News Article: Sidney Crosby voted most difficult player to play against in NHLPA poll

[Dey so soff*]

Who is the best forward of all time?

Wayne Gretzky - 72.7%
Mario Lemieux - 11.3%
Sidney Crosby - 4.9%
Jaromir Jagr - 3.1%
Peter Forsberg - 2.3%

Mario with only 11%???

I’ll give Wayne his due but IMO Mario was the best to ever play the game. Had he not had to deal with cancer and the persistent back issues, I think he could have challenged Wayne for the title of greatest ever.

 

[Dey so soff*]

But what does Bylsma think???

Tanner Glass and Craig Adams are in his top 10...

 

[BmxHockey]

Disagree on the notion that Sid couldn’t be a great coach. Coaching comes down to teaching, communicating and using your head. Sid is always skating with his head first, talent second and he taught Dupuis and Kunitz to be the best they could be. Edit: Bonus-Sid knows how to get in rapport with the officials!!

 

[SirBrad]

More like most difficult player to watch lately

Well I can surely see why Penguins fans weren't voted in the Top 5 fans

 

[66-30-33]

Surprised to see McDavid not at number 2 spot for best forward of all time considering last season HFBoards said he was better then Mario and was equal to Gretzky, some said better lmao.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

Well I can surely see why Penguins fans weren't voted in the Top 5 fans

Dontcha know?? We're all a bunch of spoiled, entitled, bandwagoners.

 

[Finesse]

Sid was voted #1 most difficult to play against because he's so passive aggressive during games. That can be hard to deal with.

 

[billybudd]

Mario with only 11%???

I’ll give Wayne his due but IMO Mario was the best to ever play the game. Had he not had to deal with cancer and the persistent back issues, I think he could have challenged Wayne for the title of greatest ever.

Lot of these guys aren't old enough to remember Mario or Gretzky in their prime and are going off reputation. The way to understand this list is that 11% of the players responding are from French Canada or play for the Penguins and 2.3% are Swedish.

 

[LOGiK]

Who is the best forward of all time?

Wayne Gretzky - 72.7%
Mario Lemieux - 11.3%
Sidney Crosby - 4.9%
Jaromir Jagr - 3.1%
Peter Forsberg - 2.3%

I'm torn. I think to myself if you put Crosby in the 80's era goal-tending, small pads and stand-up era... Sid, OV, Geno... the guys would rip 300 points a year.

I know I know, different era, injuries with the hits and slashing, two-line passes, etc.

But man Sid, Geno, OV, et al, in the 80's era small goalie pads .... it would be hat tricks every game.

 

[Turin]

I'm torn. I think to myself if you put Crosby in the 80's era goal-tending, small pads and stand-up era... Sid, OV, Geno... the guys would rip 300 points a year.

I know I know, different era, injuries with the hits and slashing, two-line passes, etc.

But man Sid, Geno, OV, et al, in the 80's era small goalie pads .... it would be hat tricks every game.

The game has certainly changed. From a practical standpoint Gretzky played against players who wouldn’t make the CHL. Doesn’t take away how ahead of his time he was.. but it doesn’t mean the current players aren’t the most skilled of all time either.

 

[harmonica]

I'm torn. I think to myself if you put Crosby in the 80's era goal-tending, small pads and stand-up era... Sid, OV, Geno... the guys would rip 300 points a year.

I know I know, different era, injuries with the hits and slashing, two-line passes, etc.

But man Sid, Geno, OV, et al, in the 80's era small goalie pads .... it would be hat tricks every game.

You just can't do time travel comparisons, as they just don't work. Sid and Ovie wouldn't be the players they are without the past being what it is. Gretzky and Marios skill level over their competition just will not exist ever again. There is a lot more parity between the best and he worst players in the league. Also they game has changed so much. Fitness and training is next level compared to the 80s. Hell, who doesn't love to joke about Phil and hot dogs? Mario was basically the same way, but with hamburgers and red wine.

 

[LOGiK]

The game has certainly changed. From a practical standpoint Gretzky played against players who wouldn’t make the CHL. Doesn’t take away how ahead of his time he was.. but it doesn’t mean the current players aren’t the most skilled of all time either.

Most definitely. Hockey is the tough sport to interchange current and past players because it is an evolving sport. It went from bench clearing brawls with hooking and interference as regular plays to speed and skill being the normal.
Not to mention the biggest difference is the goalie skill and pad size.
It is tough to say for sure.

 

[LOGiK]

You just can't do time travel comparisons, as they just don't work. Sid and Ovie wouldn't be the players they are without the past being what it is. Gretzky and Marios skill level over their competition just will not exist ever again. There is a lot more parity between the best and he worst players in the league. Also they game has changed so much. Fitness and training is next level compared to the 80s. Hell, who doesn't love to joke about Phil and hot dogs? Mario was basically the same way, but with hamburgers and red wine.

I know I agree. Hell... Patrick Roy was drunk as hell. See my previous post, before I saw yours. Hockey evolved as a sport more than any other, in my opinion.

 

[Tom Hanks]

You just can't do time travel comparisons, as they just don't work. Sid and Ovie wouldn't be the players they are without the past being what it is. Gretzky and Marios skill level over their competition just will not exist ever again. There is a lot more parity between the best and he worst players in the league. Also they game has changed so much. Fitness and training is next level compared to the 80s. Hell, who doesn't love to joke about Phil and hot dogs? Mario was basically the same way, but with hamburgers and red wine.

I had a joke about time travel but you didn’t like it.

 

[LOGiK]

I had a joke about time travel but you didn’t like it.

 

[HandshakeLine]

You just can't do time travel comparisons, as they just don't work. Sid and Ovie wouldn't be the players they are without the past being what it is. Gretzky and Marios skill level over their competition just will not exist ever again. There is a lot more parity between the best and he worst players in the league. Also they game has changed so much. Fitness and training is next level compared to the 80s. Hell, who doesn't love to joke about Phil and hot dogs? Mario was basically the same way, but with hamburgers and red wine.

My favorite Mario not-giving-a-f***-about-training moment is an interview with KDKA in the mid 80s (I want to say, like 1986 or 1987?) where he's literally having a smoke on the ice at training camp.

Also, I remember running into Robert Lang lots of times on Carson back in the day and he would chainsmoke like a steel mill. Players actually giving a f*** about their bodies is such a new thing in the NHL.

 

[Dacks]

He, and any other generational player, would be a terrible coach. Maybe a good GM though.

In principle, I agree. But, among that select group, Crosby might be the best suited to coach. He works meticulously on his weaknesses, which indicates an ability to obverse, deconstruct, and absorb skills that don't come naturally to him (for example, faceoffs) and he obviously enjoys drawing up plays. Those are at least two aspects that would translate to coaching.

 

[froods]

Mario with only 11%???

I’ll give Wayne his due but IMO Mario was the best to ever play the game. Had he not had to deal with cancer and the persistent back issues, I think he could have challenged Wayne for the title of greatest ever.

The thing is, he did have those issues. You can’t ignore that. I totally agree with the sentiment that Mario was just as good and possibly more dominant, but it is a body of work. Nobody can touch Wayne.

 

[SHOOTANDSCORE]

When historic comparisons are made like this, I like to think back to the last few years of Mario's career. Despite being a fraction of his former self, he was still putting up a point per game in the clutch and grab and on into 05-06. Mario and Gretzky were just ridiculous talents and head and shoulders above everyone, regardless of the era.