Most Overrated Forward Of All-Time?

[Koivu84*]

With all the over/underated threads I thought I would continue the trend..

So who do you think the most overrated forward of all-time is?

I know people aren't going to agree but I think Steve Yzerman is overated he never had 100+ points after 1993. Don't get me wrong Yzerman was a great player and an excellent captain but when it comes to greatest players of all-time Yzerman does not make my top 20.

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[Dark Shadows]

With all the over/underated threads I thought I would continue the trend..

So who do you think the most overrated forward of all-time is?

I know people aren't going to agree but I think Steve Yzerman is overated he never had 100+ points after 1993. Don't get me wrong Yzerman was a great player and an excellent captain but when it comes to greatest players of all-time Yzerman does not make my top 20.

I don;t see how you can call him overrated by looking only at his numbers and not even taking into context the era, his age and how Bowman's new coaching style affected him.

Yzerman never scored 100 points again because Bowman forced the team to play a very defense first style. A style which wound up winning Yzerman the Selke because he led by example, while also scoring over a PPG during the stingy dead puck era while in his late 30's

To say nothing of the fact that his scoring during his prime was done playing with very little help around him in comparison to others who put up those numbers. When he was scoring up a ton, the team was losing. When he was playing as a two way forward, they won 3 cups

 

[Pear Juice]

Bernie Nicholls perhaps? Outside of that great season on Gretzky's wing he doesn't really have much to show for.

 

[biffs]

Eric Lindros

 

[Pear Juice]

Eric Lindros

If Lindros wouldn't have been suffering from his injuries we would be talking about him in th same sentence as the alltime greats. He only played one full season, and that was in his 10th year in the NHL. His confidence was torn and the many injuries made him unable to play his regular game. However when it comes to sheer dominance through physical presence and striking fear into the opposition, none can rival him through the nineties.

Considering his career and what become I might agree that people tend to overrate him a bit, but just looking at the games he played in his prime, and the way he played them. It's more than justified to glorify Eric Lindros.

 

[canucksfan]

pavel bure

 

[Gobias Industries]

I don't think Bernie Nicholls is even brought up enough to be considered overrated..

This thread scares me, I already disagree with most of the players mentioned...

Such is the subjectivity of interpreting "overratedness"..

 

[Oilers1*]

Luc Robitaille.

IMO, yes, a sure-fire hall-of-famer. But he gets talked up sometimes as the greatest left-winger ever. Most goals does not equal best ever.

 

[MXD]

Luc Robitaille.

IMO, yes, a sure-fire hall-of-famer. But he gets talked up sometimes as the greatest left-winger ever. Most goals does not equal best ever.

Well, looking at AST berths/goals total can create overratedness, if that makes sense.

(Allright, I'm gonna rip a guy I have right now in my ATD team)

Like.... when looking at Frank Mahovlich and Michel Goulet respective accolades, some would say that Goulet was a better player than Mahovlich because of the AST berths. But one had Bobby Hull as competition... the other had Charlie Simmer... or.... whoever.

 

[NOTENOUGHJTCGOALS]

Pavel Bure, Mike Bossy, or any other "pure goal scorer". Both great players, but I'll take the effective player who scores 70 ugly goals over a guy who scores 50 pretty ones any day.

 

[SLAPSHOT723]

Pavel Bure, Mike Bossy, or any other "pure goal scorer". Both great players, but I'll take the effective player who scores 70 ugly goals over a guy who scores 50 pretty ones any day.

Gretzky never scored the prettiest goals either

 

[TANK200]

Pavel Bure, Mike Bossy, or any other "pure goal scorer". Both great players, but I'll take the effective player who scores 70 ugly goals over a guy who scores 50 pretty ones any day.

How about Sakic the fraud?

 

[Reds4Life]

Phil Esposito

I honestly don't see any reason why he should be in top20 on HFboards list.
All he did was stand in front of very poor goalies and scored ugly goals.
Yes he did bring in "the intangibles" but he is really, really overrated.

 

[rmchahn]

Steve Shutt

 

[Big Phil]

Pavel Bure, Mike Bossy, or any other "pure goal scorer". Both great players, but I'll take the effective player who scores 70 ugly goals over a guy who scores 50 pretty ones any day.

And that would be who? There are 7 players in NHL history who have scored 70. Outside of Gretzky and Lemieux only Esposito is the only one I would take over Bossy, and even that is pretty even. The others are Nicholls, Selanne, Hull and Mogilny. You can argue that those guys are Bure's equal in terms of players, but certainly none of them are at Bossy's level.

 

[Big Phil]

Phil Esposito

I honestly don't see any reason why he should be in top20 on HFboards list.
All he did was stand in front of very poor goalies and scored ugly goals.
Yes he did bring in "the intangibles" but he is really, really overrated.

