McDavid nearing 1000 points at 27 years old

[Sniper99]

What does Ron Hextall have to do with Connor McDavid though? The latter has a much more dominant sample size over his peers. McDavid's been ripping through his competition since pretty much his 2nd year in the league.

Just smile and nod with what he says,

 

[jeffff]

I don't think he will be able to surpass Gretz, Mario or Orr ever, there's a nostalgic perception that'll be near impossible to break.

Even getting ground over Gordie will be a chore in itself.

30 or 40 years from now Orr and Gordie will be a memory and most of us who remember Gretz and Mario will be gone too.

The only thing left will be stats.....he'll easily be top 3.

 

[SaltNPeca]

And people claimed he wasn't as good as Crosby

At least a comparison to Crosby is a comparison to a truly great player.

Earlier in his career there were some shameful and embarrassing comparisons, which have all fallen by the wayside by now (hopefully).

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

McDavid had a stacked team.

A good team. A stacked team doesn't have any glaring issues. When your second pairing is Nurse-Ceci, that's a major issue. Not a stacked team.

 

[KCC]

I think he has a shot at 2,000 points if he can stay healthy and wants to keep playing. He’s an automatic 100+ points a season and outside his rookie year would have had 8 straight 100+ seasons if not for one season ending early because of Covid. He ended at 97 in only 64 games.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

I don't think he will be able to surpass Gretz, Mario or Orr ever, there's a nostalgic perception that'll be near impossible to break.

Even getting ground over Gordie will be a chore in itself.

Nostalgia doesn't make a player better and those with the nostalgia won't be here forever gatekeeping their youth's idols.

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

McDavid had a stacked team.

Now this is funny

 

[Voight]

We were robbed of Sid's true prime IMO. f*** David Steckel.

Steckel did nothing wrong... he isn't to blame for what happened

 

[Nogatco Rd]

If only McDavid and his 117 points in 74 playoff games showed up in the playoffs.

Do you have an answer to the question?

 

[Nogatco Rd]

30 or 40 years from now Orr and Gordie will be a memory and most of us who remember Gretz and Mario will be gone too.

The only thing left will be stats.....he'll easily be top 3.

I can see him passing gordie easily, probably already has in the minds of a lot of people.

Harder to see him passing Bobby Orr IMO. It’s one thing to be dominant, it’s something else entirely to be revolutionary. Orr did things that literally no one else has ever done as a defenseman. Gretzky-esque in that regard.

I think it may take a player who similarly revolutionizes the game, or shatters our perceptions of what’s possible, to supplant Orr.

 

[Dfence033]

I always struggle with the “championships” argument for hockey. Of the major team sports, hockey is almost certainly the one where a single player can impact a championship the least.

Even Gretzky, as unquestionably the best to ever do it, didn’t win without those insanely stacked Edmonton teams.

I get why it matters to those who stand on that hill, but it’s not a QB in the NFL. If one player could win a Cup solo, McDavid would have done it last year. That playoff run was ridiculous, and his team still failed to close it.

 

[SeanAveryTheGreatOne]

I'm going to get absolutely flamed for saying this, and that's fine and perhaps deservedly so, but just what a shame it is that he's doing it with Edmonton. If he was in Toronto he'd be One of the biggest stars on the planet.

Could probably say the same thing about if he was playing for the rangers, though selfishly I'm glad that is not the case obviously.

I agree, especially because Edmonton got gifted a million first overalls (half of whom they destroyed the development of) until they finally got the best player of the generation.

 

[HabsCode]

I can see him passing gordie easily, probably already has in the minds of a lot of people.

Harder to see him passing Bobby Orr IMO. It’s one thing to be dominant, it’s something else entirely to be revolutionary. Orr did things that literally no one else has ever done as a defenseman. Gretzky-esque in that regard.

I think it may take a player who similarly revolutionizes the game, or shatters our perceptions of what’s possible, to supplant Orr.

He did redefined the speed level that we taught was possible for a skater.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

I can see him passing gordie easily, probably already has in the minds of a lot of people.

Harder to see him passing Bobby Orr IMO. It’s one thing to be dominant, it’s something else entirely to be revolutionary. Orr did things that literally no one else has ever done as a defenseman. Gretzky-esque in that regard.

I think it may take a player who similarly revolutionizes the game, or shatters our perceptions of what’s possible, to supplant Orr.

This is based on subjectivity.

McDavid will inspire an entire generation to try and dangle very well at very high speed and that will also change the sport. Every generation there are few players that change the game.

I find very little validity at being "the first one" as it will always give an advantage to the one that was first there, which is situational and out of the player's hands. Might as well try to find out the very first player who did a one-timer. Revolutionary!

Contrarily to most, I find there are very few sports that have a clearcut #1, because you're always dealing with different eras with different dynamics and different environments (everything in and outside the sport). The more eras advances, the more the sport advances, the less space there is for revolutions to occur. Bobby Orr had the huge advantage, like Gretzky, coming at the start of great expansions, which's talent dilution magnified their talent. The disparity between the best and worst player was far greater for Gretzky and Orr, than it is for McDavid. So they had a double advantage. Being there first to revolutionize their sport, and a greater talent disparity to magnify their superiority.

He did redefined the speed level that we taught was possible for a skater.

Not only the speed, but what can be done at that speed. He's like a supercharged Pavel Bure with better playmaking skills.

