National Post (National Edition)
GREATS OFFER THEIR TAKES
AS THE NHL ROLLS OUT ITS LIST OF THE TOP 100 PLAYERS IN LEAGUE HISTORY, THREE OF HOCKEY’S LIVING LEGENDS DISCUSS WHO THEY DEEM TO BE THE BEST OF THE BEST
On Friday in Los Angeles, the NHL will reveal its top 100 players as part of its Centennial celebrations.
In the second of a threepart series examining the hockey elite of the past, present and future, Postmedia picked the brains of three of the sport’s legends to find out who they consider to be the cream of the NHL crop through the game’s first 100 years.
Indeed, if you want to find out who is/was the best, you go to the best. So that’s what we did in putting together our panel — each member was at the top of his respective field.
Don’t take our word for it. It’s the stats that say so.
There’s Wayne Gretzky, the all-time leading scorer in NHL history (2,857 points).
There’s Martin Brodeur, who accrued the most victories of any goalie (691) in the league’s first century of existence.
And last — but certainly not least — is Scotty Bowman, who has more wins (1,244) than any coach who ever patrolled behind an NHL bench.
Interestingly, while they all remain hockey icons even in retirement, their all-star team selections significantly varied, to say the least.
Gretzky’s squad features three teammates who helped the Edmonton Oilers of the 1980s become a dynasty — Mark Messier, Paul Coffey and Grant Fuhr.
Despite the fact that a young Marty spent plenty of time around some of the alltime Habs greats because his dad, the late Denis Brodeur, was the longtime team photographer of the Montreal Canadiens, Brodeur chose only players he played with or against for his team.
And Scotty Bowman, well, in true Scotty Bowman fashion, he couldn’t narrow down his list to six players. So, we made an exception for him and let him have as many players as he wants on this, his all-star team for the ages. That’s the least we can do for a guy whose name is chiselled into the Stanley Cup 14 times.
Without further ado, here are the greats as picked by the greats.
WAYNE GRETZKY
Goal: Grant Fuhr Defence: Bobby Orr, Paul Coffey Forwards: Gordie Howe, Jean Béliveau, Mark Messier Gretzky says ...
“For me, (Howe) is the greatest player ever. I say this all the time. Bobby Orr or Gordie Howe, pick who you think is better. I happen to be a little biased. I was a forward, so I’ll take Gordie.
“But more importantly he was the nicest man I ever met.
“Gordie was around 50 the first time I played against him. I thought it was pretty cool that he kept winking at me during warm-up. Then, on about my fourth shift, I’d just taken the puck from him when, before I knew it, this big stick was pounding me on the hand. I thought I’d broken my thumb. He took the puck and said, ‘Don’t ever take the puck from me.’ All I could say was, ‘OK.’
“I remember meeting Jean Béliveau during the Quebec peewee tournament in 1974. He came into our room before our first game and took a photo with me. He said he’d heard there was a good player on our team. He then told me, “Don’t let me down.” I think I scored seven goals. Afterward I asked my dad: “I hope I didn’t let Mr. Béliveau down.”
“(Messier and Coffey) are Hall of Famers I was privileged to play with. And the goalie? Grant Fuhr. He had no defence; we were mostly an offensive team. If he would have played somewhere else, he probably would have had a really good goals-against average. A lot of 6-5 games in Edmonton.”
MARTIN BRODEUR
Goal: Patrick Roy Defence: Ray Bourque, Scott Stevens Forwards: Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr Brodeur says ...
“One of the things I look for from a great player is durability and longevity. I know that goes against Mario, but that shows how special he was for me to put him in. You look at Ray Bourque, Scott Stevens, Wayne Gretzky, how long they played — and at a high level too. Patrick, he played over 1,000 games. So, that’s one of the things I looked at — to be that good for that long in your career.
“My dad was part of those great Canadiens teams with the Béliveaus, the Lafleurs, the Drydens, all those alltime greats. But I didn’t have the hockey background with those guys. I did meet Rocket Richard, Henri Richard a bunch of times, Guy Lafleur, Yvan Cournoyer — I was fortunate I got to meet so many of the Canadiens all-time greats.
“Patrick was a guy all us young goalies looked up to through AAA and junior, a French Canadian who in some ways changed the way the game was played. He was so important to the Canadiens, other teams started getting goalie coaches because Patrick had a goalie coach.
“I think the second game I played against him was in Montreal at the Forum. And that really sunk in with me. You never forget something like that.
“Jagr, that guy’s a freak of nature. I had a chance to play with him. So impressive what he’s been able to do and the high level he’s been able to compete at. He deserves to be on everyone’s ballot.”
SCOTTY BOWMAN
Goal: Patrick Roy, Martin Brodeur, Ken Dryden, Bernie Parent, Terry Sawchuk, Glenn Hall, Jacques Plante.
Defence: Bobby Orr, Doug Harvey, Nicklas Lidstrom, Eddie Shore.
Forwards: Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Maurice (Rocket) Richard, Gordie Howe, Jean Béliveau. Bowman says ...
“It’s so hard ... I can’t narrow it down.
“The easiest one is on defence. Orr, Harvey — Eddie Shore, I didn’t see him play but I know what people told me about him — and Lidstrom. I don’t think anyone would argue about those four. Those are mine.
“Up front, I’d still have Gretzky, Lemieux, Howe, Richard. I’d have a hard time pushing any of them out. Jean Béliveau, you could throw him in there. But to me, Howe and Richard, their accomplishments speak for themselves. Gretzky, Lemieux as well. I mean, who else would you have in there?
“The Rocket, a lot of people never saw him play. I saw him play a ton. Talk about putting people in the rink. Do I want to be excited to go and watch this guy play? Oh my God.
“I talked a lot to (Hall of Fame Canadiens coach) Toe Blake when I was working in Montreal. And this is amazing. He said the three players that pulled him out of his seat continuously — Howie Morenz, Rocket Richard and Bobby Hull. Those were his guys.
“A lot has to do with excitement. Before Gretzky, before expansion — and I lived through this — the argument always was: Who’s the better player, Howe or Richard? This is what people always said: If you want to fill your building, you pick the Rocket. If you want to win championships, you pick Howe.
“In goal, well, in the modern day era, it would be hard to go against Brodeur and Roy. I had Dryden with me and I know how good he was. Dryden was an exceptional goalie on a great team. It’s not easy to get 18, 20 shots, you’d better be ready for every one of them. Sawchuk, Hall, Plante, Frankie Brimsek. I go to those four but Brimsek, he only played 10 years. The next era, Dryden, Parent, Roy, Brodeur. Patrick and Brodeur, longevity.”