Gordie Howe expresses his opinion on the Olympics

[jd84]

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Columnists/Gross/2006/02/26/1463445.html

The big right winger who starred for the Detroit Red Wings in the NHL and Hartford of the WHA, said the Canadian and U.S. teams didn't have enough preparatory time.

"When I played in Detroit on a line with Sid Abel and Ted Lindsay, we got used to each other, but it took time," Detroit's former great No. 9 said. "And the more we played together the better we knew where each of us was on the ice.

"Also, the players must have enough time to interact with each other."

Howe, who is arguably a member of hockey's greatest quartet with Bobby Orr, Gretzky and Lemieux, said the older players shouldn't be blamed for the losses suffered by Canada and the U.S.

"Age has nothing to do with it," Howe said. "Heck, I played until I was 52 so I could play with my sons, Mark and Marty. In fact, at 52, I was the leading scorer on the team until Christmas before they benched me."

Howe believes that a team selection should be based on scouting reports and scoring performances. He certainly doesn't blame the coaching staff for the failure of the two North American teams in Turin. In his opinion, today's coaches have to be psychologists. They have to have sufficient time to explore the minds of 25 players so they can ascertain who was having a bad day and why.

"Some player may have had a drink too many the night before the game," the Great Gordon said. "I didn't have that problem because I was either too cheap, or didn't like the stuff."

I agree. There really isn't enough time given to practice.

Discuss.

Click to read more...

 

[puckhead103*]

USA hockey shoulda asked ol' gord and ted lindsay to skate in the olympics...i

 

[Vikke]

That's just ridicilous since it's the same thing for each team, except maybe three teams, right?
Kazakstan, Italy and Switzerland had no or very few NHL'ers.
The rest of the teams had the exact same conditions.

 

[SwisshockeyAcademy]

We will not be satisfied in NA until we have spoken to everyone with a pulse about Canada's failure to win. Gordie Howe? How many Olympics did he play in?

 

[stockwizard*]

http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Columnists/Gross/2006/02/26/1463445.html



I agree. There really isn't enough time given to practice.

Discuss.

Well did the other teams have time to prepare? This is a crock.

The blame all goes on Gretzky.

I will tell you people something.

A few years ago when I heard Gretzky talking in the 3rd person, saying things like "well, in the world of Wayne Gretzky...." I knew the guy was losing touch with reality and beginning to feel invicible.

Then comes the gambling scandal. I will not say he broke the law, but let's just say there is more that went on than most people care to realise. This is a reflection of his character and that maybe he is not the honest Gretzky that most people had come to expect.

Then comes the selection to team Canada. How the hell can you "guarantee" a spot for that bruting, hulking, Bertuzzi. It just doesn't happen, especially when you consider the time he missed. Guarantee a spot for Orr in his prime, but not Bertuzzi. Then you see the additions of his buddy Doan, Quinn, McCabe, Draper, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what is going on here.

Gretzky is not the "straight shooter" that I thought he was years ago. He has become corrupt and he cost his country a chance at glory.

 

[nneate]

Well did the other teams have time to prepare? This is a crock.

The blame all goes on Gretzky.

I will tell you people something.

A few years ago when I heard Gretzky talking in the 3rd person, saying things like "well, in the world of Wayne Gretzky...." I knew the guy was losing touch with reality and beginning to feel invicible.

Then comes the gambling scandal. I will not say he broke the law, but let's just say there is more that went on than most people care to realise. This is a reflection of his character and that maybe he is not the honest Gretzky that most people had come to expect.

Then comes the selection to team Canada. How the hell can you "guarantee" a spot for that bruting, hulking, Bertuzzi. It just doesn't happen, especially when you consider the time he missed. Guarantee a spot for Orr in his prime, but not Bertuzzi. Then you see the additions of his buddy Doan, Quinn, McCabe, Draper, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what is going on here.

Gretzky is not the "straight shooter" that I thought he was years ago. He has become corrupt and he cost his country a chance at glory.

I'll leave it at that.

 

[joe_shannon_1983*]

I will tell you people something.

A few years ago when I heard Gretzky talking in the 3rd person, saying things like "well, in the world of Wayne Gretzky...." I knew the guy was losing touch with reality and beginning to feel invicible.

Did Gretzky really say stuff like "well, in the world of Wayne Gretzky...."? When did he say something like that? And in what context? I am interested to know what he said, when he said it, and what he was saying it about.

Then comes the gambling scandal. I will not say he broke the law, but let's just say there is more that went on than most people care to realise. This is a reflection of his character and that maybe he is not the honest Gretzky that most people had come to expect.

