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Ulf Samuelsson

Avery Rule

Avery Rule

Registered User
Jun 1, 2010
1,059
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What are your thoughts on him, I didn't really get to watch much of him when he played, but I was watching some youtube videos with him don't think I ever seen some one targeted as much as him...











 
Still Public Enemy #1 in Boston?

I never really had a problem with him (although I rooted for the Canucks at the time, and never had a fan favorite of mine felled by his antics).
 
He was one of the dirtiest SoB's around and he knew it.
He was once asked who's the dirtiest player in the league and without hesitation he said himself.

Him and Marchment were well known and well hated around the league.
 
Ulf was awesome, he was definitely a number 2-3 defenseman. Excellent hitter, great crease clearer, and would be a solid player in this NHL.
 
He's one of the most underrated players in NHL history. I had him at #80 on my defenseman list and while he would fall off if I re-did it due to some omissions, he's still comfortably in my top 100. He was a top level defensive d-man whose prime occurred during a time period that was not favorable to those sorts of players (this is one of the reasons I rank him ahead of Adam Foote and Derian Hatcher to name a couple of similar players, who got to spend the bulk of their careers in a more defensive-minded era).
 
I've always wondered about the Neely hit, but never really had the courage to ask since so many people were up in arms about it...am I the only person who thinks that Ulf never stuck out his leg, and the knee-on-knee part of the hit was because Neely was trying to sidestep an open-ice hit? Everyone crucifies Ulf for being a dirty player (often times rightly so), but I feel that on that particular play he wasn't completely at fault.
 
mrhockey193195 said:
I've always wondered about the Neely hit, but never really had the courage to ask since so many people were up in arms about it...am I the only person who thinks that Ulf never stuck out his leg, and the knee-on-knee part of the hit was because Neely was trying to sidestep an open-ice hit? Everyone crucifies Ulf for being a dirty player (often times rightly so), but I feel that on that particular play he wasn't completely at fault.
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Knee on knee hits are so hard to determine. Marchment literally driving Nieuwendyk's knee into the boards in the 1998 playoffs was premeditated. He had plenty of time to ease up and such simply finish his check, but he didn't. Ulf and Neely looked almost more like a collision than a deliberate attempt. Honestly, even when it looks like a deliberate attempt you still have to have some sort of defense for the attacker. If a player with the puck is going to get by you and the only move you have is to stick your leg out and trip him then that just might logically be a natural reaction. Its happened before. But I do get why Ulf is hated in Boston.

Other than that, to tell you how hated the guy was, he got blamed for knocking out Janet Gretzky in that one game in 1997. Ulf delivers a check, the glass comes off and clunks Janet in the head, and she goes to the hospital. I mean, it HAD to be Ulf doing that eh? But yeah, the guy was a villain but still someone I wanted on my team
 
Big Phil said:
Knee on knee hits are so hard to determine. Marchment literally driving Nieuwendyk's knee into the boards in the 1998 playoffs was premeditated. He had plenty of time to ease up and such simply finish his check, but he didn't. Ulf and Neely looked almost more like a collision than a deliberate attempt. Honestly, even when it looks like a deliberate attempt you still have to have some sort of defense for the attacker. If a player with the puck is going to get by you and the only move you have is to stick your leg out and trip him then that just might logically be a natural reaction. Its happened before. But I do get why Ulf is hated in Boston.

Other than that, to tell you how hated the guy was, he got blamed for knocking out Janet Gretzky in that one game in 1997. Ulf delivers a check, the glass comes off and clunks Janet in the head, and she goes to the hospital. I mean, it HAD to be Ulf doing that eh? But yeah, the guy was a villain but still someone I wanted on my team
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Are you sure you're thinking about the same hit?
Because there is a borderline hit that Ulf threw on Cam by the blueline/benches that you always see on video that most seem to accept as the one that did it.
It wasn't though, that was just the finisher. Ulf had nailed Cam with a deliberate knee earlier in the series down behind the net. That was the one that did most of the damage.
The reality is that Cam shouldn't have even have been playing after the first hit but he did anyway and payed the price when Ulf finished the job.

There was an interview with a Bruin's player or it might have even been Cam himself, I can't honestly remember. Anyway, he talked about the incident and said it was the hit behind the net that screwed him up.

 
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mrhockey193195 said:
I've always wondered about the Neely hit, but never really had the courage to ask since so many people were up in arms about it...am I the only person who thinks that Ulf never stuck out his leg, and the knee-on-knee part of the hit was because Neely was trying to sidestep an open-ice hit? Everyone crucifies Ulf for being a dirty player (often times rightly so), but I feel that on that particular play he wasn't completely at fault.
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100%. I noticed this a few years ago, and also felt it was too taboo to mention. After some research, the hit that you are talking about, from the Coach's Corner tirade, was on Neely's right knee. According to an interview with Cam, "he went to hit Ulf, who ducked out of the way" and somehow that was the catalyst for the ossification of Cam's LEFT knee. Whether Ulf ducked while delivering a knee on knee is questionable. Whether Ulf intentially attempted to start a long process in which bone would grow on Neely's knee in the future, is extremely doubtful. Whether it was right for Milbury to show that same clip, as evidence, against Ulf last Spring, and also again paint him with the 'guy who never answered the bell... well, except for 50 or so times' tag.... well, that's embarrassing to professional journalism.

