The Top 20 Red Wings of All-Time, #2

[Bench]

It's close due to half the posters being 12.

What does that have to do with anything? Lidstrom started in 1991. So you'd have to be born in the early 80s to even remember him playing. That would place people well into their 30s.

If anything, I'd argue the less informed the fan, the more likely they are to think Yzerman was the better player. How about dem apples? See, I can be edgy, too. And quote movies that 12-year-olds wouldn't even know about. Now let's hug it out while I tell you it's not your fault.

 

[Henkka]

Really nice to see this as close as it is.

I hope it will be a tie game.

 

[Oddbob]

I love Nick Lidstrom, but you people are nuts thinking he meant more to the Wings, or was better than Steve Yzerman. Yzerman is basically second in everything in Detroit to only Howe, longest serving Captain in League history. Also was the third highest scorer during his prime behind only Gretzky and Lemieux, I mean come on. Lidstrom was good, but not in that kind of class. Then Yzerman switched to more defensive and he still put up a point a game for the rest of his career. Also, Yzerman joined the Wings when they were brutal and is the sole reason, that things began to improve in the late 80's.

Lidstrom is awesome, but not better and more important than Yzerman. I think some of you are siding with Lidstrom because you seen him play more recently and Yzerman has been gone for more than a decade.

 

[RabidBadger]

Both were immense talents we were lucky to have, but I would say El Capitán was the straw that stirred the drink for the modern Wings dynasty. If one or the other never suited up for the Wings, I believe the subtraction of Stevey impacts the team's history more.

 

[TooFlashy]

Lidstrom easily

 

[Bench]

I love Nick Lidstrom, but you people are nuts thinking he meant more to the Wings, or was better than Steve Yzerman. Yzerman is basically second in everything in Detroit to only Howe, longest serving Captain in League history. Also was the third highest scorer during his prime behind only Gretzky and Lemieux, I mean come on. Lidstrom was good, but not in that kind of class. Then Yzerman switched to more defensive and he still put up a point a game for the rest of his career. Also, Yzerman joined the Wings when they were brutal and is the sole reason, that things began to improve in the late 80's.

Lidstrom is awesome, but not better and more important than Yzerman. I think some of you are siding with Lidstrom because you seen him play more recently and Yzerman has been gone for more than a decade.

First off, it's VERY close. Let's not ignore that. It's like... personal preference close. The people claiming it's a simple choice I just can't agree with.

Second, Lidstrom was better than "good". He was the best defenseman of his entire generation. A position that is arguably the most important in the modern NHL game. He's a top 5 defender ALL TIME. In the history of the league. Is Yzerman a top 5 center all time? He's close, I think.

The whole thing is really close. I just think #1 defenders matter more and Lidstrom was the best for about 15 years there.

 

[SpookyTsuki]

I love Nick Lidstrom, but you people are nuts thinking he meant more to the Wings, or was better than Steve Yzerman. Yzerman is basically second in everything in Detroit to only Howe, longest serving Captain in League history. Also was the third highest scorer during his prime behind only Gretzky and Lemieux, I mean come on. Lidstrom was good, but not in that kind of class. Then Yzerman switched to more defensive and he still put up a point a game for the rest of his career. Also, Yzerman joined the Wings when they were brutal and is the sole reason, that things began to improve in the late 80's.

Lidstrom is awesome, but not better and more important than Yzerman. I think some of you are siding with Lidstrom because you seen him play more recently and Yzerman has been gone for more than a decade.

I do think a lot of these lidstrom votes are because of "recently" and because now we suck and that just because he left.

Lidstrom deserves votes though.

 

[Winger98]

What does that have to do with anything? Lidstrom started in 1991. So you'd have to be born in the early 80s to even remember him playing. That would place people well into their 30s.

If anything, I'd argue the less informed the fan, the more likely they are to think Yzerman was the better player. How about dem apples? See, I can be edgy, too. And quote movies that 12-year-olds wouldn't even know about. Now let's hug it out while I tell you it's not your fault.

You could have been born in Lids' rookie year and would have been ten years old in time to have seen every one of his Norris trophy years and two cups. People in their mid20s saw far more high end Lidstrom years than high end Stevie years. Leadzedder may not have been the most diplomatic in making the original point, but I think it's still a fair point to make.

 

[Bench]

You could have been born in Lids' rookie year and would have been ten years old in time to have seen every one of his Norris trophy years and two cups. People in their mid20s saw far more high end Lidstrom years than high end Stevie years. Leadzedder may not have been the most diplomatic in making the original point, but I think it's still a fair point to make.

Maybe.

But Yzerman was always the face of the team. In a Wings fan base area I think his merch is more visible 4-1, at least. Maybe more. He's the most popular Red Wing by a mile.