Agree. A wife doesn't spend $100,000 or $500,000 on gambling without her husband knowing about it. Especially a wife like Janet, who wouldn't have that kind of money to just blow on a gambling spree. Unless of course, their marriage is a complete disgrace, and she went behind his back. But I doubt that happened, considering the fact that Janet accompanied Wayne to Torino.

Besides, any time Wayne has talked about it, he has seemed very nerved-up and cautious with what he says, as though he is hiding something and is afraid of letting something slip that he shouldn't let slip.

It is obvious that Wayne is more involved than meets the casual observer's eye.

Then comes the selection to team Canada. How the hell can you "guarantee" a spot for that bruting, hulking, Bertuzzi. It just doesn't happen, especially when you consider the time he missed. Guarantee a spot for Orr in his prime, but not Bertuzzi.

Guarantee a spot for Bertuzzi? No. But I still think Bertuzzi should have been taken on the team. Not a guaranteed spot. But a spot nonetheless.

Then you see the additions of his buddy Doan, Quinn, McCabe, Draper, and it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what is going on here.

I don't know. You have to admit that Doan and Draper played really well at the Olympics. They were useful penalty killers just like they were expected to be. If not for Draper and Doan, and their work on the penalty kill, the Russian game might have been 3-0 before the end of the 1st period.

And McCabe wasn't bad, either. Blaming him for the loss is simply ignoring the poorer play shown by other players such as Pronger, Redden, and Foote.

Gretzky is not the "straight shooter" that I thought he was years ago. He has become corrupt and he cost his country a chance at glory.

I never believed in the whole "Mr. Nice Guy" or "Mr. Wonderful Human Being" schtick that Gretzky tried to pull off for 25 years. I have met him a few times at tournaments/banquets/camps, and every time he seemed arrogant and big on himself. He wouldn't go within 25 feet of any of the kids who were there, would refuse to sign any autographs, and just hung out with his entourage and his buddies in suits the entire time.

Plus, his public persona to the media has always seemed so fake.

I just have never been a huge fan of Wayne Gretzky the person.

 

[stockwizard*]

Did Gretzky really say stuff like "well, in the world of Wayne Gretzky...."? When did he say something like that? And in what context? I am interested to know what he said, when he said it, and what he was saying it about.



Agree. A wife doesn't spend $100,000 or $500,000 on gambling without her husband knowing about it. Especially a wife like Janet, who wouldn't have that kind of money to just blow on a gambling spree. Unless of course, their marriage is a complete disgrace, and she went behind his back. But I doubt that happened, considering the fact that Janet accompanied Wayne to Torino.

Besides, any time Wayne has talked about it, he has seemed very nerved-up and cautious with what he says, as though he is hiding something and is afraid of letting something slip that he shouldn't let slip.

It is obvious that Wayne is more involved than meets the casual observer's eye.



Guarantee a spot for Bertuzzi? No. But I still think Bertuzzi should have been taken on the team. Not a guaranteed spot. But a spot nonetheless.



I don't know. You have to admit that Doan and Draper played really well at the Olympics. They were useful penalty killers just like they were expected to be. If not for Draper and Doan, and their work on the penalty kill, the Russian game might have been 3-0 before the end of the 1st period.

And McCabe wasn't bad, either. Blaming him for the loss is simply ignoring the poorer play shown by other players such as Pronger, Redden, and Foote.



I never believed in the whole "Mr. Nice Guy" or "Mr. Wonderful Human Being" schtick that Gretzky tried to pull off for 25 years. I have met him a few times at tournaments/banquets/camps, and every time he seemed arrogant and big on himself. He wouldn't go within 25 feet of any of the kids who were there, would refuse to sign any autographs, and just hung out with his entourage and his buddies in suits the entire time.

Plus, his public persona to the media has always seemed so fake.

I just have never been a huge fan of Wayne Gretzky the person.

I remember a few times he did it. One time the interviewer would ask about pressure and that is where it came up. I can't remember the exact quotes though, but believe me that he does talk in the 3rd person. I've heard him do it a number of times.

And when I spoke to guys that hung out with the Oilers of the 80's, they would tell me that Gretzky was the worst when it came to.... shall we say, "questionable activities with groupies".

At the time, years ago I didn't want to believe it, but now it all makes sense.

Now when I compare the great Bobby Orr to Gretzky... well there really is no comparison.

 

[iloveyouzac]

Gretzky has been talking about "Wayne Gretzky" for years. It always makes me wince.

 

[arrbez]

And when I spoke to guys that hung out with the Oilers of the 80's, they would tell me that Gretzky was the worst when it came to.... shall we say, "questionable activities with groupies".

Good for Wayne. If you've got it, flaunt it.

 

[Big Mama*]

I think Gordie is 100% correct. The PP of Team Canada was terrible. A few practices would have definitely helped. Especially playing on the big ice.

