When did the 80s generation end?

[Terrier]

Trying to think on how to say this...

When did the Gretzky/Messier/Yzerman/Lemieux era end to you?

Maybe calling it the 80's generation wasn't the best name but meh.

When Gretzky retired?

When Messier retired?

(Lemieuxs retirement was too soon I think.)

The 94-95 season, which gave us 1) the first lockout, 2) Jacques Lemaire, the Devils and the Trap and 3) the beginning of the end for the old buildings, Chicago Stadium(1994), Boston Garden(1995), the Forum(1996) and eventually Maple Leaf Gardens.

 

[GuloGulo]

No it isn't. 1990 is the start of the 1990"s . Just like at the beginning of the year 1 AD (12:00 AM, January 1, 1) it wasn't 0 BC. Think about it.

Think about it. Start counting from AD 1, and check where the decade ends. Ten years. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10. Then the next decade: 11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20. Repeat ad nauseam.

Sooner or later you'll reach the 1980s. begins in 1981 and ends in 1990. Simple maths. There is no 0 BC. There was only 1 BC and 1 AD. No origo. 1990 is actually nineteeneighty-ten, not nineteenninety-zero.

 

[Masao]

Think about it. Start counting from AD 1, and check where the decade ends. Ten years. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10. Then the next decade: 11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,20. Repeat ad nauseam.

Sooner or later you'll reach the 1980s. begins in 1981 and ends in 1990. Simple maths. There is no 0 BC. There was only 1 BC and 1 AD. No origo. 1990 is actually nineteeneighty-ten, not nineteenninety-zero.

1990 is the first year of the 1990s
1990 is the last year of the 199th decade

199th decade:
1981 to 1990

1980s:
1980 to 1989

 

[Tretiak]

To me, that era is pretty easy to pin down.

It started in 1979, with the WHA merger. New 18 y/o draft. Gretzky, Messier, etc. break into the league. Scoring takes a sharp upturn. New dynasty on Long Island, end of the Habs dynasty.

Ended in 1994/95. Lockout, rising salaries, advent of unrestricted free agency. Scoring takes a dive after the lockout, trap is suddenly everywhere. NJ wins the Cup, Edmonton is a mickey-mouse team now. Most of the stars of the '80s are now well past their prime. Bettman comes in, expansion is in full effect, divisions are re-named. Start of the era we've seen up until the 2004-05 lockout.

The 94-95 season, which gave us 1) the first lockout, 2) Jacques Lemaire, the Devils and the Trap and 3) the beginning of the end for the old buildings, Chicago Stadium(1994), Boston Garden(1995), the Forum(1996) and eventually Maple Leaf Gardens.

You guys nailed it. Hockey just was not the same for me after the 1994/1995 season.

"80's" hockey was the best!

 

[Fish on The Sand]

1990 is the first year of the 1990s
1990 is the last year of the 199th decade

199th decade:
1981 to 1990

1980s:
1980 to 1989

this could be the lamest arguement in hf history, but I still find myself inclined to agree with you.

 

[Masao]

this could be the lamest arguement in hf history, but I still find myself inclined to agree with you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1980s

 

[GuloGulo]

1990 is the first year of the 1990s
1990 is the last year of the 199th decade

199th decade:
1981 to 1990

1980s:
1980 to 1989

That's correct. But then it's linguistics rather than mathematics

Anyway, the "real 80s" didn't begin in 1980 nor did it end in 1990. I'd say the 80s as an era definitely ended by a series of events:

1) Soviet breakup. End of the cold war. No more "Ze KGB, Mr Bond"
2) Clinton administration. Gone were the Gipper and Mr Vision Thing.
3) Nirvana bestowing the LA Hair metal scene into oblivion.

I cannot stress how important event 3 was

In hockey terms though, it ended with the lockout of 94 as several posters have already pointed out.

 

[Form and Substance]

The 80s era was gone by the time the new wave of superstars (Jagr, Kariya, Selanne, Brodeur, Lindros) hit their stride. That's according to me. It's a shame most of these players never really built upon a succesful 95-96 campaign. Man that was good hockey.

 

[IBleedOil247]

I caused the lamest argument EVER!!!!

 

[jerseydevil]

Can't find a single thing I disagree with here but a few other things happened too that affected the game and added to the 'dead puck' era of the mid 1990's-2004.

1. It wasn't just the trap, but rather a bunch of different 'systems' that teams began to employ. Teams hired more assistance coaches to specialize on stuff like special teams, goaltending etc.

2. Game prep, coaching and scouting seemed to get better too which helped teams break down the opponents better and made the game even more positional and robotic. Scouts and video coaches could break down individual and team tendancies much better. The Center Ice package now meant that anybody on one team could watch any other NHL game anytime they want.

3. Goaltending got better too. The equipment got larger, lighter and more flexible -all of which gave the goalies more of an advantage. Goalies covered the net so much better and seemed more flexible than in the past. They handled the puck so much better too as guys like Brodeur and Turco started roaming out of the crease more and acting to set up the first pass and negate the forecheck more often.

4. Defensemen got bigger and more mobile. Don't remember seeing nearly as many 6'5 behemoths who could skate back in the 1980's. More than anything defensemen seems to block more and more shots. Anybody remember Craig Ludwig's shin pads in Dallas? You could land a 747 on those things.

5. Expansion teams certainly didn't help as most (but not all) played the trapping game. I don't think the talent got diluted as badly as some people seem to think because at the same time the league grew more and more Euros entered the NHL. Also, the talent coming from places like Canada and the USA got better, not worse, IMHO.

I think the crappy teams of the 1980's were actually worse than the crap teams of the late 1990's or '00s. Some of those old North Star, Penguins, Devil or Leaf teams back 15-20 years ago were positively dreadful; especially defensively and in goal. That one's probably more of a personal judgement call however.

Very well said..I couldn't agree more with your assessments.