Legacy Of Los Hermanos Sedines?

[DitchMarner]

These two were considered up-and-coming stars near the time of the Lockout and were briefly heralded as superstar players in the League. They had very strong (albeit short peaks) and pretty solid primes and careers for high draft picks.

I feel like I've read a lot of comments on this particular board (History of Hockey) where posters have said things like, "I'm not a big fan of the Sedins" and posts questioning whether they should be in the Hall of Fame.

Personally, I can't truthfully say I immensely enjoyed watching them. I tend to like superstar players who play an exciting style and have game-breaking and one-on-one skills. The Sedins seemed perfectly suited for that 2010s low scoring period. However, they did manage to make some highlight plays that stand out anyway. I disagree with notions they were soft. They played along the wall and got involved physically. They just weren't aggressive physically.

What's the legacy of the two brothers now that they've been retired for a while and we can reflect on their careers?

Click to read more...

 

[BraveCanadian]

Not much to talk about tbh.. great along the wall and had a few all star seasons but.. legacy??

 

[Michael Farkas]

Legacy probably out shines their actual ability. Not to say they weren't impactful. But their HOF status leans more towards "fame" of being twins that had the best chemistry than pure ability for me...

 

[MadLuke]

In the NHL... they never won.

They won the gold against Finland and the world when it was played in Finland, so in Sweden I could imagine it is quite good.

One team players, career Canucks, in Vancouver they must have some legacy, it was a fun era, with back to back different Art Ross winners, President trophy and a game 7 cup finals.

From 2007-2012, regular seasons

D.Sedin: 9th in goals, 8th in points
H.Sedin: 1st in assists, 5in points
3/4 in +/-, they had a puck possession style that was quite "safe" offensively, to not get scored again, 6/7 in ppg of that era

13th and 16th in points in the playoff.

Would it not be of playing together, how different than say Staal, Heatly, Spezza, Kovalchuk, would they be seen, better peak I guess.

 

[Gorskyontario]

I'll remember them for getting bullied by Marchand. Sorry to say but that's the defining moment of their career for me.

 

[JackSlater]

I don't know what is meant by legacy here. They will be legends in Vancouver in a long time and will remain memorable even outside of Vancouver because of the novelty of identical twin linemates who put up elite seasons. I never considered them superstar players on their own, but I guess you could say that it doesn't matter since they were never on their own. Their style of play, focused on long cycling, was somewhat copied in the league, though no one could really do it in the same manner.

You could win a Stanley Cup with the Sedins as your two best forwards at their peaks, so that's something.

 

[Albatros]

No Hart or Lindsay winner with 1000 career points has ever missed the HHoF, cup or no cup.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

i can’t be unbiased here so i’ll refrain from commenting on their legacy

but i just don’t understand ppl who say they weren’t exciting to watch. watching those two was watching f***ing magic.

 

[DitchMarner]

i can’t be unbiased here so i’ll refrain from commenting on their legacy

but i just don’t understand ppl who say they weren’t exciting to watch. watching those two was watching f***ing magic.

For me it just comes down to preference. I like watching guys like MacKinnon, McDavid, Bure, young Ovechkin.

But I can appreciate a Tavares or Backstrom and I grew up watching Sundin. The Sedins were definitely good at what they did, and like I said, they did score some highlight goals.

 

[The Panther]

I feel like I've read a lot of comments on this particular board (History of Hockey) where posters have said things like, "I'm not a big fan of the Sedins" and posts questioning whether they should be in the Hall of Fame.

I don't know if that was in reference to me, but for the record I never questioned whether the Sedins were Hall of Famers. I did question the fan-hype on here about the Sedins deserving to be "first-ballot Hall of Famers", which seems more than a little unnecessary to me. To me, they were legit Hall of Famers, but certainly not of the upper-crust type...

You could win a Stanley Cup with the Sedins as your two best forwards at their peaks, so that's something.

Well, the Canucks blew a 2-0 lead in the Finals with the Sedins at their peak as their two best forwards, and never won, so...

For me it just comes down to preference. I like watching guys like MacKinnon, McDavid, Bure, young Ovechkin.

So, you enjoy the flashy, dynamic players...

Here's the odd thing: I generally prefer players (like the Sedins) who use intelligent passing and involve teammates (like the Sedins did) in attacking. I like players who can control the puck (like the Sedins) and zip it around the zone (as the Sedins could). Yet, somehow... I didn't enjoy watching the Sedins, either.

