All time Team Canada?

[Overrated]

How about this forward corps?

Mario Lemieux Wayne Gretzky Maurice Richard
Bobby Hull Jean Beliveau Gordie Howe
Mark Messier Frank Nighbor Bill Cook
Craig Ramsay Patrice Bergeron Claude Lemieux​

Would Lemieux as a LW work as well as him being center or RW? Wasn't he a RW in the 3rd game CC87 with Gretzky occupying LW instead?

 

[JackSlater]

Would Lemieux as a LW work as well as him being center or RW? Wasn't he a RW in the 3rd game CC87 with Gretzky occupying LW instead?

Lemieux played LW with Gretzky and in the NHL at times, such as 1997. I'm sure he would work as a RW as well. You can make him a centre, but there are so many great centres available that when one has proven ability on the wing it's very tempting to move him over. I think Lemieux might have played a game at RW during an exhibition prior to the 1987 Canada Cup, but it could have been LW (Gretzky was the centre and Wendel Clark was the other wing).

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

how do you figure?

mcdavid has had an amazing start, and was just as highly touted coming into the league as lafleur, but can you guarantee that he will have a six year peak of three art rosses, two third place finishes, and a fourth; two MVPs, a runner up, a 3rd, a 4th, and a 5th; four cups, leading the playoffs in goals twice and points three times, and potting whatever this era's playoff equivalent of 72 GP, 51 G, 59 A, 110 P is?

that's the amazing thing about lafleur's peak: he had one of the greatest regular season scoring peaks ever, and then equaled it in the playoffs.

mcdavid sure looks like he is on his way to at least those regular season accomplishments, but i don't know if he is any more of a sure thing to do it as lafleur was, given their different circumstances.

re: the mcdavid discussion from 2018, here we are in 2023

lafleur: three art rosses, two third places and a fourth
mcd: four art rosses, a very likely fifth this year, two second places

lafleur: two hart trophies, a second place, a third, and a fourth
mcd: two hart trophies, a second place, a third, and two fifths

lafleur: led the playoffs in scoring three times, five cups (four as a franchise player), conn smythe
mcd: led the playoffs in scoring once

all to say, mcd ended up doing what we expected him to do. but by the same token he hasn't exactly blown away lafleur's peak (yet).

 

[JackSlater]

I probably already posted one in here years ago but I'll try this one now with 14F 8D 3G. Could easily be different on any given day and some players (Richard, a glut of centres) could make it over others who are there.

Lemieux (1989) Gretzky (1985) Cook (1927)
McDavid (2023) Beliveau (1956) Howe (1953)
Messier (1990) Clarke (1975) Lindros (1996)
Hull (1965) Crosby (2011) Bergeron (2014)
Bossy (1981), Morenz (1931)

Pronger (2007) Orr (1970)
Potvin (1981) Shore (1935)
Harvey (1958) Bourque (1990)
Kelly (1954), Robinson (1977)

Roy (1992)
Brodeur (2003)
Hall (1969)

 

[authentic]

Lemieux Gretzky Howe
Hull McDavid Lafleur
Sakic Crosby Bossy
Messier Lindros Richard


Really didn't want to leave Beliveau off, I would rather have him on my team than Messier but a Messier and Lindros combo seemed too good to be true. The 4th line could just as easily be the 3rd line as well.

Potvin Orr
Pronger Bourque
Harvey Robinson

Roy
Brodeur
Sawchuk

 

[MadLuke]

Really didn't want to leave Beliveau off,

Olympic roster size should make it possible to put it him, you have 20 skaters available + 2 goaltenders for the game days.

7D and 13 forward is an option.

 

[authentic]

Olympic roster size should make it possible to put it him, you have 20 skaters available + 2 goaltenders for the game days.

7D and 13 forward is an option.

Oh right on then he’s in there along with Shore

 

[Johnny Tomala]

You are doing this wrong by voting in players that didn't play in international competitions for Canada. Morenz, Hull, Beliveau, Howe have no business being on all time Canada team.

 

[jigglysquishy]

You are doing this wrong by voting in players that didn't play in international competitions for Canada. Morentz, Hull, Beliveau, Howe have no business being on all time Canada team.

 

[Johnny Tomala]

Howe played in 0 international tournaments. Canada Summit doesn't count. Hull in one Canada Cup. It is too little to be on all time Canada team. They make a team of 23 best Canadians of all time just not 23 Team Canada players of all time.

 

[Overrated]

You are doing this wrong by voting in players that didn't play in international competitions for Canada. Morentz, Hull, Beliveau, Howe have no business being on all time Canada team.

Howe played in 0 international tournaments. Canada Summit doesn't count. Hull in one Canada Cup. It is too little to be on all time Canada team. They make a team of 23 best Canadians of all time just not 23 Team Canada players of all time.

