Who were our Generational players?

[Bombshell11]

Thinking today about Demidov, i realised the habs don't have any player who's been certified by the hockey world as a generational talent?

Im pretty sure for us The Rocket is a no brainer, then we had Guy Lafleur but im sure if you ask anyone else not a hab fan they would disagree.

We have so many cups but very few of our players are celebrated. Seems odd because the discussion surrounding gen talents is exactly about how these players could potentially lead their teams to sc conquests.

in other sports the gen talk is meaningless, if your guy doesnt win campionships hes a no body.

NBA: greatest player of all time is considered to be MJ and Lebron because of their championships. No one cares about the guy who scored the most points.

MLB: Its all about the Yankees, no one cares about the greatest pitcher or hitter.

Soccer: You're the greatest based on how many world cups you've won, the messi vs Ronaldo was settled when Messi got his WC, however both Messi and Ronaldo are considered Gen

NFL: rings.

Only in hockey, are cups not the main talking point. Last year the NHL shoved Bedard's face all over social and mainstream media. Bedard this Bedard that and not a single peep about the sc winners? I honestly barely remember who won the cup last year. Oh yeah its Florida....

so im confused with all this generational talk, i dont understand what it means and what is the point of it, and is Demidov a gen talent since alot of people are claiming hes as exciting as Guy Lafleurs but is Guy considered a generational talent? And if yes then why are some people ashamed and afraid to call Demidov a gen talent? if no then who do we have in our history that was considered gwnerational... 24 cups, afterall soneone had to play and win those games

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[Zilo44]

Beliveau is a generational captain for sure

 

[Seven7]

Carey Price.

 

[the]

Babe Ruth was a big name for MLB. Generational talent for sure.

 

[waitin425]

We had back to back generational players 100 years ago.

Newsy Lalonde and Howie Morenz, were both the best of their time.

Bonbshell we have discussed this so many times. For Demidov to be generational he has to be the equivalent of the recent previous generational players.....Gretzky, Lemieux, Jagr, Crosby, Ovechkin, McDavid.....and I'm even being liberal with the definition.

People are hesitant, because he is simply not what you claim he is. Could he get there? sure. So could Bedard, Michkov, Fantilli, Celebrini, Slaf etc to varying degrees of probability. Your claim of Demidov being generational is one of the boldest claims I've ever seen in these boards.

 

[CHwest]

We had back to back generational players 100 years ago.

Newsy Lalonde and Howie Morenz, were both the best of their time.

Bonbshell we have discussed this so many times. For Demidov to be generational he has to be the equivalent of the recent previous generational players.....Gretzky, Lemieux, Jagr, Crosby, Ovechkin, McDavid.....and I'm even being liberal with the definition.

People are hesitant, because he is simply not what you claim he is. Could he get there? sure. So could Bedard, Michkov, Fantilli, Celebrini, Slaf etc to varying degrees of probability. Your claim of Demidov being generational is one of the boldest claims I've ever seen in these boards.

His claim that Mesar will be an elite player in the NHL is bolder.

 

[waitin425]

His claim that Mesar will be an elite player in the NHL is bolder.

At least he brought the discussion to our board this time. The main boards was not a pretty site when he used generational to describe Demi

 

[BargainBinSpecial]

What we thought of being generational talent back then, may no longer hold merit if they played today. The league has expanded to 32 teams and players are paid millions. The Habs had exclusivity of drafting french Canadians in a league with six teams for some time, many franchises folded. You have more parity today than back then.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Howie Morenz is widely regarded as the best player of the first half century.

Doug Harvey absolutely qualifies as a generational talent. He’s still widely regarded as the 2nd best blueliner ever behind Orr.

Those two along with Richard qualify. Richard in the 40s had absurd numbers and once owned the league’s all-time points and goals record. Howe overlaps most of his career but he’s still an insane player.

Beliveau I don’t think qualifies, Hull and Howe were better. Most hockey fans had Sawchuck ahead of Plante.

Dryden and Lafleur have supernatural resumes in the 70s. But Dryden gets underrated because of the teams he was on and Lafleur’s prime outside six years is underwhelming. Both were incredible talents. I don’t think most people would consider them generational but maybe borderline. Dryden has the craziest resume ever. Lafleur was the first six straight 50-100 point player. To this day only two others have done it.

On the flipside of Dryden, I find Roy gets overrated for his cups. People also seem to ignore the great teams he was on. Many regard him as the greatest goalie ever (I’m not part of that group) so maybe he qualifies.

Carey Price had the talent to be a generational player but injuries prevented him from proving it. To me, he’s our great lost talent. If he’d been able to get back to back Harts in 2016 his resume would be so much better. Plus who knows what would’ve happened in the playoffs with him.

So I’d say, Morenz, Richard, Harvey, Roy. Maybe Lafleur and Dryden depending on how you want to evaluate it.

 

[Habs10Habs]

What we thought of being generational talent back then, may no longer hold merit if they played today. The league has expanded to 32 teams and players are paid millions. The Habs had exclusivity of drafting french Canadians in a league with six teams for some time, many franchises folded. You have more parity today than back then.

No they didn't. A simple google search will show you that has been debunked.

