If Gretzky played in this era, would he still be considered the GOAT?

[AleksandarN]

it's amazing how humans keep getting smarter and smarter as evidenced by the technology we have today

but athletic ability and skill has some how gotten worse, it peaked in the 80's

it's even worse in baseball, Babe Ruth played 100 years ago those guys would work as roofers during the day and still outplay guys of today

That is false. Please watch this video

 

[AleksandarN]

I also want to point out this things that has to be mentioned about Gretzky.

• His accurate shot. His accuracy is bar none the best in the league. I don't why it wouldn't be today.
• His insane work ethic was the best ever. He was the first and last on the ice,
• People always mentioned his vision and creativity, People over look his passing ability. His passes were always tape to tape. His accuracy on his passes are bare none. I am not just talking open ice passes. I talking about passes through defenders skates and sticks and yet he still puts in on the tape. It was amazing to see his saucer passes that would go through several people to eventually find his teammates's tape on their sticks. Amazing today you always see passes broken up all the time. Not the case with the great one.

 

[Tasty Biscuits]

For those millemials: 66 came out of retirement at the age of 35 after missing 3 seasons, and in 43 games put up 76 pts.

P/G Leaders:
Lemieux: 1.77
Prime Jagr: 1.49
Peak Sakic: 1.44
Prime Forsberg: 1.22

To answer the OP, yes. Yes, Gretzky would still be the GOAT.

Came to post this and figured someone else already would have.

A washed up Mario dominated the league with players like Jagr in their prime.

Jagr still put up decent numbers in this era as a washed up 40+ something.

Wayne and Mario would be the best players in the game. No question.

It's crazy that this is constantly overlooked and has to be pointed out in every one of these "Gretzky playing in today's game" threads

 

[authentic]

He would be the best or worst case scenario among the best, not to nearly the extent he was in the 80s though. The league has evolved a lot and the gap has narrowed from top to bottom.

 

[ottawa]

Maybe, maybe not...Gretzky was way ahead of the times back then, but everyone was also stupid back then. Game is a lot faster and smarter today so hard to tell how he would have evolved with the game.

 

[Passchendaele]

Maybe, maybe not...Gretzky was way ahead of the times back then, but everyone was also stupid back then. Game is a lot faster and smarter today so hard to tell how he would have evolved with the game.

Today's game is built around systems. No room for creativity.

Meaning it's dumber than ever.

 

[joez86]

Exactly. World records are smashed at the olympics consistently. Training is better, medicine is better, athletes today would absolutely destroy athletes in the 80's.

If 1987 Gretzky was magically placed in the NHL today, he would be crushed. But if he was born in, say 1994, and got to grow up with the generation currently in the NHL and receive the same training, who knows how good he would be?

I think he would lead the league in goals, and win the Art Ross with his assists alone.

Just like he did that season. Nothing about his game would suffer today.

 

[McShogun99]

Considering that during his second last season, at the age of 37 he finished 4th in league scoring. The players ahead of him were Jagr (26), Bure (27) and Forsberg (25). He also led the league in assists that year. The previous year when he was 36 he led the league in assists and finished 4th in points behind Lemiuex (31), Selanne (27) and Kariya (23). So yes, he would have easily adapted to todays game and still would have been a franchise player. He wouldn't be putting up 200 point seasons but I cn see him being a 100 to 130 point player in todays game. His entire game was based on his hockey IQ and conditioning which is something that can translate to any era.

 

[puckIuck]

gretzky would quit after the 10th game. players today are faster and stronger than the beer leaguers of the 80s..

 

[Bandit]

no

it amazes me how so many here think the best of everything all happened 30+ years ago and humans are getting worse

I don't know how to break this to you, but humans are getting worse.

Quote by Carl Sagan: “I have a foreboding of an America in my childre...”

We have arrived.

 

[biotk]

If Gretzky was born at a different time the totality of his experiences would be different. Maybe he would bet he best of all time. Maybe he would have spent too much time playing video games and never played hockey at a high level and quit the game at 12. Maybe he would have found his local baseball league more appealing at a young age.

 

[biotk]

I don't know how to break this to you, but humans are getting worse.

Quote by Carl Sagan: “I have a foreboding of an America in my childre...”

We have arrived.

Very true. Or you could read Pinker's new book and reach the opposite conclusion.

Reality is that some things are getting better and others worse.

 

[Bandit]

Very true. Or you could read Pinker's new book and reach the opposite conclusion.

Reality is that some things are getting better and others worse.

Go away! 'Baitin'...

 

[Apotheosis]

By a country mile. If you assume he comes in and plays with this level of training and nutrition, he'd be faster and stronger, and wouldn't lose his insane hockey IQ. Imagine McDavid/Kane/Gaudreau hockey IQ on steroids, see how much they produce and realize that would be Gretzky, but faster and stronger than he was in the 80's. He wouldn't score 210 points again, obviously, but he'd easily drop 130+ on the league year in and year out.

