Tom_Benjamin said:
Don't be ridiculous. The players are better today than ever.
I would suggest the same to you. Naturally if you took todays training and equipment and put it back in "the olden days" guys in the AHL might have been incredible back in the 60's and 70's... however, if you put some of these player into the training regiment of those past years, they wouldn't be in the NHL of then.
I think you can make a case that Champions aren't as good because there is so much parity today, but you can't take anything away from any of the players who have won a Stanley Cup. Ever.
Parity? No... more teams, yes. They aren't the same thing. Having to win 8 games to win the Cup is a lot easier than winning 16 games. Beating 20 teams with finances not being a major issue is easier than beating 29 teams when your hands are tied financially.
The Oilers and Islanders of the 80's would have had a much tougher time winning their cups in a 30 team league, while they probably would have won much more in a 6 or a 12 team league.
It's a numbers game... it isn't parity.
It is symbolic of hockey excellence. The right to lift the Cup is a sacred tradition in hockey. Bettman and the NHL wisely sell the Cup as the greatest trophy in sports, the biggest star in the game.
It's awarded to the best team in the NHL... whether they are replacement players or not.
The right to lift the cup is granted to the team that survives the rigors of a long NHL regular season, then does it again in a shorter, but even more demanding playoff schedule. The best players or the best team doesn't always win the Stanley Cup... it's never been that way. It's the team that plays the best, and has the most luck, during the playoffs.
Put ECHL names on it and it will never be the same again. I'll bet it will really mean something to raise a Stanley Cup banner won by replacement players.
Does it mean something to fans of the Montreal Canadiens, who talk with pride about their 24 Stanley Cups... most of which were won in a 6 or 12 team league... where most of time teams in that league couldn't compete with your average CHL team nowadays?
I can't cheer for a Stanley Cup team now, so I'd be darn proud to watch a 6th Championship banner rise to the rafters.
Or how about the All-Star game? The All-Star teams? Let's give the Hart trophy to Pascal Rheaume or Jay Henderson. Greg Zanon can win the Norris. Wade Flaherty for the Vezina. How many asterisks do we put in the official record book? If Bertuzzi decides to cross the picket line and smashes all of Gretzky's records, are they official?
You don't put any asterisks in the record book. Are there asterisks beside Gretzky's name because he destroyed every record in a league know primarily for some of the worst goaltending in league history? Are they any Asterisks beside Henri Richard's 11 cups because he won most of them in a 6 and 12 team league?
Why would a replacement players records in a 30 team league mean any less than those of someone's in a 21, 12, or 6 team league?
After all, the players are today are better than ever!