 

[Epsilon]

Of all the excuses this has got to be one of the lamest because it's totally irrelevant. All of the big teams, not just Canada and the USA, were mostly NHL players, and a lot of the players who weren't were injury replacements and backup goaltenders and such. How does this excuse hold any more for Canada and the USA than it does for a team like the Czech Republic?

 

[KrisKing*]

Oh no! Wayne Gretzky got on lots of girls when he was single and in his early 20's!!!! I hate to break it to you but this is a pretty common practise among hockey players that aren't even in the NHL, let alone the most famous man in his country.

And as for you guys that are all of a sudden anonymously accusing him of just being an all-around *****, that's pretty classy pile on a guy when he's already down. Not to mention it contradicts what almost everyone has said about him for years, and these are people that actually know him, or at the very least can back up their statements with more than an anonymous internet name.

 

[RandV]

I think this is a slight advantage to the European teams (and major for the ones without NHL players, though they need it), but more in the sense of growing up with a stronger national team program. Though it's not really our fault, we just have too many players. There's 475,000 regestered male hockey players in Canada, the big 4 in Europe are only between 60,000-80,000 players. Not to mention European hockey = International hockey, which doesnt help us playing in our smaller rinks.

 

[LannysStach]

wealthamanager,
yer 100% right.
you'll take a lot of shite for it here i imagine cuz people still idolize him. you came to your realizations slowly and over time, and then a few events recently solidified your lingering doubts.
others still, and many always will, bow down to him.
you're right -- gretzky is . . . lots of bad things that there's no point in even mentioning.
it's gonna come out, and Bettman's gonna be in a heck of a pickle. remember Clarence Campbell and Rocket Richard? good thing the former great one isn't still playing.

and this hasn't been said yet -- not only did he completely screw our country over with picking his poker buddies for Team Canada -- but he's screwed us thru the next Olympics. no matter what the result this time, Staal, Spezza, Crosby, & Phaneuf are going to be a big part of the team in 2010 -- but not one of them got a moment's experience at this Olympics.

not only do we have to dump about 22 of these dinosaurs we've been shackled to, but by criminally eliminating the whole next generation a spot on the team, we can't even say what the Russians can say, which is that Ovy and Malkin have now been thru it once and will be so much better prepared next time. our young guns are going to be stepping into the laserbeam spotlight in Vancouver without a single shift of experience.
and there is one guy who didn't "guarantee" any of Them a spot.

i'm glad we finished 7th overall so we can scrap this entire corrupt and out-of-touch GM/coaching staff and hopefully have some ethical people in charge next time when we're hosting the world.

 

[stockwizard*]

wealthamanager,
yer 100% right.
you'll take a lot of shite for it here i imagine cuz people still idolize him. you came to your realizations slowly and over time, and then a few events recently solidified your lingering doubts.
others still, and many always will, bow down to him.
you're right -- gretzky is . . . lots of bad things that there's no point in even mentioning.
it's gonna come out, and Bettman's gonna be in a heck of a pickle. remember Clarence Campbell and Rocket Richard? good thing the former great one isn't still playing.

and this hasn't been said yet -- not only did he completely screw our country over with picking his poker buddies for Team Canada -- but he's screwed us thru the next Olympics. no matter what the result this time, Staal, Spezza, Crosby, & Phaneuf are going to be a big part of the team in 2010 -- but not one of them got a moment's experience at this Olympics.

not only do we have to dump about 22 of these dinosaurs we've been shackled to, but by criminally eliminating the whole next generation a spot on the team, we can't even say what the Russians can say, which is that Ovy and Malkin have now been thru it once and will be so much better prepared next time. our young guns are going to be stepping into the laserbeam spotlight in Vancouver without a single shift of experience.
and there is one guy who didn't "guarantee" any of Them a spot.

i'm glad we finished 7th overall so we can scrap this entire corrupt and out-of-touch GM/coaching staff and hopefully have some ethical people in charge next time when we're hosting the world.

And I didn't want to believe it, because I respected Gretzky as a player, but over time there has been too much that has gone on for me to deny it any longer.

Gretzky is not the man we want representing Canada in any form around the world.

 

[KrisKing*]

If you really think that the team canada braintrust is "corrupt" and "out of touch" then you are living in some sort of dream world.

More likely, you have some sort of bizarre jealousy/bitterness towards them because they're successful and famous.

 

[Snap Wilson]

We will not be satisfied in NA until we have spoken to everyone with a pulse about Canada's failure to win.

Why stop there? Let's exhume Maurice Richard and ask him.

"Rocket, what do you think went wrong?"

"Ummm.... urrrgghhh.... brains!"

"Oh god, oh god, aggghhhh!"