Why wouldn't it count. Yes it was an exhibition series but it was taken very seriously back then. Also I think this is more of a hypothetical question about who'd be on an all time team Canada not who has performed the best for Canada historically. Hull has however performed in a stellar way. Killing it in both the SS74 and CC76 when he was way into his 30s.

 

[JackSlater]

Howe played in 0 international tournaments. Canada Summit doesn't count. Hull in one Canada Cup. It is too little to be on all time Canada team. They make a team of 23 best Canadians of all time just not 23 Team Canada players of all time.

Give us the Johnny Tomala approved all time (but really just 1976 and after) team Canada.

 

[Johnny Tomala]

Give us the Johnny Tomala approved all time (but really just 1976 and after) team Canada.

All time Team Canada?

I find it interesting that Connor McDavid hasn't been mentioned yet in this thread With all due respect to Howie Morenz, does anybody really think he's better at hockey than McDavid?

forums.hfboards.com

 

[JackSlater]

All time Team Canada?

I find it interesting that Connor McDavid hasn't been mentioned yet in this thread With all due respect to Howie Morenz, does anybody really think he's better at hockey than McDavid?

forums.hfboards.com

Well, you stuck to your invented criteria so credit to you. Canadian hockey existed for nearly a century before 1972 though, which makes it a bit of a stretch to call that team an all time Canadian team.

 

[Johnny Tomala]

Yep, but I valued contribution to Canada in international tournaments, I didn't just picked best 23 Canadian players of all time. I think my team ain't that bad.

 

[JackSlater]

Yep, but I valued contribution to Canada in international tournaments, I didn't just picked best 23 Canadian players of all time. I think my team ain't that bad.

It's not bad with that criteria. I don't think that Dionne or Lafleur would make it though, certainly not ahead of Perreault, and Doughty plus at least one of Weber and Keith would have to make it. Most of the big contributors at the best on best level are there.

 

[Pominville Knows]

Yep, but I valued contribution to Canada in international tournaments, I didn't just picked best 23 Canadian players of all time. I think my team ain't that bad.

You sure did. That team still would have been in some troubles if up against the best Canadian players of all time. Some of them are on your team here, sure; but probably half are not.

 

[Boxscore]

I'm going in a slightly different direction, based on roles and chemistry. Due to elite talent like Gretz, Mario, Orr and McDavid... lighting the lamp sure won't be a problem. I wanted other dynamics such as speed, physicality, tenaciousness, nastiness, leadership, checking, etc. Also wanted versatility... players who could easily move up and down the lineup in the event of injuries and who could easily play multiple roles.

In goal, I opted for three completely different kind of cats... a money goalie who could lockdown a small series (Dryden). An elite talent (Roy). And a reliable, "steady Eddie" who is comfortable facing 20 shots a game... the ultimate insurance policy if all else fails (Brodeur).

TEAM CANADA

Forwards
M. Lemieux - Gretzky - Bossy
McDavid - Crosby - Lafleur
Messier - Lindros - Howe
Marchand - Clarke - Trottier
Bergeron

Defensemen
Orr - Harvey
Robinson - Potvin
Bourque - Pronger
S. Stevens

Goaltenders
Dryden
Roy
Brodeur

Reserves: (F) Esposito, Keon, Mikita, Iginla. (D) Coffey, S. Savard, Horton. (G) Fuhr

​

As difficult as it was, megastars like Beliveau, Hull, Richard, Sakic, Gainey, Yzerman, Morenz, Mahovlich, Shore, Kelly, Sawchuk, etc. didn't make the final bus trip.

​

 

[Pominville Knows]

How about this forward corps?

Bobby Hull Wayne Gretzky Mario Lemieux
Mark Messier Jean Beliveau Gordie Howe​

Clarke Gillies Frank Nighbor Maurice Richard
Craig Ramsay Patrice Bergeron Claude Lemieux​

Added Clarke Gillies to the roster. By mistake i pressed some tangent to make it into two quotes, the top six and bottom six.
Could potentially see him play with 99 and 66 btw to provide them protection.

 

[daver]

View attachment 645660

Howe giving the Russkie a taste of western freedom through his elbow.

 

[VMBM]

Howe giving the Russkie a taste of western freedom through his elbow.

I wonder if Petrov received something else (i.e. much nastier) from Mr. Hockey after that too.

I mean, based on the stories I've read (from Phil Esposito and Finnish player Heikki Riihiranta, for example), Howe couldn't even stand anyone checking/hitting him legally and would retaliate with a slash in the face/neck or the like.

PS. Normally I'd say that it's a bit childish to use terms like 'Ruskie', but in the current situation (in Europe)... Yeah, what do I care.

 

[daver]

PS. Normally I'd say that it's a bit childish to use terms like 'Ruskie', but in the current situation (in Europe)... Yeah, what do I care

Was meant to be taken as what someone from the '60s would say. Just as easily could have said "Petrov: the elbow was a sign of western decadence"