Guy Lafleur was and is my childhood idol but i don't think he was more spectacular to watch.Sometimes he could be with those legendary end to end rushes and spectacular blasts but sometimes Gretzky could be with his stunning creativity and drop your jaw passes. Depends what kind of a hockey fan you are.
Love that word. Gotta start using it more. Lafleur was spectacular to watch. Gretzky was the greatest offensive machine there ever was. I enjoyed Lafleur more because a CH win made me happier than an Oiler win. I'm not an art critic. I preferred Mike McPhee to Buchberger too, but I don't wanna fight you, so I'll let it drop. Just thought of this, Dilallo's, a great Mtl burger joint sells a Buck Burger, no relation I suppose.
McPhee is a Nova Scotian, and his handsomeness started his career here, so they're both okay in my book. Plus, I don't fight girls, guys with thick glasses or old guys. It's a matter of principle
Geez,Bucky, those are the only fights I can win. McPhee lives in Cape Breton doesn't he ? He's an engineer, if I remember right.
Lives close to the halifax area around St Margaret's bay these days i think.He's an investment guy of some sorts now and halifax is the best place in the province to be for that type of work.
I would say that a better comparison for LaFleur,in style, would be Ovechkin.I agree that LaFleur would take you out of your seat but Gretzky would have you on the edge of your seat every moment he was on the ice.Gretzky was the maestro and LaFleur was akin to the lead guitarist who in the middle of the show would astonish you with some incredible solo rift.
Oh, the good old days To be honest, some of the arguments in the recent Canada/Russia threads here makes me miss chooch.
To fully appreciate Gretzky you need to have watched him in person. So much of what he did happened away from the puck. His anticipation was unmatched. I was lucky enough to have had seasons tickets from the Oilers' WhA days through to 1988. I was also a huge Lafleur fan. However, I would respectfully disagree with your assessment. Regards
Lafleur was great at the end to end rush, and improvising his own shot, Gretzky just always seemed a step ahead in thinking of everyone else on the ice. He was a masterful conductor of offense, uncanny vision and playmaking ability, a good shot, a better playmaker.
I'd rate Lafleur, Bobby Hull and Bobby Orr as the three most exciting players I've seen. THey could bring you out of your seat by themselves. Gretzky had great instincts, even though he scored all those goals, I always think of him as more of a playmaker. He was the first player that I saw try to score from behind the net. (66 used to do this too). 99 was spectacular in his prime though. Will never forget the game he scored five to reach 50 in 39 games.