 

[Mbraunm]

I believe the skill is higher now than ever but not the talent levels. The talent levels were higher in the 80s and 90s. That being stated, I just can’t imagine a player of Gretzky’s IQ and vision getting less that 110-120 points today. I mean does anyone here actually believe that players like Kucherov and Gaudreau (as great as they are) are anywhere near Gretzky’s abilities? Most people who would answer yes, likely never watched Gretzky play.

 

[ThePhoenixx]

Gretzky as a child knew where the puck was going to be most of the time and told his dad about it. He saw patterns as others see real time static behaviors.

 

[Mbraunm]

Gretzky as a child knew where the puck was going to be most of the time and told his dad about it. He saw patterns as others see real time static behaviors.

True-he simply saw a different game than anyone else ever has. Truly a savant.

 

[KCC]

Idk. He himself said The players are faster and stronger and that he’d have found a way still because of his smarts. But beyond that it’s impossibke to know

 

[Legionnaire]

it's amazing how humans keep getting smarter and smarter as evidenced by the technology we have today

but athletic ability and skill has some how gotten worse, it peaked in the 80's

it's even worse in baseball, Babe Ruth played 100 years ago those guys would work as roofers during the day and still outplay guys of today

This is the dumbest argument. Humans aren't computers. Moore's law dictates the progression technology whereas natural selection/evolution dictates man's. Thousands of years of evolution to get where mankind is today. Why do you think all of a sudden it accelerated in the last 30 years? It did not.

 

[biotk]

Gretzky as a child knew where the puck was going to be most of the time and told his dad about it. He saw patterns as others see real time static behaviors.

True-he simply saw a different game than anyone else ever has. Truly a savant.

Not true. Walter taught Wayne to think about, and go to, where the puck was going.

Gretzky was in no way a savant (people who have a special skill, but also significant mental disability). He was a hockey prodigy. Like most prodigies (across all kinds of fields) Gretzky both had the requisite physical and mental characteristics for success, tied to the environmental luck of being born into a family with a father like Walter.

 

[Mbraunm]

Not true. Walter taught Wayne to think about, and go to, where the puck was going.

Gretzky was in no way a savant (people who have a special skill, but also significant mental disability). He was a hockey prodigy. Like most prodigies (across all kinds of fields) Gretzky both had the requisite physical and mental characteristics for success, tied to the environmental luck of being born into a family with a father like Walter.

I stand corrected, prodigy is a much more appropriate description of Gretzky (as opposed to the term savant).

 

[syz]

Gretzky with modern-day training/fitness/etc. would melt people's faces.

 

[Binister]

Dominated everyone during his era. Hard to say because he would've been offered the same tools as the stars today but the average level of players is way better and the pace is from another planet.

Wouldn't be surprised of either result.

 

[Mbraunm]

Dominated everyone during his era. Hard to say because he would've been offered the same tools as the stars today but the average level of players is way better and the pace is from another planet.

Wouldn't be surprised of either result.

I watched Gretzky his entire career, and by '97 he had lost most of his skating speed, acceleration and overall finesse. He looked like a slow, broken down shadow of his former self. He was basically relying entirely on his unprecedented IQ, vision and anticipation to survive at that point and STILL out pointed younger greats such as Federov, Sundin, Forsberg, Sakic, Yzerman, Mogilny, Jagr, Modano, Hull, Pallfy, Francis, Messier, Lindros, Oates, Recchi, Shanahan, Roenick, Yashin, Fleury, Alfreddson, Bondra, Turgeon,....at the end of his career!

So I would be absolutely shocked if he did not dominate today’s game as well by a 15-30% margin.

 

[Binister]

I watched Gretzky his entire career, and by '97 he had lost most of his skating speed, acceleration and overall finesse. He looked like a slow, broken down shadow of his former self. He was basically relying entirely on his unprecedented IQ, vision and anticipation to survive at that point and STILL out pointed younger greats such as Federov, Sundin, Forsberg, Sakic, Yzerman, Mogilny, Jagr, Modano, Hull, Pallfy, Francis, Messier, Lindros, Oates, Recchi, Shanahan, Roenick, Yashin, Fleury, Alfreddson, Bondra, Turgeon,....at the end of his career!

So I would be absolutely shocked if he did not dominate today’s game as well by a 15-30% margin.

That's true. He would be as agile and fast as the best ones while still having that natural gift in scoring/playmaking. 99 would be retired league wide still.

BUT

In today's game star players are targeted by dirty play and huge hits. There's no enforcers to protect the star player. Would Gretzky be injured way often than his actual career?