 

[Skip Bayless]

What we thought of being generational talent back then, may no longer hold merit if they played today. The league has expanded to 32 teams and players are paid millions. The Habs had exclusivity of drafting french Canadians in a league with six teams for some time, many franchises folded. You have more parity today than back then.

I second this.

There wasn't enough parity back then for the word "generational" to have much meaning.

Today, with the amount of players and records, the term holds more value.

To me, generational players are Gretzky, Crosby, Ovechkin, McDavid and Matthews might enter the discussion if he keeps scoring 50 to 60 regularly.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

No they didn't. A simple google search will show you that has been debunked.

Well, we did for a while but back then the draft was irrelevant anyway. All the best players were signed to a C-form. Boston had signed Orr as a teen example long before he could’ve been drafted.

The best player we ever got out of the draft under those rules was Rejean Hoyle. Only one other NHLer came out of it and he played a minimal number of games.

None of our superstars before the new rules in 1970 came from the draft.

 

[Habs10Habs]

Well, we did for a while but back then the draft was irrelevant anyway. All the best players were signed to a C-form.

The best player we ever got out of the draft under those rules was Rejean Hoyle. Only one other NHLer came out of it and he played a minimal number of games.

None of our superstars before the new rules in 1970 came from the draft.

Yes, but people like to throw it out as some kind of advantage. As you've pointed out, we really didn't benefit from it.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

Yes, but people like to throw it out as some kind of advantage. As you've pointed out, we really didn't benefit from it.

Yep.

 

[BJCOLLINS]

So IMHO, the Habs generational talents would be….
The Rocket, Le Gros Bill, The Flower.
Our goalies Dryden, Patrick Roy & Carey Price deserve to be in the discussion and my childhood favourite Habs d-man should get an Honourable mention The Big Bird.

My Grandfather & Father would add Harvey

 

[GrandBison]

A generation is around 25 yrs, so are we talking about a top 5 for every generation? If so, that's about the top 20 players of all time who are generational.

 

[Sasha Orlov]

Harvey, possibly Morenz

 

[Skip Bayless]

A generation is around 25 yrs, so are we talking about a top 5 for every generation? If so, that's about the top 20 players of all time who are generational.

I'd say top 1, max top 2.

 

[Jabba11]

I think there is truly only 1 generational player in our team's history and it's Maurice Rocket Richard.

Morenz, Beliveau, Flower, Harvey and company were all NHL legends but did not have the same impact as Maurice Richard. Le Rocket was even better than Gordie Howe during their lifetime and I think he is the definition of a true Habs. He impacted the league, the game, the people of Montreal even till now. His legacy is truly generational.

 

[Lafleurs Guy]

I think there is truly only 1 generational player in our team's history and it's Maurice Rocket Richard.

Morenz, Beliveau, Flower, Harvey and company were all NHL legends but did not have the same impact as Maurice Richard. Le Rocket was even better than Gordie Howe during their lifetime and I think he is the definition of a true Habs. He impacted the league, the game, the people of Montreal even till now. His legacy is truly generational.

I think there’s very little daylight between Harvey and Richard. Harvey might even be a bit better. You’re talking about two of the best players to ever play.

I don’t know what it is but people here seem to be really underrating Harvey. The only reason he doesn’t have like 9 or ten Norris trophies is because it wasn’t invented yet. He’s one of the best players of all time. He’s generational without a doubt.

 

[Canadienna]

Price had equal or more of an impact on winning the hockey games he was in than guys like Crosby, Ovechkin, and McDavid imo.

Maybe thats a hot take, and I don't think it's how people define generational, but for me his impact on the Habs is comparable to many that get labelled 'generational'.

 

[kyne]

Part of the Canadiens mystique for decades was a generational player and superb goaltending. This ended with Patrick Roy.

 

[Scintillating10]

Beliveau, maybe Lafleur during my time. Rocket, Morenz I never seen play.

Lafleur more franchise player to me. He was only great for 6 years. From '74-80. Around 30 he was fraction of himself. Smoked a lot, too much partying.

 

[kyne]

Beliveau, maybe Lafleur during my time. Rocket, Morenz I never seen play.

Lafleur more franchise player to me. He was only great for 6 years. From '74-80. Around 30 he was fraction of himself. Smoked a lot, too much partying.

Lafleur was the best player in the league from 1976 to 79. He was literally unstoppable some nights. In my mind, in the same class as Mario Lemieux when it came to generating sheer excitement when he had the puck. Perhaps he was generational only for a brief time?

 

[Anardil]

What we thought of being generational talent back then, may no longer hold merit if they played today. The league has expanded to 32 teams and players are paid millions. The Habs had exclusivity of drafting french Canadians in a league with six teams for some time, many franchises folded. You have more parity today than back then.

People should stop using the 'Territorial Rights Draft' as a valid point in the construction of the Dynasty. The only players that amounted to anything through that draft were Réjean Houle and Marc Tardif.

It's a Habs hater trope when they try to devalue the Habs Dynasty. I love it when they throw it out there. I ask them to name which players they obtained through this draft, and I just love saying 'WRONG' after each name.

We as Habs fans should know that the French Draft did exist, but it gave no advantage to the organization.

The Habs acquired their players the same way the 5 other teams did. They were just better than the competition at signing and developing their players.