There's something to that, of course, but you also have to consider that the teams didn't have success until they came along. Both hadn't made the playoffs for about 5 straight seasons, then ended those droughts in only those players' second seasons... and, outside of the Kings last year, haven't missed since. Even Kopitar and Keith didn't do that, since they preceded Doughty and Toews by two seasons and their teams still struggled. Of course, this is circumstantial evidence, and it's possible that Doughty and Toews might have played on struggling teams until Kopitar and Keith came along, if the sets were reversed, but there's really no denying that both really helped to create that team success, rather than simply benefit from it. That's likely a large reason why people hold them in the esteem that they do. I don't think that most fans have entirely forgotten how much these two teams stunk in the 2000s, before these players came along.