I mean, obviously it's different if you're a committed Canucks' fan, but I found Bure, Linden, and Naslund all more entertaining to watch. There's something about the Sedin-cycle that was kind of mind-numbing.

 

[Michael Farkas]

i can’t be unbiased here so i’ll refrain from commenting on their legacy

but i just don’t understand ppl who say they weren’t exciting to watch. watching those two was watching f***ing magic.

Nah man, say your piece...you're the biggest Sedins supporter that regularly contributes to this board. Let us have it. Back it with video if you're so inclined...

Most east people are in bed or at the club for the second half of HNIC haha

 

[Gorskyontario]

You could win a Stanley Cup with the Sedins as your two best forwards at their peaks, so that's something.

They both disappeared in the finals, and choked early a bunch of other times. I'm not sure this is accurate.

 

[McGarnagle]

 

[JianYang]

The chemistry between these two was as good as it gets.

It seemed telepathic, to be honest. They used that ability to cause alot of extended shifts in the offensive zone. They weren't going to physically knock you out, but those extended shifts would wear down the opposition. The sedins were known to be highly conditioned athletes.

I'm not sure why they wouldn't be considered entertaining. They had magic hands. The only think that wasn't sexy about them was their so so speed, but they had a unique bag of tricks.

I'll leave you with this video which kind if encapsulates what I'm talking about. What a slick duo.

---

 

[VanIslander]

In terms of hockey history?

Somewhere below Max & Doug Bentley.
But above Russell Bowie & Blair Russel.
About Hull & Oates.

 

[JackSlater]

I don't know if that was in reference to me, but for the record I never questioned whether the Sedins were Hall of Famers. I did question the fan-hype on here about the Sedins deserving to be "first-ballot Hall of Famers", which seems more than a little unnecessary to me. To me, they were legit Hall of Famers, but certainly not of the upper-crust type...

Well, the Canucks blew a 2-0 lead in the Finals with the Sedins at their peak as their two best forwards, and never won, so...

So, you enjoy the flashy, dynamic players...

Here's the odd thing: I generally prefer players (like the Sedins) who use intelligent passing and involve teammates (like the Sedins did) in attacking. I like players who can control the puck (like the Sedins) and zip it around the zone (as the Sedins could). Yet, somehow... I didn't enjoy watching the Sedins, either.

I mean, obviously it's different if you're a committed Canucks' fan, but I found Bure, Linden, and Naslund all more entertaining to watch. There's something about the Sedin-cycle that was kind of mind-numbing.

They both disappeared in the finals, and choked early a bunch of other times. I'm not sure this is accurate.

Yes I know that they did not win, but I am confident that they could. Vancouver was a game away without an elite defenceman leading the blueline. That team did have a deep group at forward and defence and an elite goaltender. There are lots of options I'd take before the Sedins but you could build around them with an otherwise strong team.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

The Sedins are a big blindspot for the HOH board which typically has pretty good, nuanced perspectives.

The Sedins played hockey in a way that a lot of people didn't really understand what they were seeing and I suspect they probably attributed a lot of the Sedins' success to their own team's failures. Like, everyone understands why you don't stop Lindros, or slow down McDavid.

But the Sedins would basically play really skillful soccer on ice. Lot's of little through-passes, lot's of turning the back on defenders and waiting for them to overcommit just a hair, only to turn around and hit the open man. I suspect a lot of opposing fans thought, 'our stupid D, how is that guy uncovered', but the Sedins would basically find a way to press every single part of your skin in a way that felt unthreatening, before suddenly they found a pressure point and somehow they have your wrist bent backwards and you're on your knees yelping.

Time and the Canucks organization did them no favours in a couple of senses.

Time:

1. The Sedins entered their period of effectiveness (and understanding what NHL fitness meant) juuuuuuuust as the westcoast express was leaving it's heyday and becoming dysfunctional.
You put the 09 Sedins with the 03 Naslund line and that team probably wins a cup even with Dan Cloutier in net. But the Sedins weren't ready until the team lost a lot of its jam.

The Sedins also juuuuust missed playing with Pettersson and Hughes by a couple of years. So there's some timeline stuff here.