 

[Nogatco Rd]

This is based on arbitrary subjectivity.

McDavid will inspire an entire generation to try and dangle very well at very high speed and that will also change the sport. Every generation there are few players that change the game.

I find very little validity at being "the first one" as it will always give an advantage to the one that was first there, which is situational and out of the player's hands. Might as well try to find out the very first player who did a one-timer. Revolutionary!

Contrarily to most, I find there are very few sports that have a clearcut #1, because you're always dealing with different eras with different dynamics and different environments (everything in and outside the sport). The more eras advances, the more the sport advances, the less space there is for revolutions to occur. Bobby Orr had the huge advantage, like Gretzky, coming at the start of great expansions, which's talent dilution magnified their talent. The disparity between the best and worst player was far greater for Gretzky and Orr, than it is for McDavid. So they had a double advantage. Being there first to revolutionize their sport, and a greater talent disparity to magnify their superiority.

Revolutionary might be the wrong word, I think transcendent more accurately captures what I mean here. Gretz and Orr transcended what people thought was possible to accomplish in the sport. They did things that haven’t been done before or since.

Point taken though with regard to McDavid’s speed being a revolutionary or transcendent quality that sets him apart

 

[FrozenJagrt]

I can't stand people mentioning his lack of cups. When a player has the kind of playoff performance he just had, it's irrelevant. What more could he have done?

 

[Miri]

To think at that age, Kucherov only had 547 points lmao. Truly two different breed of players.

Kucherov scored as much as McDavid last year (actually more, but in the ballpark). What he did or didnt do at 18 years of age has zero relevancy to what “breed” of player is he nowadays.

Since he was a big part of Tampas Cup winning team (twice), i presume nobody in Tampa is too fussed about having to suffer having such a bum on team, when they could have has infinitely superior McDavid instead.

 

[Miri]

I can't stand people mentioning his lack of cups. When a player has the kind of playoff performance he just had, it's irrelevant. What more could he have done?

Dangle through entire rink by himself and score in game 7. As many times as needed to outscore Florida

 

[elmaco]

I always struggle with the “championships” argument for hockey. Of the major team sports, hockey is almost certainly the one where a single player can impact a championship the least.

Even Gretzky, as unquestionably the best to ever do it, didn’t win without those insanely stacked Edmonton teams.

I get why it matters to those who stand on that hill, but it’s not a QB in the NFL. If one player could win a Cup solo, McDavid would have done it last year. That playoff run was ridiculous, and his team still failed to close it.

Playoff stats are a better indicator, and boy does he have that covered.

 

[Coffey]

Glad to see people use the same cup counter arguments that I use. The detractors love to ignore them.

- Wayne never won without a stacked Oiler team
- Ray and Hasek never won until they went to the stacked team and are considered top 3 in their positions

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

Glad to see people use the same cup counter arguments that I use. The detractors love to ignore them.

- Wayne never won without a stacked Oiler team
- Ray and Hasek never won until they went to the stacked team and are considered top 3 in their positions

Lemieux also had a stacked team.

 

[Video Nasty]

Do you know all the variables involved? Injuries...his game is based on speed. Let's see how he adapts when that starts to decline. This stuff isn't linear. He's the best of this generation hands down. Long, long ways to go to get to the top 5 though.

I’ve seen enough across all sports to know every single variable involved. I’ve seen much lesser players adapt smoothly and I’ve also seen speed demons like Gartner not miss a beat. People hoping McDavid’s game vanishes overnight because of losing a step or two as he ages are likely going to be in for a rude awakening.

Kind of tired of the implied narrative that his speed is masking a lesser hockey mind. The greatest players adapt, almost right down the line. I’m not talking about him winning Art Rosses from age 35 on. I also went conservative with where I think he is points wise as the calendar flips to his 30th birthday (120 each in his age 28 and 29 seasons, with 55 in the first half of his age 30 season).

Injuries can hit at any time, obviously. I already mentioned his health multiple times. I’m not going to preface every single post with “assuming good health”. That’s implied.

Top 5 is a long, long ways for you. He’s already one of the five greatest players to ever step onto the ice. That will be the dominant opinion if he and the Oilers win a Cup this season.

 

[Grate n Colorful Oz]

I’ve seen enough across all sports to know every single variable involved. I’ve seen much lesser players adapt smoothly and I’ve also seen speed demons like Gartner not miss a beat. People hoping McDavid’s game vanishes overnight because of a losing a step or two as he ages are likely going to be in for a rude awakening.

Kind of tired of the implied narrative that his speed is masking a lesser hockey. The greatest players adapt, almost right down the line. I’m not talking about him winning Art Rosses from age 35 on. I also went conservative with where I think he is points wise as the calendar flips to his 30th birthday (120 each in his age 28 and 29 seasons, with and 55 in the first half of his age 30 season).

Injuries can hit at any time, obviously. I already mentioned his health multiple times. I’m not going to preface every single post with “assuming good health”. That’s implied.

Top 5 is a long, long ways for you. He’s already one of the five greatest players to ever step onto the ice. That will be the dominant opinion if he and the Oilers win a Cup this season.

Yeah, I fully remember Gartner amazing me with his speed even in his mid 30's.

 

[T REX]

He’s already one of the five greatest players to ever step onto the ice.

nope. naw. #toosoon

 

[Skolman]

Do you have an answer to the question?

Yes, top 3-4.