The best "Alpha male" moments

[Big Phil]

Been meaning to make a thread about this. I remember back in the spring when the Stars were playing the Predators in Round 1 and there was this play in Game 5 where Jamie Benn is chasing the puck against the agile and skilled but much smaller Ryan Ellis. The puck goes into the corner and Benn just literally shoves Ellis away from him with what looked like very little effort, grabbed the puck and centered it to another Star for a goal. Bang, bang, just like that. It made Benn look sort of "badass" while it made Ellis look weak. Lots of examples much better than that, but that was just the first thing I though of. Here is Benn's play:
Start at 2:00



Okay, so what are other moments where a player just physically embarrasses another player? I don't mean a big hit, because a hit is a hit and if a player got back up it is no big deal. I mean a time when there was a player that looked like a beast vs. one who looked scared like a mouse. Examples like that.

Chara vs. McCabe - Okay, McCabe is no wimp by any means and he wasn't small either, but this was the moment in Chara's career where my jaw dropped and I realized he was a force to be reckoned with physically. This is the "rag doll" incident.


Cam Neely vs. Claude Lemieux - Wrong guy to blatantly high stick there Claude and we see this a lot with Claude in his career where he turtles. Cam didn't care, he still picked him up and slammed him into the boards.


Dustin Byfuglien - The time when he took two Predators players out of a scrum and just pinned them up against the boards by himself with very little resistance. One of those "manly man" type of plays. Not overly physical, but just one that sort of made you laugh.
Byfuglien Rag Dolls two Predators

There is lots more, so let's jog each other's memory here

Click to read more...

 

[BenchBrawl]

Gilmour breaking the glass of the penalty door

 

[BenchBrawl]

Robinson's hit on Dornhoefer must be right up there (when considering the context and timing of the hit at the time), or when he calmed down Williams.

 

[VanIslander]

1999 first round playoffs Game 1 Ottawa vs. Buffalo, Sens outshot Sabres 41-15 but Buffalo won. Yashin had 8 shots, no goals.

Game 2 went into 2OT and Yashin had three shots in overtime against Hasek, one of which I recall Hasek soccer kicked the shot into the stands like it was nothing. His nonchalant demeanor had an announcer say during OT that Yashin had another 'hat trick of failed shots". Alexei was fuming. He would have 24 shots in the 4-game sweep, none of them goals. And seriously, it looked like he gave up, was half hearted about shooting in games 3 and 4. Hasek had owned him and he knew it.

 

[Hobnobs]

When Daniels throws a straight right in the face of Kocur and Kocur just smiles at him

 

[Theokritos]

Maybe not a player you expect it from, but Valery Kamensky not taking crap from Ulf Samuelsson:

 

[Midnight Judges]

Dougie Hamilton hears Ovechkin coming, refuses to go into the corner:

 

[BenchBrawl]

The Patrick Roy wink was quite alpha. Or when he deked Gretzky. Also his reply to Roenick.

 

[Pominville Knows]

Regarding Claude Lemieux; We may very well have seen this more but he did these half-turtling/tactic things consiously becouse he cut easily and really could not fight guys like Neely all too well. So i view Him to actually act masculine if not Alpha since he was willing to risk great consequences by trying to pest people above his "weightclass". Even if he might crawl, wrestle or sometimes even fight himself out of something he could still get vengeance upon him at any given moment in the future.
This was what he was willing to endure for his team.

 

[Nick Hansen]

Dougie Hamilton hears Ovechkin coming, refuses to go into the corner:

I now can sort of see why the guy has been traded twice.

 

[Doctor No]

Has to be on the list, without question.

 

[Turin]

Malkin staring down Roloson. Or Tavares. Or his breakaway slap shot.

What a guy.

 

[Canadiens1958]

Maybe not a player you expect it from, but Valery Kamensky not taking crap from Ulf Samuelsson:

Former CSKA player. Boxing, self-defence, hand-to-hand training was part of Valeri Kamensky's training background.

 

[seventieslord]

Has to be on the list, without question.

View attachment 250141

I came in here to post this.

 

[Robert Gordon Orr]

December 1, 1977 - John "Wire" Wensink challenging the Minnesota bench.




John Wensink

30 for 30 Shorts: Our Tough Guy

 

[MadLuke]

That 1996 world cup game, when Messier tapped Lindros to take the playoff at is place.

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Lucic trucking Miller then stands there and stares daring any of the Sabres to step up




Lucic gets in Landeskog's face, makes his courage disappear and punks him

 

[K Fleur]

The most alpha male moment of Lucic’s career was when he told Dale Weisse he was “going to kill you next year” in the handshake line.

 

[Mrb1p]

The most alpha male moment of Lucic’s career was when he told Dale Weisse he was “going to kill you next year” in the handshake line.

Lol thats the opposite of Alpha. Its Beta as hell.

 

[K Fleur]

Lol thats the opposite of Alpha. Its Beta as hell.

Obviously.

 

[MadLuke]

Lucic trucking Miller then stands there and stares daring any of the Sabres to step up




Lucic gets in Landeskog's face, makes his courage disappear and punks him

Probably quite easier to act really thought when Chara is on the ice too.

That was quite Alpha:

 

[sr edler]

Lucic trucking Miller then stands there and stares daring any of the Sabres to step up

Ahah, running a semi-anorectic goalie you've got 60 pounds on, very alfa indeed.

Also alfa is begging the refs to break up your fight after someone punches you in the face.



Most alfa of all though, throwing your glove after getting dropped

 

[Nick Hansen]

Kovalchuk toying with Brayden Schenn:

 

[BadgerBruce]

I don’t recall the exact circumstances, but this 1974 Summit Series picture always struck me as one of those “whatcha gonna do about it, kid?” Hockey moments. Big Gordie was one of a kind.

 

[Sadekuuro]

This was pretty beastly: