In an effort to avoid surprise votes, I am posting this so people can see my thought process and tell me why I'm wrong. Or in a far less likely scenario, why I'm right. In the process, maybe we learn something, or make an argument that needs to be made, or come up with funny insults for Mike. Maybe that helps somehow.
Where people stand on my ballot as of now:
Low. As a regular season performer he is akin to Bossy, with a longevity advantage. In the playoffs, he has the worst showings here. Even when his Bread Line centre was knocking it out of the park, Cook's scoring numbers are average in the postseason. Closer to Marcel Dionne than Mike Bossy in that regard. Of course, I had Frank Boucher pegged above Cook coming in. Whereas everyone else here has had very strong or dominant playoff runs, Bill Cook stood beside a guy who had a couple. In short, someone is going to have to convince me that his playoffs aren't a reason to drop him to the bottom of the round with Ted.
- Bryan Trottier
- Mike Bossy
Middle. Had Trottier over Bossy last round, but I think I'm flipping. I don't know if Trottier adds a lot compared to Bossy in his extra time. He's stronger defensively, but I don't know if that shows up in numbers. In his limited time, Bossy seemed to do more to help the post-dynasty Isles try to get back to the mountain top, while Trottier's defensive skills weren't actually stopping the other team from scoring goals late in the Isles run. There is a difference between valuing defensive play because it's effectively preventing goals, and liking defensive play because you like it. The -6 in 1987 against the Flyers and the -9 with 0 goals on-ice-for in 1988 look pretty bad if the guy's supposed to be a defensive stalwart.
- Cyclone Taylor
- Newsy Lalonde
Probably the last guys who can claim to be the best player in the world for a good stretch of time, but you can reasonably convince me to put them anywhere. They won lots of scoring titles, but I suppose there were more to go around. Taylor won 5 PCHA scoring titles after becoming a centre/rover. Before any of that, as an ECAHA All-Star defender, he earned a cool nickname and was a member of the 1909 Stanley Cup Champions in Ottawa. Lalonde outscored a young linemate named Bill Cook in the WCHL in his mid 30s to win a 7th league scoring title across 4 leagues (also PCHA, and counting NHA and NHL as separate). Currently thinking middle-to-high, with an edge to Cyclone's goal scoring in the 1915 and 1918 Finals over Newsy whacking Nighbor in the face with his stick in 1917 and a great run cut short by the Spanish Flu in 1919.
High. Long period of sustained very-goodness offensively, with strong two-way play on the back end of his career. With the 2000-01 Hart year, Smythe calibre playoffs which Forsberg missed the last half of, and a 2002 Olympics run, he might be able to claim he's the best in the world, albeit for a short time. The most consistent playoff performer of the bunch, with peak years that are as prolific as Bossy and Trottier during the Isles dynasty, and you don't even need to adjust for Sakic's lower scoring era.
Middle. I like Robinson. He does everything. Good offensively, tying Lafleur for the playoff points lead in one of Lafleur's best years, but just a little behind the guys who have already gone. Big, tough defender who could throw checks and spent relatively little time in the box for a player of that type. Even as a King was very good positionally and hard for most to get around (albeit as a King, not giving away the puck through the middle of his own zone made him unique). Checks boxes for prime, longevity, playoffs.
High. I believe I had him in my Top 2 two rounds in a row. Super longevity. His trophy case fills a truck in that Enterprise commercial even though Hasek's MVP years cost him a pair of Vezinas and a pair of years of being a Hart finalist (fine, maybe those don't need a truck). Probably had a greater number of impactful playoff series than Bobby Clarke did by the year 2000. And I hear he kept going for a while after that.
Below Sakic. That probably has been covered a lot, though perhaps should be reiterated. Thinking above Trottier. Beats Trottier on longevity. Brought a lot of the same intangibles later on in his career. Yzerman was more of an independent variable in point production, and demonstrated that he could produce with linemates of varying quality. In a round with representation from arguably the 2nd best players from the Bread Line, Production Line, and Trio Grande, it should be noted that Steve Yzerman posted a Pearson-winning campaign with Gerard Gallant and Paul Maclean.
Low. I imagine is the consensus is Ted behind Sawchuk?
Low. He had an elite run from 1951-55 that's in the same ballpark as the best from anybody else. Then a long run as mostly average, when average was pretty good, with the bonus chance that he might help you steal a playoff series (in the 1960s, he was in net for three 4th-place teams and a 3rd-place team that made the Finals). A good example of save percentage being influenced by the team in front of a goaltender.
