The Next Ones (after Bedard)

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Which one
I don't know which one anymore. But there are only very serious former players on the show as consultants. The rise in the level of play is regularly repeated by the usual speakers who played between 2000 and 2015 (Marc Denis, David Perron, Eric Belanger, Bruno Gervais). Guillaume Latendresse and Maxim Lapierre say the same thing in their show. The level has increased significantly in recent years.

This is truly a unanimous opinion on this media.
 
I don't know which one anymore. But there are only very serious former players on the show as consultants. The rise in the level of play is regularly repeated by the usual speakers who played between 2000 and 2015 (Marc Denis, David Perron, Eric Belanger, Bruno Gervais). Guillaume Latendresse and Maxim Lapierre say the same thing in their show. The level has increased significantly in recent years.

This is truly a unanimous opinion on this media.
Ovechkin before 2010 was better than Draisaitl ever was, his skating ability in addition to his skill and stature is something that simply doesn’t exist today. And I think Draisaitl is a top 3 player in the world
 
Ovechkin before 2010 was better than Draisaitl ever was, his skating ability in addition to his skill and stature is something that simply doesn’t exist today. And I think Draisaitl is a top 3 player in the world
Very one-dimensional and very selfish game, especially at the start of the career.

He was higher in the hierarchy in 2005/2013 but better in level of game I don't think.

Among the guys born in the 80s, you just have Crosby, Kane, Ovechkin, Malkin and then the Sedin brothers. There wasn't even a great defender.

It's been 5 years since Draisaitl was stronger than Ovechkin and 5 years ago Ovechkin was only 33. The McDavid generation completely swept away the Crosby generation. Hence the fact that at one point, the league seemed very young.

A generation which also had difficulty establishing itself compared to the previous one with a huge drop in level in Russia, Czechia, Slovakia and Quebec.

In almost all countries, the level of players has risen compared to players born in the 1980s.

The level quickly increase at the top of the players with the McDavid generation and Ovechkin quickly went from 2nd in 2013 to 7-8th then out of the top 10.

Even in Ovechkin's strong point, scoring goals - Draisaitl puts 6% shot efficiency in his mouth.
 
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Ovechkin before 2010 was better than Draisaitl ever was, his skating ability in addition to his skill and stature is something that simply doesn’t exist today. And I think Draisaitl is a top 3 player in the world
???

You feel O.V. (prime) is better than McDavid?

McKenna looks so damn good
The competition was weak but he looked (as you mentioned in another thread) very McDavid-esk out there.
 
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???

You feel O.V. (prime) is better than McDavid?


The competition was weak but he looked (as you mentioned in another thread) very McDavid-esk out there.
No, I don’t. But my point was a player with Ovechkin’s skillset, a 60+ goal scorer that drives play in transition and blows people up, simply does not exist today
 
Its hillarious that the NHL previously had like 3 generational players ever, then now these little kids think every other draft has a generational player. Fans are so out of touch with reality

It was this way when you were a young fan, too; you just don't remember it. It's always been this way.
 
Its hillarious that the NHL previously had like 3 generational players ever, then now these little kids think every other draft has a generational player. Fans are so out of touch with reality
I'd say it's still pretty close to that way. For me generational means the player has to gap the entire league for many years and I don't think anyone except Orr, Gretzky or Lemieux have done that.

Pre-50's is too hard to judge because of the significantly less games played. Howe has the numbers but in terms of pace there are a lot of guys who are reasonably close to him like Richard, Geoffrion, Hull, and Beliveau who actually outpaced Howe even if you take away Howe's Hartford season.

Even McDavid has three guys keeping up with him in pace every year. All of three of them are crushing him in pace this year too (and Kaprizov is outpacing him, but injured). Crosby is a what if because the time he really pulled away from his peers he missed significant chunks of multiple seasons. The only thing in McDavid's favour is he didn't have the adjustment period or weak career start than Drai, Mack and Kucherov all had. And his insane 2022-23.

For the definitive generational talents, even though tons of guys in the 70's/80's are still top 50 pace all-time, Gretzky and Lemieux are significantly ahead of them.

