blundluntman
Registered User
- Jul 30, 2016
- 2,654
- 2,850
We all know how rampant the great vs great debates are. You have Gretz vs Lemieux, Crosby vs Ovi, Crosby vs McDavid, etc. But I was wondering what it would be like if Gretzky and Orr both entered their peaks at the exact same time.
I wonder if Gretzky, known for his unbelievable Offensive dominance as a 200+ point player would be scrutinized for his "single-minded approach to offense" when compared to a 130+ point Bobby Orr who would also be a top 5 defensive defenseman in the league. We've seen people detract from McDavid in debates vs Crosby by saying Crosby is more well-rounded and that McDavid needs to focus on defense. I wonder if debates between Gretzky and Orr would have a similar nature.
I personally find those kinds of discussions to be pretty fruitless at times as they tend to focus on tearing down a particular player. But as a fan of sports, I also realize it's just inevitable.
How do you think the discourse would go? And do you think either player would have an edge over the other? Let's assume Orr's peak from 1969-1975 happens at the exact same time as Gretzky's peak from 1981-1987.
Orr
Gretzky
I wonder if Gretzky, known for his unbelievable Offensive dominance as a 200+ point player would be scrutinized for his "single-minded approach to offense" when compared to a 130+ point Bobby Orr who would also be a top 5 defensive defenseman in the league. We've seen people detract from McDavid in debates vs Crosby by saying Crosby is more well-rounded and that McDavid needs to focus on defense. I wonder if debates between Gretzky and Orr would have a similar nature.
I personally find those kinds of discussions to be pretty fruitless at times as they tend to focus on tearing down a particular player. But as a fan of sports, I also realize it's just inevitable.
How do you think the discourse would go? And do you think either player would have an edge over the other? Let's assume Orr's peak from 1969-1975 happens at the exact same time as Gretzky's peak from 1981-1987.
Orr
1969–70 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 76 | 33 | 87 | 120 | 125 | 14 | 9 | 11 | 20 | 14 |
1970–71 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 78 | 37 | 102 | 139 | 91 | 7 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 25 |
1971–72 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 76 | 37 | 80 | 117 | 106 | 15 | 5 | 19 | 24 | 19 |
1972–73 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 63 | 29 | 72 | 101 | 99 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
1973–74 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 74 | 32 | 90 | 122 | 82 | 16 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 28 |
1974–75 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 80 | 46 | 89 | 135 | 101 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 2 |
Gretzky
1981–82 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 80 | 92 | 120 | 212 | 26 | +81 | 18 | 6 | 12 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 8 |
1982–83 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 80 | 71 | 125 | 196 | 59 | +60 | 18 | 6 | 9 | 16 | 12 | 26 | 38 | 4 |
1983–84 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 74 | 87 | 118 | 205 | 39 | +76 | 20 | 12 | 11 | 19 | 13 | 22 | 35 | 12 |
1984–85 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 80 | 73 | 135 | 208 | 52 | +98 | 8 | 11 | 7 | 18 | 17 | 30 | 47 | 4 |
1985–86 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 80 | 52 | 163 | 215 | 46 | +71 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 10 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 2 |
1986–87 | Edmonton Oilers | NHL | 79 | 62 | 121 | 183 | 28 | +70 | 13 | 7 | 4 | 21 | 5 | 29 | 34 | 6 |
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