Ulf was dirty. Ulf played Neely dirty, with no thought to Neely's safety, but also none to his own safety. Ulf also shut Cam down. When weighd against all the other dirty **** in the history of hockey... as far as his poor legacy goes, Ulf's greatest crime was this - shutting down our Pope of Propaganda's favorite player, on his favorite team, while being European, and doing the shutting down with a brand of hockey held dearest to the heart of the bigot himself. If his name had been Ted Samuels, and he was from Moosejaw, he would've been regarded by Don, and subsequently many more, as a gutsy, little guy who does what it takes to win, and isn't afraid to go nose to nose with the toughest powerforward in the game. Ala Bobby Clarke or Darcy Tucker.
 
He was dirty, although certainly not to the Marchment level, he was also a very solid defensive defenseman.

Not all that far behind much more highly regarded players like Brad McCrimmon and Kevin Lowe.
 
I've always been a little miffed I missed the footage of him crying at the Olympics.
 
mrhockey193195 said:
I've always wondered about the Neely hit, but never really had the courage to ask since so many people were up in arms about it...am I the only person who thinks that Ulf never stuck out his leg, and the knee-on-knee part of the hit was because Neely was trying to sidestep an open-ice hit? Everyone crucifies Ulf for being a dirty player (often times rightly so), but I feel that on that particular play he wasn't completely at fault.
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You're right. The one in question was an attempted hip check and only caused Neely to go down because of his attempt to avoid the hit.

Samuelsson was a dirty player and did some pretty dirty things, including knee on knee jobs, but that particular hit wasn't one of them.

Personally, I'll never forgive him for ending Pierre Mondou's career with a stick to the eye, right when Mondou, as classy and clean a player as you'll ever see, was playing the best hockey of his career.
 
Rhiessan71 said:
Are you sure you're thinking about the same hit?
Because there is a borderline hit that Ulf threw on Cam by the blueline/benches that you always see on video that most seem to accept as the one that did it.
It wasn't though, that was just the finisher. Ulf had nailed Cam with a deliberate knee earlier in the series down behind the net. That was the one that did most of the damage.
The reality is that Cam shouldn't have even have been playing after the first hit but he did anyway and payed the price when Ulf finished the job.

There was an interview with a Bruin's player or it might have even been Cam himself, I can't honestly remember. Anyway, he talked about the incident and said it was the hit behind the net that screwed him up.

Click to expand...


You are so biased its starting to reach epic porportions.

What finished Neely off was Neelys retaliation attempt. He went in to hit Ulf by the boards and tore his other knee. Its not even the same knee! Neelys carreer would have been longer if he wasnt a hot headed bafoon who did something clumpsy. Reminds me of Espen Knutsen when he tried to headbutt the boards. :laugh:

Ulf is not even close to be the dirtiest (he was dirty no doubt). Guys like Pilon, Pronger, Marchement, Shore, Cleghorn, Clarke etc got him beat.
 
The guy was an excellent defensive defenseman. A little dirty but as others have said not to the level of Bryan Marchment.
 
Hobnobs said:
You are so biased its starting to reach epic porportions.

What finished Neely off was Neelys retaliation attempt. He went in to hit Ulf by the boards and tore his other knee. Its not even the same knee! Neelys carreer would have been longer if he wasnt a hot headed bafoon who did something clumpsy. Reminds me of Espen Knutsen when he tried to headbutt the boards. :laugh:

Ulf is not even close to be the dirtiest (he was dirty no doubt). Guys like Pilon, Pronger, Marchement, Shore, Cleghorn, Clarke etc got him beat.
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Did I say he was the dirtiest player?
NO I DIDN'T!
What am I biased about? Were you actually watching hockey and the games in question? I was!

The thread is about Ulf, not anyone else but I mentioned Marchment(a Canadian btw) anyway just to show that Ulf wasn't the only one and to show I wasn't picking on a European.

The difference between Ulf and Marchment though and why players got so much more pissed with Ulf was because 99% of the time he would not drop his gloves or fight to answer for the crap he did.
It wasn't that he was the dirtiest, it's that he was a turtling ***** about it.
 
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When you look up the term "Chicken Swede," you'll find this image attached next to it:
ulf_samuelsson_65.jpg
 
He dished some out but, due to his reputation, took a lot as well. Considering what other players did at that time, I think his dirty rep is a bit overblown.
 
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mrhockey193195 said:
I've always wondered about the Neely hit, but never really had the courage to ask since so many people were up in arms about it...am I the only person who thinks that Ulf never stuck out his leg, and the knee-on-knee part of the hit was because Neely was trying to sidestep an open-ice hit? Everyone crucifies Ulf for being a dirty player (often times rightly so), but I feel that on that particular play he wasn't completely at fault.
Click to expand...

If you ask me, the funny thing is Neely should be grateful for that hit...because Neely was not nor would have got the HOF credentials.
Guy was supposed to be elite yet never scored 100 points, never scored 1000 points, never won anything...and yet HE is in the HOF and not Kevin Steves whose credentials blow him away.

Neely was gimp long before Ulf came along....the hit by Ulf gave him an excuse and provided much sympathy that ultimately got him in when he never should have.

Ask me, Neely should thank him, Ulf.
 
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