2. The Sedins were such possession monsters, and so poorly supported by other strong players, that often our coach (e.g. Vigneault) would just put them out there with our substandard 3rd pairing D because the play would so frequently be in the offensive zone that it was a way of protecting our bad D (like Marc-Andre Gragnani for example). So their superlative puck possession style wasn't so much supported by other stars, as it was used to lift up weaker linemates/d pairings.

3. The Sedins gave their linemates the most priceless resource in the NHL: time.
The league (and several leagues below) are full of players who can do superlative things with the puck, and have amazing shots, if you can just give them the space and time to process the game and put those skills to use. But the NHL is so organized, and full of such strong defenders that that time just doesn't exist. It's part of why drafting has always been a bit of a crapshoot (not a crapshoot, but high profile guys fail to make it all the time), because processing speed is hard to predict until you see it.

The Sedins were so good at creating space for teammates that they made Alex Burrows a 35 goal scorer, made Anson carter a 30 goal scorer about 60 games before he was out of the league, made Taylor Pyatt a 20 goal scorer, broke Radim Vrbata's gypsy curse of only being able to score in Phoenix, etc.

I think Boeser's expectations actually got outsized from his rookie season partly because we were given the impression that he was a sort of Patrick Laine shooter who could blow the puck past a set goaltender. And in his rookie season he was.
But he had Thomas Vanek at even strength, and the Sedins on the powerplay setting him up so he could finish his coffee, get the puck, take a look, and lean right into it.

Then they retired, Vanek left, and suddenly Boeser didn't have that time anymore.

He's still a good player and I was always a believer, but he took a lot of shit from our fans because suddenly he couldn't find the time and space that the Sedins helped create for him.

Here's an example:



I was at this game with my dad and it was a special moment and it made Boeser look like Mike Bossy or something. Taking on one of the best goalies in the NHL in a mano-a-mano scenario and beating him.

But look at why he had that time? That was what the Sedins did.

If you replaced Datsyuk and Zetterberg with the Sedins that Wings team still wins cups, I firmly believe it.

But because they played a style that not a lot of people understood, and because they played out west and in Canada, they get a bad rap.

 

[Gorskyontario]

If you replaced Datsyuk and Zetterberg with the Sedins that Wings team still wins cups, I firmly believe it.

I sincerely doubt that. Zetterberg and Datsyuk were much better than the Sedins. There's plenty of hockey highlights that will make the Sedins look equal to them but.






I remember distinctly in the 2014 playoffs. The wings got destroyed, in 5 against the bruins. Zetterberg only played 2 games(2 points). Chara did something similar to Zetterberg in the Bruins zone He knocked him down with a cross check. Instead of diving Zetterberg took Chara down with him and held his stick, making Chara start flipping out. Can't find the clip on youtube.

Zetterberg played to win, and wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty and be hard to play against. Sedins were soft with a capital S. Great unique talents for sure, but those canucks teams won back to back presidents trophies, and several other good seasons. They weren't pesky underdogs.

 

[Dingo]

Man, what a hard duo to describe. Many people above me have nailed one aspect of the Sedins, but nobody has painted the whole picture, imo.

Soft? - yes, they never fought back
- no, they never stopped playing their cycle game
(only one of them got bullied by Marchand, btw, they actually arent the SAME person)

More flash than substance?
- yes, they made pretty passes while lacking some other things
- hell no, they lacked speed, net driving, big slappers, stickhandling wizardry, yet somehow still won Rosses and were the defacto offensive leaders of a very good team while also outperforming nearly everyone in the league at even strength. Strange, because they seemed like they should be PP specialists.

Only a weird twin gimmick with great chemistry?
- well, kinda. only twin gimmick that did great and their chemistry was the driving element to their success...
- Henrik did amazingly when Daniel was injured in his Art Ross year. Could have had incredible careers apart from each other, maybe, we will never know.

They are hard to rate, says I.

I am a Swede follower, I thought they were weak in 2006 olys, I disliked those Canucks, and the twins were just kinda weird. I massively prefer Zetterberg. I dont like the non-retaliation or non- net crashing, perimeter game

however, they got it done at a high level for a good chunk of 5 years, and they kept getting off the ice and playing their game. Also, as I know a scout and physical therapist, ex-Canucks, both have told me with conviction that there have NEVER been harder working Canucks. Clean-living, fitness freaks, entire focus about becoming winners.

I'd say - begrudging respect is what I have. Not my style, but they did a lot without many physical gifts. imo.

