wetcoast
Registered User
- Nov 20, 2018
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The only generational players ever are:
Howie Morenz: First player to be a totally dominate player in his prime in the NHL and change the game up until his career ended.
Maurice Richard: Destroyed past scoring records and first player to score 50 in 50. A record that lasted over 25 years. For his era it is like scoring 75 goals in 75 games today.
Gordy Howe: The greatest player of his time that can score, was a great playmaker, and also the toughest meanest player in the league. Think about who is the best fighter today and also winning the scoring championships. Played 4 decades of competitive hockey. No one before or since has come close to his ability to be a NHL/WHA player at the age of 50. The ultimate greatest iron man in history.
Bobby Orr: Greatest defencemen that ever lived. Before Orr defencemen were all about defence and any offence was a luxury if a Dman scored at all. Orr changed all that. He won the scoring tidal twice and produce 6 consecutive season of a 100 points or more. Totally unheard of before Orr. Change the game on how defencemen were looked at for offensive capabilities by the NHL GM's. If he could of stayed healthy he may be the greatest player of all time. Definitely the greatest player that ever lived up until Gretzky.
Wayne Gretzky: Greatest player that ever lived. Not only did he break over 50 all time records over his career he destroyed all of them. There has not been a player before or since that has dominated the league like he did in his prime. No one today holds a candle to Gretzky at his best. Still holds all the scoring records almost 20 years after he retired.
Mario Lemieux: The only forward in history that actually can challenge Gretzky as one of the best ever. If Mario could of stayed healthy through his prime he may of challenged some of Gretzky's records but I still think he would be 2nd best. Mario was bigger and faster and almost as talented as Gretzky but was not at Gretzky's level. Absolutely the 2nd greatest forward that ever lived. The fact that both of these player played in the same era is a testament on good that era was.
These are the only generational players in NHL history.
I classified them by era first but for the best of the best is:
Gretzky
Orr
Lemieux
Howe
Richard
Morenz
No one today can be called generational but that does not mean they are not great players of their era.
there is no way that Morenz or Richard can be classified as generational on a list that is only 6 players long.
Maybe on a list 40 to 50 players long.