Top 10 Best NHL Players of All Time

[Golden_Jet]

You're fooling yourself if you think those who study hockey history don't revere Howe up there. And if you think they put McDavid on that pedestal. As for the hockey community in general, most of them don't know what they're talking about when it comes to history. I'd be more interested on the thoughts of a handful of PhDs on a topic than a mass of first graders.

Obviously you’re uninformed.

 

[JackSlater]

I don't think anybody was calling Hull the best player ever but A lot of people have him ranked in the 5 to !0 range. The consensus In HOH was #5. I don't think many have Ovechkin there so there is a considerable gap. And I don't particularly care about your opinion.

If Hull was a much higher tier than Ovechkin, which was the claim, then he'd have to be the best player ever. I know that almost no one calls Hull the best ever, because he isn't that much above Ovechkin. 5 to 10 is fair for Hull, and Ovechkin has a solid case for that range too though I'd probably keep him slightly lower.

 

[The Panther]

There's only four players- Gretzky, Lemieux, Orr, McDavid (probably in that order) - who currently have some significant support as the best hockey player ever.

That may be true, but it's like saying "most people today" think Taylor Swift is bigger than The Beatles. It just means most people aren't intelligent or well-informed and that their opinions aren't particularly important.

I'm not changing my opinions about hockey players based on 17-year-olds on the main boards who think Crosby is the greatest player ever (since 2010).

 

[WarriorofTime]

Hard to see any real objective case for Lemieux over Gretzky, they played in same era and Gretzky accomplished much much more. You have to get in more subjective territory with requiring both things like what someone "feels" (I watched them play and think this, which... ok I guess.. can't tell you how to feel) and turning injuries "off"