So to chalk it up to young, naive voting... Wouldn't that favor the guy with all the cache?

 

[Mount Suribachi]

I love Nick Lidstrom, but you people are nuts thinking he meant more to the Wings, or was better than Steve Yzerman. Yzerman is basically second in everything in Detroit to only Howe, longest serving Captain in League history. Also was the third highest scorer during his prime behind only Gretzky and Lemieux, I mean come on. Lidstrom was good, but not in that kind of class. Then Yzerman switched to more defensive and he still put up a point a game for the rest of his career. Also, Yzerman joined the Wings when they were brutal and is the sole reason, that things began to improve in the late 80's.

Lidstrom is awesome, but not better and more important than Yzerman. I think some of you are siding with Lidstrom because you seen him play more recently and Yzerman has been gone for more than a decade.

Really? I voted Yzerman as well, but Lidstrom is the only defenceman in NHL history with 1000+ points who didn't play in the 80s. Just think about that for a moment.

 

[TCNorthstars]

What do you guys mean when you say that Steve was a better Wing?

 

[Winger98]

Maybe.

But Yzerman was always the face of the team. In a Wings fan base area I think his merch is more visible 4-1, at least. Maybe more. He's the most popular Red Wing by a mile.

So to chalk it up to young, naive voting... Wouldn't that favor the guy with all the cache?

I don't think it does here because I think sites like this pull in the bigger fans of the overall base. But even though we're more knowledgeable (well, others, I'm still just a big homer) I think we're still susceptible to what we've seen more than from what we "learn."

Unless you saw Yzerman in the 1980s, I'm not sure you can appreciate how good he was and how much he meant to the franchise. Before his knee went entirely to hell, before hockey became a game of systems hell bent on snuffing out offense, and before hitting was given a stink eye...it was just a different game.

I think the argument that roughly pits Lids as the better player vs Yzerman as the more important wing are really pretty spot on. Yzerman carried this franchise in a way that no one has had to do in over 20 years. but Lids is arguably a top D of all time.

 

[Heaton]

What do you guys mean when you say that Steve was a better Wing?

When you think of the face of the Red Wings over the past 30 years, you think of Steve Yzerman. I voted for Stevie because of that criteria, if this were a poll of the best players to ever play for the Wings, I would've voted Lidstrom over Yzerman.

 

[Bench]

I think there's fantastic arguments for both and no correct answer, but I hate the notion suggesting those in favor of Lidstrom are too young to appreciate the Captain.

Growing up I was weaned on the legends of Yzerman and his name is household in Michigan. It wasn't until I actually understood the game that Lidstrom's dominance became clear. For me, the more information I gathered, the more I tilted to #5.

But all of that said, a more culturally significant and defining Wing is undeniably Yzerman. And if you think they are about equal in skill, then that should sway one to him. Hell, I could vote either way and not feel a tiny bit wrong.

 

[njx9]

I ended up going with Yzerman. The question was "best Red Wing", and I think, given that, you have to take into account how much he meant to the team as a captain. If it was "best player who played for the Red Wings", I'd vote for Lidstrom here.

That said, I'd have no complaints, regardless of who won. Having watched the majority of each player's career, you really can't make a wrong choice, here, I think it just depends on how you read the question.

I'd add that I think we can pretty well skip the vote for 3, regardless of who wins here.

 

[TCNorthstars]

When you think of the face of the Red Wings over the past 30 years, you think of Steve Yzerman. I voted for Stevie because of that criteria, if this were a poll of the best players to ever play for the Wings, I would've voted Lidstrom over Yzerman.

I guess it comes down to interpretation of the question. I take the poll as the greatest Red Wing players of all time, not who was most important to the franchise. I mean, really if you are doing the most important to the franchise the poll would end after what? About 4 players?

 

[Chance on Chance]

coin flip really. I went with Yzerman because he's what made me a wings fan back in the day

 

[waltdetroit]

Here is a photo of commitment - Sawchuk for #3

 

[ArGarBarGar]

When you think of the face of the Red Wings over the past 30 years, you think of Steve Yzerman. I voted for Stevie because of that criteria, if this were a poll of the best players to ever play for the Wings, I would've voted Lidstrom over Yzerman.

It's a factor, but not as much of a factor as I think it should be. We aren't talking about the "top faces of the franchise", we are talking about the greatest Red Wings. Lidstrom was the cornerstone defenseman for four Stanley Cups, was the first European to ever captain a Cup winning team, won 7 trophies as the best at his position, the only defenseman with 1000+ points not to play in the 80s, and top-5 at his position. His contributions to the Red Wings were incredibly massive and I don't think we got to truly appreciate his value until the "face" of the franchise retired.

