Datsyuk - Bergeron - Hossa vs Kariya - Kopitar - Guy Lafleur

[tarheelhockey]

If the goal is to predict a 7 game series, playoff achievements matter a hell of a lot more than 90pt+ regular seasons. Kariya playing most of his career on the expansion Ducks lags in that department, but Kopitar and Lafleur more than make up for it.

It’s also worth noting, Kariya only had two substantial playoff runs in his career. The first, during his prime, he had 13 points in 11 games. The only other one was the run to the Finals in which his overall production was disappointing, but he did have the legendary “off the floor, on the board” moment.

When we say Kariya’s playoff record is lacking, we’re really putting a ton of weight on his playing mostly on non-playoff teams. And his failure to score a few more points while falling *checks notes* one point short of the team lead while making it to Game 7 of the Finals.