 

[Janvonpobben]

Lindros and Sundin didnt win anything either and yet they are in the HHoF

 

[Michael Farkas]

Lindros and Sundin didnt win anything either and yet they are in the HHoF

Sundin was the captain and second leading scorer of a gold medal Olympic team in a best on best Olympics...

Also, a much better player than both Sedins.

 

[JianYang]

Man, what a hard duo to describe. Many people above me have nailed one aspect of the Sedins, but nobody has painted the whole picture, imo.

Soft? - yes, they never fought back
- no, they never stopped playing their cycle game
(only one of them got bullied by Marchand, btw, they actually arent the SAME person)

More flash than substance?
- yes, they made pretty passes while lacking some other things
- hell no, they lacked speed, net driving, big slappers, stickhandling wizardry, yet somehow still won Rosses and were the defacto offensive leaders of a very good team while also outperforming nearly everyone in the league at even strength. Strange, because they seemed like they should be PP specialists.

Only a weird twin gimmick with great chemistry?
- well, kinda. only twin gimmick that did great and their chemistry was the driving element to their success...
- Henrik did amazingly when Daniel was injured in his Art Ross year. Could have had incredible careers apart from each other, maybe, we will never know.

They are hard to rate, says I.

I am a Swede follower, I thought they were weak in 2006 olys, I disliked those Canucks, and the twins were just kinda weird. I massively prefer Zetterberg. I dont like the non-retaliation or non- net crashing, perimeter game

however, they got it done at a high level for a good chunk of 5 years, and they kept getting off the ice and playing their game. Also, as I know a scout and physical therapist, ex-Canucks, both have told me with conviction that there have NEVER been harder working Canucks. Clean-living, fitness freaks, entire focus about becoming winners.

I'd say - begrudging respect is what I have. Not my style, but they did a lot without many physical gifts. imo.

I thought sedins were good players for a while, but then particularly Henrik turned into a great player imo. They were magic together, but then that year happened where Daniel got hurt, and Henrik picked up the slack and lead the league.

They showed to me that there was more to them than just some sort of telepathic chemistry.

 

[MadLuke]

Time and the Canucks organization did them no favours in a couple of senses.

Time:

Here there 2 element thought:

1) That what happen when you have such a short prime and why an Ovechkin that score 50 goals-100 points in 2006 and still win a Smythe in 2018 twelve years later is so special for an organization, they create giant window. To compare to a Sundin who was elite for a very long time, this is Sedins career biggest issues, maybe less than Naslund but in a similar way. To be fair during that relatively (for all time great HOF talk, still really good for an nhler) short prime they were really consistent during it. The took too much time to get started is a lot on them.

2) There timeline matched with a 40 goals Kesler season, prime Luongo and each other that peaked at the exact same time, they never were a Detroit at their best built team (no Lidstrom to start with), but they were back to back president trophy winners for a reason.

As for being spectacular or not, I feel like it is uncontroversial that they could be and their best highlight are really fun to watch

 

[Stephen]

Imagine if Patrick Marleau had had an identical twin with the same ability, give or take a little more in the goal scoring or playmaking department, and they powered the Sharks all those years together. That's the Sedin Twins for me.

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

I sincerely doubt that. Zetterberg and Datsyuk were much better than the Sedins. There's plenty of hockey highlights that will make the Sedins look equal to them but.






I remember distinctly in the 2014 playoffs. The wings got destroyed, in 5 against the bruins. Zetterberg only played 2 games(2 points). Chara did something similar to Zetterberg in the Bruins zone He knocked him down with a cross check. Instead of diving Zetterberg took Chara down with him and held his stick, making Chara start flipping out. Can't find the clip on youtube.

Zetterberg played to win, and wasn't afraid to get his hands dirty and be hard to play against. Sedins were soft with a capital S. Great unique talents for sure, but those canucks teams won back to back presidents trophies, and several other good seasons. They weren't pesky underdogs.

Calling the Sedins soft is just ignorant. They weren't physically aggressive, but they literally never backed down physically (no a cherrypicked highlight of Brad Marchand being a dipshit and Daniel turning the other cheek because we were in the finals doesn't count just because the refs acted like they were paid off and somehow the two were given matching penalties).

They were tough like Borje Salming was tough in the sense that they were tested frequently and they never backed down. Now, they never fought (which I believe Salming did early in his career), but they never gave up on pucks a la William Nylander to avoid contact.