Would Peak Jamie Benn Contend For A Scoring Title Today?

[DitchMarner]

This poll is a shout out to my boy @OtherThingsILike.

Just one of those players? Yes, absolutely. After all, he won an Art Ross with prime Crosby in the league, who is a better hockey player than both Jagr and McDavid.

All it would take is some coach telling McDavid (or whoever) that he needs to stop cheating on offense, only the coach has a really strict definition of cheating for offense that means never being outside of your own defensive zone without your team having control of the puck.
Oh, and I suppose the top tier player would have to miss a few games. Crosby only played 77 games that season.

Right, because a smaller margin of victory is a good indicator of tough competition.

Right, because when there are lots of great players, they take fewer risks because it can come back to haunt them.
Plus, you know, the significantly better defense and goaltending compared to today.

And you would be wrong in doing so.

It's the number of players at the high end that indicates how strong the competition is for the Art Ross.

If there were more elite players in the league (the way it's been in other eras), there would be more competition for the Art Ross. McDavid and Kucherov wouldn't be hogging the award because other players would be good enough to have a shot at winning it.

Also, you kind of indirectly answer the question posed by the thread here. If McDavid isn't a tier above Kucherov, why would he be a tier above Crosby? Is Kucherov also a tier above Crosby?


And yet, the competition was weak for many of those years.
It might not have been as weak as it is today, but at least during the early 80s, it was.


You just answered your own question, More players capable of winning scoring titles = more competition.

Prime MSL and Benn would both be contending for scoring titles this year.

Click to read more...

 

[Mrb1p]

I mean he did win one. Scoring was lower back then and he's of course not a favorite but yes.

 

[jigglysquishy]

By any reasonable adjustment metric, his 2015 is one of the weakest in NHL history. Arguably the weakest since WWII.

It would be a 105-110 point season now. Not going to win an Art Ross, but likely still finishes top five.

 

[Dion TheFluff]

not even close but would likely be pushing 100 point seasons which is still super impressive.

 

[Oddbob]

NOT EVEN CLOSE! He won the scoring title in one of the lowest scoring seasons ever with one of the lowest top pt totals ever. It was a fluke one off.

 

[Felidae]

Yeah basically what everyone else has said.

I do also want to say that peak Benn would arguably be the best left winger in the game right now, no worse than top 3. He was one of the last true elite power forwards

 

[Chuck Testa]

Not a snowball's chance in hell that any form of Jamie Benn puts up 130-140+ points needed to win the scoring title today.

Nor should he be expected to. Peak Benn never lit up the scoresheet. His career high was 89 points. IDGAF about "oh but the scoring was low". Nah. No version of Benn competes for the scoring title against McDavid/MacKinnon/Kuch etc in any era.

 

[AUAIOMRN]

"He did win one". Not against prime McDavid, McKinnon, Kucherov, Draisaitl, Matthews, etc..

 

[Golden_Jet]

Not a snowball's chance in hell that any form of Jamie Benn puts up 130-140+ points needed to win the scoring title today.

Nor should he be expected to. Peak Benn never lit up the scoresheet. His career high was 89 points. IDGAF about "oh but the scoring was low". Nah. No version of Benn competes for the scoring title against McDavid/MacKinnon/Kuch etc in any era.

He did beat Kucherov, Crosby, OV, Sedins, Stamkos, Malkin etc
He was the best that year, but wouldn’t beat McDavid if he was playing.

https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_2015_skaters.html#stats::points

"He did win one". Not against prime McDavid, McKinnon, Kucherov, Draisaitl, Matthews, etc..

 

[Dr Pepper]

Could he CONTEND for one?

Sure, but I don't think he'd win.

 

[EdJovanovski]

"He did win one". Not against prime McDavid, McKinnon, Kucherov, Draisaitl, Matthews, etc..

One of those names is not like the others lol

 

[Martin Skoula]

I thought everyone else that would normally compete for it was injured but no most everyone played full years. What a freak outlier of a season, Benn Art Ross with Nick Foligno and Jiri Hudler top 10 in points is wild.

 

[CupofOil]

I mean he did win one. Scoring was lower back then and he's of course not a favorite but yes.

The high end talent is much better/deeper than it was when Benn won the scoring title.
He was a beast of a player in his prime but he's not beating out McDavid, MacKinnon, Kucherov, Draisaitl for a scoring title.