Orr just was dominant in a way that we haven't seen from a D outside a few insane single seasons like Karlsson's 100 point year which obviously was still 53 points back of league lead and 11th in scoring, while Burns 76 points a few years prior was good for 9th and the only top 10 finish in the last decade and obviously both Burns and Karlsson were never elite shutdown guys.

In fact, Coffey was the last top 10 finish as a D and it was a lockout season. Leetch and MacInnis did it once each, and Coffey did it a few more times playing with Gretzky. Bourque once in the 80's. Top 5 only Coffey did it twice, including 2nd once (only 80 points back of Gretzky).

In the 70's Potvin did it twice. Park did it once.

Meanwhile Orr finished first twice, second thrice, and third once in essentially a 9 year career. He's basically a poor man's Beatles of the NHL.
 
I heard on good authority that McKenna won't even be top 5 in his draft let alone generational.

They even went on record.
Whoever told you that clearly must watch soccer instead

I think at this point, if we're talking generational, the only guy you could talk about is Landon Dupont.

Some others are definitely franchise level.
Still too early to tell but kids looking really good. Let’s see what he does in his dy-1 next year
 
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I'd say it's still pretty close to that way. For me generational means the player has to gap the entire league for many years and I don't think anyone except Orr, Gretzky or Lemieux have done that.

Pre-50's is too hard to judge because of the significantly less games played. Howe has the numbers but in terms of pace there are a lot of guys who are reasonably close to him like Richard, Geoffrion, Hull, and Beliveau who actually outpaced Howe even if you take away Howe's Hartford season.

Even McDavid has three guys keeping up with him in pace every year. All of three of them are crushing him in pace this year too (and Kaprizov is outpacing him, but injured). Crosby is a what if because the time he really pulled away from his peers he missed significant chunks of multiple seasons. The only thing in McDavid's favour is he didn't have the adjustment period or weak career start than Drai, Mack and Kucherov all had. And his insane 2022-23.

For the definitive generational talents, even though tons of guys in the 70's/80's are still top 50 pace all-time, Gretzky and Lemieux are significantly ahead of them.

Orr just was dominant in a way that we haven't seen from a D outside a few insane single seasons like Karlsson's 100 point year which obviously was still 53 points back of league lead and 11th in scoring, while Burns 76 points a few years prior was good for 9th and the only top 10 finish in the last decade and obviously both Burns and Karlsson were never elite shutdown guys.

In fact, Coffey was the last top 10 finish as a D and it was a lockout season. Leetch and MacInnis did it once each, and Coffey did it a few more times playing with Gretzky. Bourque once in the 80's. Top 5 only Coffey did it twice, including 2nd once (only 80 points back of Gretzky).

In the 70's Potvin did it twice. Park did it once.

Meanwhile Orr finished first twice, second thrice, and third once in essentially a 9 year career. He's basically a poor man's Beatles of the NHL.
I agree 100% with the names you put. I think those are the only generational talents we've ever seen. It would be interesting to see how Lindros would have fared if he learned how to play with his head up. He might not have had the skill level of the aforementioned, but I think he's unique in league history for the total package he brought. If only he mastered the skill of playing with his head up...

I think there is an argument to be made for a few more though. I don't think that Ovechkin put up any one defining season, or really substantially supassed his peers, but I can't think of any player, including the names above, that were able to produce as much as he has as consistently as he has for as long as he has. He is generational for that level of consistency. But for missed time, he likely would be the favourite for the Richard trophy again this year (his would be 10th!). I think the same argument could be made for Lidstrom. Not only the recipient of seven Norris trophies, but was able to secure his last over the age of 40. He was still a top-pairing defenceman when he retired. Age didn't get him, boredom did! If ever there was a candidate for a generational goaltender it would have been Hasek. No one to have ever laced a pair of skates can claim to be as good as he was. If that doesn't make you generational, I don't know what does.

I agree that generational gets thrown around too easily. We'll see what history says about McDavid but the odds that there is a generational player on the horizon is slim.
 

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