 

[octopi]

We will not be satisfied in NA until we have spoken to everyone with a pulse about Canada's failure to win. Gordie Howe? How many Olympics did he play in?

No kidding. Time to stop over analyzing.Canada won in 2002 and lost this year. Its pretty ignorant to expect them to win every year with all the other good teams.

 

[LannysStach]

More likely, you have some sort of bizarre jealousy/bitterness towards them because they're successful and famous.

ergo, a person could never criticize george bush's policies or o.j. simpson's actions or ashley simpson's CDs because they're "successful and famous". maybe for you, fame = sainthood. but i've seen enough, from Richard Nixon thru Todd Bertuzzi to know that name recognition does not equate to responsible human behavior, let alone hero worship.

this whole Gretzky reverance is really based on ancient mythology. by 2010 he will have hardly won A Thing since Crosby or Ovechkin were born. he has never Once been a Stanley Cup champion (since leaving his 1st team, which then went on to win it without him), and he's lost as many Canada Cups as he's won since leaving canada in his 20s.

just because canada managed to beat Belarus and the U.S. in 2002 does not exactly make him a holy savior. as a coach, he's in 12th place in the west, and as an Olympic GM he just led Canada to a 7th place finish out of 8 competators. he was the greatest at standing in "his office" and setting up silver metal GM Jurri Kurri for a million goals, but as a coach/GM he is an unmitigated loser. the sooner we get off this Gretzky idolatry the quicker we'll regain our standing in the hockey world.

 

[Weztex]

Since when exactly Gretzky is supposed to be perfect. It's another media created belief. Team Canada loses...and what. Like octopi said, it's ignorant to expect them to win every year. I don't critic the roster since Niedermayer and Jovanovski could have made a huge difference. It's also a little stretched to believe that Gretzky choses his friends since he wasn't the only man putting this team together. Team Canada just went the experience way and it proved to be wrong. I see no conspiracy or big head here.

And am I the only one who thinks that NHL hockey has become much more interesting that the international tournaments?

 

[Injektilo]

this whole Gretzky reverance is really based on ancient mythology. by 2010 he will have hardly won A Thing since Crosby or Ovechkin were born. he has never Once been a Stanley Cup champion (since leaving his 1st team, which then went on to win it without him), and he's lost as many Canada Cups as he's won since leaving canada in his 20s.

just because canada managed to beat Belarus and the U.S. in 2002 does not exactly make him a holy savior. as a coach, he's in 12th place in the west, and as an Olympic GM he just led Canada to a 7th place finish out of 8 competators. he was the greatest at standing in "his office" and setting up silver metal GM Jurri Kurri for a million goals, but as a coach/GM he is an unmitigated loser. the sooner we get off this Gretzky idolatry the quicker we'll regain our standing in the hockey world.

jesus, do you realize you just blamed gretzky for TEAM loses, as in, things he doesn't have complete control over...

just.... holy ****, i can't believe i'm actually responding to this seriously.

"unmitigated loser"? jesus, his record as a GM is two gold medals and one poor finish. if that's an unmitigated loser, i'd like to see your definition of a winner.

 

[Jussi]

He was the greatest at standing in "his office" and setting up silver medal GM Jari Kurri for a million goals, but as a coach/GM he is an unmitigated loser. the sooner we get off this Gretzky idolatry the quicker we'll regain our standing in the hockey world.

Fixed it for you, you plasphemer!

 

[Chimpradamus]

I think this is a slight advantage to the European teams (and major for the ones without NHL players, though they need it), but more in the sense of growing up with a stronger national team program. Though it's not really our fault, we just have too many players. There's 475,000 regestered male hockey players in Canada, the big 4 in Europe are only between 60,000-80,000 players. Not to mention European hockey = International hockey, which doesnt help us playing in our smaller rinks.

I don't get it. How does having more players = bad?
More players = more great players
More great players = good

 

[LannysStach]

of course it’s the whole coaching staff that has to go as well, not just Gretzky. but as in any other entity, the head is in charge, whether he’s called a CEO, GM or President. that’s the guy who signs off the decisions, takes the credit or the blame. there seems to be universal acceptance that Quinn is done, but a reluctance to question the man in charge – almost as though the gambling scandal has amped the sympathy for a job not well done.

all the Team Canada coaches & "GMs" were replaced after '98 when we lost in the semi-finals by one goal to Dominik Hasek. this team was embarrassed and shut out in 11 of its last 12 periods. if wayne has the class his supporters claim, then he will step aside soon.

in 2010 we'll see how somebody else does. if we lose as badly again we can all cry for the great gretzky days, but these were them, and they're done for now.

oh, and sorry for typing Jari like Kurri in a flash.