 

[BraveCanadian]

Nope

 

[OtherThingsILike]

 

[The Tourist]

It wasn’t a fluke one off year. He actually had more points the following season when he finished 2nd. He had a three year run where he finished 9th, 1st, and 2nd in points. Bad hips made for a short prime.

Benn had a short stretch where he was the best LW in the game and a top 5 forward. Multiple hip surgeries and his playing style caught up with him and his prime didn’t last long.

He wouldn’t score 130 today with the big 5 but he would score 100+ and add another 150 hits if you dropped prime Benn into 2025.

Younger fans should go watch his old highlights on YouTube to get a reminder of how good he was. He was hell on skates out there on the ice throwing big hits and puck jacking defenders for goals. Crosby and Doughty at one point both called him the best player or their favorite player. Don’t remember the exact quote.

 

[Dr Pepper]

It wasn’t a fluke one off year. He actually had more points the following season when he finished 2nd. He had a three year run where he finished 9th, 1st, and 2nd in points. Bad hips made for a short prime.

Benn had a short stretch where he was the best LW in the game and a top 5 forward. Multiple hip surgeries and his playing style caught up with him and his prime didn’t last long.

He wouldn’t score 130 today with the big 5 but he would score 100+ and add another 150 hits if you dropped prime Benn into 2025.

Younger fans should go watch his old highlights on YouTube to get a reminder of how good he was. He was hell on skates out there on the ice throwing big hits and puck jacking defenders for goals. Crosby and Doughty at one point both called him the best player or their favorite player. Don’t remember the exact quote.

I think Crosby said something along the lines of Benn being one of the players he'd build a team around from the ground up.

Might have been during their 2014 Olympic run.

 

[Machinehead]

While the era in which Benn won the Art Ross was a very low-scoring era, his Art Ross win was weak even for the era. In 2013-14, the Art Ross winner had 104 points. In 2014-15, it was 106.

All due respect to Benn, the stars really aligned for him that year.

As others have said, you might be able to adjust that to 110 in today's numbers. That's not winning the Art Ross. Even 120 is not winning the Art Ross anymore.

For a similar pro-rated output to win the Art Ross today, all of McDavid, MacKinnon, Kucherov, and Panarin would have to be hurt or having down years.

Give Benn credit: he finished second in 2016. I just don't see him hitting 140 now like he didn't hit 105 back then. He would be somewhere in the top 5.

 

[CanadienShark]

Holy f*** no.

He might "contend" for 90-100 points.

 

[Golden_Jet]

The high end talent is much better/deeper than it was when Benn won the scoring title.
He was a beast of a player in his prime but he's not beating out McDavid, MacKinnon, Kucherov, Draisaitl for a scoring title.

He already beat Kuch, when he won.

 

[Crow]

From the OP - you can argue Crosby is a better hockey player than McDavid and Jagr if you want. I don’t see the argument for crosby being a better points producer though. That’s what’s relevant here.

I’m inclined to say Benn probably wouldn’t but everything went right for him one year and it wasn’t even that long ago, so who am I to say it’s not possible now?

 

[Dr Pepper]

While the era in which Benn won the Art Ross was a very low-scoring era, his Art Ross win was weak even for the era. In 2013-14, the Art Ross winner had 104 points. In 2014-15, it was 106.

All due respect to Benn, the stars really aligned for him that year.

As others have said, you might be able to adjust that to 110 in today's numbers. That's not winning the Art Ross. Even 120 is not winning the Art Ross anymore.

For a similar pro-rated output to win the Art Ross today, all of McDavid, MacKinnon, Kucherov, and Panarin would have to be hurt or having down years.

Give Benn credit: he finished second in 2016. I just don't see him hitting 140 now like he didn't hit 105 back then. He would be somewhere in the top 5.

I mean technically that would still be "in contention", would it not? That's what the poll is asking.

It's not saying whether or not he'd WIN another one, just if he'd be in contention.

 

[CupofOil]

He already beat Kuch, when he won.

Kucherov wasn't even half the player he was in his prime when Benn won the scoring title

 

[SirPaste]

Peak Benn was a force, as much I dislike the guy. I don't think he could compete with the top dogs right now though, but he would still probably have 100 points.

 

[Regal]

Benn’s Art Ross season likely doesn’t win against any other Art Ross season in history. Everything went right for him in terms of the high end competition, and while maybe that could happen again, it’s unlikely. His year equates to roughly 100-110 points or so in the current scoring environment.