GreatGonzo
Surrounded by Snowflakes
All I got from your post was excuse after excuse trying to downplay Thornton. You focus on the post season because it's the only thing Getzlaf has....you say Thorntons stats are inflated, yet he was a top center before the lockout....and you say he isn't THAT much better offensively than Thornton?My post was self explanatory, Getzlaf for playoffs and Thornton for the regular season. When a player is that consistently better in the playoffs (I've watched more than enough of both in the past decade there) I have a hard time saying they are not technically the better player. He has just about as much skill but also has a killer instinct and uses his size and strength to his advantage more when the games get tough. Thornton can always pile up the assists but he's nowhere close to my top 20 guys I would take for a playoff run, and Getzlaf would be very close to that I think, for me anyway. I think Thornton's peak was massively inflated by those two high scoring seasons, and he's not as much better offensively than Getzlaf as it would appear from those two seasons, but like I said he still is the better regular season player by quite a bit.
If Thorntons stats are inflated, then so are Getzlafs, you do understand that right? Getzlaf started right after the lockout, was put as a 2nd line center on a stacked Anaheim team with solid wingers...he has had the luxury of playing a majority of his career with Bobby Ryan and Corey Perry...
Thornton dragged SJ out of the gutter and won a Hart and Art Ross with Cheechoo and Ekman as his wingers.....he had a 103, 36 goal season in the heart of the dead puck era with 2nd team AS honors......he also recently just had a dominant regular AND post season in 2016....he has been consistently one of the best playmakers in the game, and was still a dominant force well after the lockout.
But ya "inflated" is the term your going to throw out
Thornton will most likely end his career within the top 20 in overall points, top 10 in assists, and top 10 in points among centers, AND could end up top 5 among centers in assists....but ya...He isn't THAT much better offensively. He only has a higher peak, better point totals, and better overall numbers.