll in March that had about a third of the writers giving Yzerman the Hart. Yzerman's points slowed down a lot after that point and the Wings went on a skid from well above .500 to at it. That hurt. In 88 the team did well and Yzerman was a strong Hart candidate

I don't really have a problem with any of that. To me, the guy who wins the Hart should be playing for one of the top teams, or at least a team that is doing noticeably better due to his current level of play than prior.

My own Hart voting for 1987-88 would have been:
1) Gretzky
2) Lemieux [team missed the playoffs, but was decent]
3) Yzerman

And my Hart voting for 1988-89 would have been:
1) Lemieux
2) Gretzky
3) Roy
4) Yzerman

So, in that sense (just to play devil's advocate), I can see an argument that 1988-89 isn't his most significant season, but whatever, it was still a season for the ages...

 

[MS]

Maybe I'm in the minority, but I'm not totally convinced it's his best season. I say this for a few reasons:
1) The team fell considerably in the standings

2) While an even-strength stud in scoring, Yzerman was also on the ice for 152 goals against, which is a LOT. The previous season, he'd been on-ice for about 1 goal-against per game, but in 1988-89 that jumped to nearly 2 goals-against per game. If you compare his total on-ice goals-for vs. goals-against for a few seasons:
1986-87: 125 / 87
1987-88: 132 / 75
1988-89: 189 / 152

This can perhaps partly be explained by his increased penalty-killing, but his overall +17 seems kind of average for a .500 team, given his points scored. I dunno, I sometimes think he was actually a more effective player in 1987-88, when he was actually 2nd in goals-per-game before a late-season injury cut him short. (Then again, the Wings did rather well without him in the playoffs, so...)

This would be a year where it would be fascinating if icetime numbers existed.

My impression is that this was the year where Yzerman was pumped up from playing 21-22 minutes/game to 25-28. When you look at both his GF and GA totals, I suspect his icetime was absolutely absurd that year relative to current standards.

On the flipside, you wonder what he could have done if he had some sort of skilled blueline to help him. Steve Chaisson and Lee Norwood might have been the least-skilled 'skill' defenders of any team in the league, and somehow he scored 155 points on a team with the 12th-ranked PP out of 21 teams.

 

[GMR]

Yzerman scored 46 powerplay points(17 goals, 29 assists) in 88-89. Yzerman scored 101 EV strength points that year, more than Gretzky(100) and just behind Lemieux(102).

Thanks. That's even more impressive then. Would have been a fun time to watch the Wings with Yzerman putting up monster numbers and the Bruise Brothers beating people up.

 

[Sentinel]

By contrast, it seems like players who won and contributed to great teams are almost punished for it.

Like 90s Yzerman, right?

 

[DisgruntledGoat*]

Like 90s Yzerman, right?

I'm not sure I've ever seen that with Yzerman, honestly.

If anything, he seems to get credit for putting up big numbers on bad teams in the first part of his career... And then gets credit for sacrificing offense on good teams later on.

 

[Brewsky]

My goodness just looking at those Mario and Wayne 40 games played stats!

Mario's 40 games played stats is the equivalent of an 82 game Hart trophy season today...**** I miss more 100 pts players.

 

[The Panther]

My goodness just looking at those Mario and Wayne 40 games played stats!

Mario's 40 games played stats is the equivalent of an 82 game Hart trophy season today...**** I miss more 100 pts players.

In 1983-84, Gretzky had 153 points in 51 games. That's exactly one point per period over 51 games.

 

[tony d]

What a great season Yzerman had that year. I miss the multi 100 point seasons of back then.