 

[Mount Suribachi]

It's a factor, but not as much of a factor as I think it should be. We aren't talking about the "top faces of the franchise", we are talking about the greatest Red Wings. Lidstrom was the cornerstone defenseman for four Stanley Cups, was the first European to ever captain a Cup winning team, won 7 trophies as the best at his position, the only defenseman with 1000+ points not to play in the 80s, and top-5 at his position. His contributions to the Red Wings were incredibly massive and I don't think we got to truly appreciate his value until the "face" of the franchise retired.

I agree. There are 2 generations of Wings fans who have been weaned an a false idea of what constitutes a "#1 defenceman", or a "Puck Moving Defenceman". If Nick Lidstrom is your baseline for what constitutes one of those, you're going to go through life disappointed.

I still vote Yzerman though. I only spent a year in the early 90s living on the Ohio/Michigan border. People still called them the "Dead Things". Yet it was undeniably Yzerman's team, and it was undeniably Yzerman who took the blame from fans and media year after year for the playoff failures. He was a choker, he was soft, the Wings would never win a cup with him as captain.
And yet it was also undeniably Yzerman who turned that ship around, who was the leader on and off the ice, who took those years of playoff heartbreak and still came back year after year for another try.

I remember after we lost the Avs in '96 and feeling absolutely crushed. I remember thinking "if that team isn't good enough to win a cup, how will we ever win one?" I remember Yzerman saying how he didn't want to leave the house that summer because the pain of defeat was so unbearable. And then he came back the next year and led us to the Holy Grail.

Now Lidstrom was incredibly important, and at the time, as he single handedly revived Larry Murphy's career we didn't realise how important. But Yzerman led the way. Gordie is Mr Hockey and Lids is The Perfect Human. Yzerman is, and always will be, The Captain.

 

[Lazlo Hollyfeld]

I think there's fantastic arguments for both and no correct answer, but I hate the notion suggesting those in favor of Lidstrom are too young to appreciate the Captain.

Growing up I was weaned on the legends of Yzerman and his name is household in Michigan. It wasn't until I actually understood the game that Lidstrom's dominance became clear. For me, the more information I gathered, the more I tilted to #5.

But all of that said, a more culturally significant and defining Wing is undeniably Yzerman. And if you think they are about equal in skill, then that should sway one to him. Hell, I could vote either way and not feel a tiny bit wrong.

I don't think favoring Lidstrom automatically means you're too young to appreciate the captain. At the same time as someone who saw Yzerman's entire career, I think the first half of it does tend to get underrated as the years go by.

When people talk about Yzerman they're more likely to think of the guy giving everything he had in 2002 when he basically skated on one knee, not the kid who was practically the entire Red Wings offense and the greatest offensive player in the league not named Gretzky or Lemieux.

Yzerman in the 80s was like Barry Sanders on the Lions. Everyone knew who the play was going to yet he still managed to score.

It's hard to go wrong with either one, but Stevie was the centerpiece who helped transform the team from the Dead Things to the Red Wings. That makes him second only to Howe in my book.

 

[WingedWheel1988]

The Captain is my vote, and I while love Lidstrom, Yzerman in the 2002 playoff run playing with basically one leg was incredible.


Oh, and this beauty..

 

[ArGarBarGar]

Oh, and this beauty..

I love Yzerman and the Wings, but considering that goal had zero influence on the Red Wings winning the cup, I consider it one of the most overrated goals of all-time.

 

[Sparty]

It kind of annoys me that it's as close as it is. To me this one is just a no brainer.

Stevie Y's era was littered with guys just like him and there were two guys that we're a lot better than him (Gretzky and Lemieux). Lidstrom was arguably the best at his position during his era, you'd get laughed at for saying the same about Yzerman.

 

[WingedWheel1988]

I love Yzerman and the Wings, but considering that goal had zero influence on the Red Wings winning the cup, I consider it one of the most overrated goals of all-time.

Alright, I hear you - but it is still fun to watch.

I can go a little deeper into my pick I guess. Yzerman was solely responsible for pulling the Wings out of the Dead Things era. He was a dynamic scorer in his early career, clearly was the offensive threat and would continue to pile up points anyway.

He transformed his game from offensive dynamo to a complete two way forward. His points dropped but he became one of the premiere defensive centers in the league. He could have told Scotty to shove it, continued to pile up points and been greedy but he wasn't. He wanted to win, and did all it took to retool his game to get the Wings over the hump finally in '97. He sacrificed personal stats and greatness for team greatness and was the face of the turn around for the cup runs.

Lidstrom obviously is the perfect human and was absolutely incredible - in terms of career numbers and individual stats I would give him the obvious nod over Steve, but I guess my measurement of this question isn't purely on that alone. I would be fine putting them as a 2a / 2b because they belong as a clear cut tier above whoever shows up as #4 on this list.