He won 4 straight scoring titles facing off against Bobby Orr. Only Jagr, Howe and Gretzky have won 4 in a row. Only Bobby Hull has led the league in goals more times than him. Esposito won two Cups, led the playoffs in points twice, and played some of the best hockey in history in the '72 Summit Series. Top 20 is pretty much just about right

 

[Reds4Life]

He won 4 straight scoring titles facing off against Bobby Orr. Only Jagr, Howe and Gretzky have won 4 in a row. Only Bobby Hull has led the league in goals more times than him. Esposito won two Cups, led the playoffs in points twice, and played some of the best hockey in history in the '72 Summit Series. Top 20 is pretty much just about right

Yeah. That's correct. And he won THANKS to Orr too.

Esposito had accurate shot, big stick, bog body. That's it.
But man, he scored so many goals because of really poor goaltending and because dmans couldn't get him away from the slot.

He is overrated as hell.

 

[Felonious Python]

Sergei Fedorov. On here, he's rated about right, but the MSM, especially if they don't cover hockey extensively, has always had an absolute obsession over the guy.

They never want to accept the fact that he doesn't put up the huge numbers, at least not anymore. When was the last time he did that? 15 years ago?

Most seasons he's below a point per game. Hardly the superstar sniper they make him out to be.

 

[Reds4Life]

Well, Fedorov was a beast defensively. He spent his best years in Detroit and he played 2-way game. I don't think he's overrated. How many guys won Hart and Selke, put 120 points and could play defense too?
His peak is incredible. Of course he slowed down a lot and is old now.

Bowman: "[Fedorov was] one of my favorite players as a coach because he can do anything [asked of him on ice]."

 

[NOTENOUGHJTCGOALS]

And that would be who? There are 7 players in NHL history who have scored 70. Outside of Gretzky and Lemieux only Esposito is the only one I would take over Bossy, and even that is pretty even. The others are Nicholls, Selanne, Hull and Mogilny. You can argue that those guys are Bure's equal in terms of players, but certainly none of them are at Bossy's level.

In my mind Espo is definately better than Bossy. But the guys that score pretty goals are always overrated compared to the guys that score ugly goals.

Yeah. That's correct. And he won THANKS to Orr too.

Esposito had accurate shot, big stick, bog body. That's it.
But man, he scored so many goals because of really poor goaltending and because dmans couldn't get him away from the slot.

He is overrated as hell.

So he scored lots of goals because he was better than enemy goalies and defenseman? They couldnt get him out of the slot cuz he was strong and smart enough to keep himself in the scoring area and get his stick on the rebound.

 

[Dennis Bonvie]

Yeah. That's correct. And he won THANKS to Orr too.

Esposito had accurate shot, big stick, bog body. That's it.
But man, he scored so many goals because of really poor goaltending and because dmans couldn't get him away from the slot.

He is overrated as hell.

Scoring goals is what the game is all about. And only 4 players scored more goals than Espo. He didn't have Orr in the Summit Series and he was the best player there.
He didn't have Orr in New York in '79 when he led to Rangers to the Finals at age 36.

 

[OilerOlli*]

Luc Robitaille.

IMO, yes, a sure-fire hall-of-famer. But he gets talked up sometimes as the greatest left-winger ever. Most goals does not equal best ever.

wtf? He was amazing.
Funny thread to read about overrated Yzermans, Sakics, Bures and Robitailles...

 

[Pear Juice]

I don't think Bernie Nicholls is even brought up enough to be considered overrated..

That was my main concern aswell.

I'm a bit curious, there are tons of overrated forwards, but what does "most overrated" really mean? Is it the best forward who got overrated? That's definitiely more interesting than the most overrated talented noname dude who never made it.

It just isn't really that interesting to say that for example [random dude with 400 NHL games] is overrated in the all-time perspective.

 

[pappyline]

Scoring goals is what the game is all about. And only 4 players scored more goals than Espo. He didn't have Orr in the Summit Series and he was the best player there.
He didn't have Orr in New York in '79 when he led to Rangers to the Finals at age 36.

I think Espo was over-rated. Sure he had some great stats but he was not the kind of player who could lift you out of your seat. With Chicago in the mid-60's, he looked big & awkward, At Boston, they figured out how to use him. Let him park himself in the slot & have Orr, & Cashman feed him the puck. He did have a great talent for scoring in close. In the 72 summitt he played over his head and was great, In 76 Canada cup, he didn't get much ice toward the end as he couldn't keep up.

 

[Oilers1*]

Yeah. That's correct. And he won THANKS to Orr too.

Esposito had accurate shot, big stick, bog body. That's it.
But man, he scored so many goals because of really poor goaltending and because dmans couldn't get him away from the slot.

He is overrated as hell.

He was playing against the same goalies that everyone else was at the time, and no one else scored over 70 goals.