OT: Connor McDavid season, 1 more game
Connor McDavid currently has 1 more game to play. If he scores 3 points, then there will be only 2 hockey players in the history of the NHL who scored more points than him - Wayne and Mario.
Phenom. Wasn't Lindros supposed to be the next Wayne? Wasn't Crosby supposed to be the next Wayne? I don't know if i just was not paying attention or he was not quite the prospect early on that Lindros or Crosby were, but i do not recall him getting labeled 'the next Great one' almost a decade ago when he was coming up.
McDavid was absolutely labeled the “next phenom”. Since he’s been in the league he’s been top 3-5 every year. He’s grown his game a lot since then as well. He’s a beast and it’s a shame he plays for Edmonton as he doesn’t get enough attention here in the states. He doesn’t have a Stanley cup yet but when he does, you’ll see him talked about much more.
otoh, if only the wings had a superstar they’d be so fun to watch. Idk what the yzerplan is but it doesn’t look too promising..
The Wings keep getting hosed in the lottery, so they've missed out on the top picks even though they've stunk.
This is true but I would also say the Wings drafting from 2015 to 2018 was pretty dismal. The top 3 players from those drafts were Hronek, Rasmussen, and Berggren. None of which are really first line players.
One of the bigger mistakes was taking Gustav Lindstrom one spot ahead of Northville's Jason Robertson.
One of the bigger mistakes was taking Gustav Lindstrom one spot ahead of Northville's Jason Robertson.
Another late-stage Ken Holland/Tyler Wright special right there.
In 2017, these were the individuals responsible for running the four Detroit teams:
- Red Wings / Ken Holland
- Lions / Bob Quinn
- Pistons / Stan Van Gundy
- Tigers / Al Avila
That might be the worst front-office lineup across one city's major sports teams in a considerable amount of time.
Awful. At least Holland brought us some Cups before he forgot how to GM. Avila upsets me the most.
He never forgot how. He just didn't know how when a salary cap became involved.
I will add, I believe that either Kenny or Mr. I wanted to keep the playoff streak going at any cost. Trade a 1st or 2nd round pick and prospects to get a veteran player, sure keep the streak going! The playoff streak lasted much longer than it should have.
This definitely happened and it ruined the wings for another 5 years.
Yes that is duly noted. He also made some very large and terrible bets on long-term tie ups of players like Abdelkader. Ol' Kenny made a ton of terrible decisions in the waning years of his GM tenure that is for sure.
April 12th, 2023 at 11:05 PM ^
IMO Holland's SOP was we'll pay you a little less now, so we can bring in player X, and we'll pay you later. Good relations when there's no salary cap, and Mike Illitch was willing to open the checkbook for veteran talent, but terrible business with a salary cap. So the Wings end up with overpaid players/underperforming contracts and is hampered in cap space.
Ken Holland's name is on multiple cups because he shared a GM room with some incredibly talented people and some good luck.
Jim Devellano, Jim Nill, Stever Yzerman and being 'first to market' on European scouting is what got Ken Holland his rings. He has virtually no success after those three moved on and the rest of the league started scouting Europe.
Pistons and Tigers need to be exiled to Crete. I have Dish Network and they haven’t carried Bally’s Detroit for 3 years, and I haven’t complained because there hasn’t been anything worth watching.
Agree with all except for Berggren. For a second round pick, he’s had an exceptional rookie season. IMO it’s a little early to put a ceiling on his growth.
I think golblue76 is trying to make the point that Berggren is one of only 3 Wings draft picks during that four year stretch that has amounted to anything or could amount to much. I completely agree.
Yes, that was exactly my point. That's the top 3 from that era. #4 is probably Veleno, #5 is likely Zadina or Lindstrom. That's how bad that 4 year stretch was and should be the core of your team today.
I thought Hronek was a top pair defenseman. I, for one, was shocked when he got dealt this year and assumed it was because he had probably told the team he had no intention of sticking around when his contract expired (I have no idea how much time he had left on the contract, but if he was unhappy what else can the front office do?).
After seeing the team Steve put together in Tampa, I’m willing to give his plan time. He does need to find a way to trade up to a top 2 spot within the next year or two and land a home run there or the plan will fail just from lack of available talent.
The market will view Hronek as a top pair dman and he'll get paid like it. Yzerman just didn't want to commit to the term and money with talented prospects on the way. Getting another 1st rd pick was a good deal.
Agree they need an elite talent, but trading into the top 2 seems impossible. This is going to take a while and they need to get lucky at some point to turn the corner
30 other teams passed on him. I don't blame Yzerman for someone exploding when it wasn't anticipated
The Yzerplan is fine, the cupboards were BARE and they're just climbing out of that. They flipped Hronek for a 1st and a 2nd and the recent 1st rounders are looking super promising. Need a superstar, but NHL rebuilds can take a while.
The Wings need to get bigger, faster, and stronger overall in addition to more talented. I watch a lot of non-Red Wing hockey and they are not in the same league when it comes to speed and strength and size. Again, thanks to Holland and his shit drafting.
Yes its a shame he plays in a country that worships hockey and half the populace if not more knows what he looks like, unlike you know half the cities in the US these franchises are in (ex original 6 types) where 2% of the populace could name 3 hockey players on their team.
I'd say it's a shame its not Toronto or Montreal (heck Vancouver) vs Edmonton but he is in the right country just wrong province.
Yeah, people need to let go of the idea that hockey is one superstar away from being mainstream in the US. If Gretzky and Lemieux couldn’t make the average American care about hockey, it’s not happening. Better for a star to play in a city that actually cares.
They are close to winning a Cup and it could certainly happen this year. Shoot, if they didn't run into the absolute buzzsaw that was the 2022 Colorado Avalanche they could've won it last year too.
The minute he hoists that trophy, Connor McDavis will become much more of a household name here in the states, because he won't just be a Stanley Cup champion. He'll be the guy that brought Canada its first Stanley Cup in 30 years.
People will know his name in the states. He will be a legend in Canada, and in Edmonton...well....he might as well be God himself.
..he might as well be God himself.
Well his nickname is Connor McJesus, in part because he was heralded as the second coming of The Great One.
Unfortunately, he's never going to win a Cup in Edmonton.
This is correct. I hadn’t watched too much of McDavid until last year’s playoffs. I was amazed at how dominant he is when he’s on the ice. So creative and a physical player. I think his personality combined with his location hurts his popularity. Best player in the world in my opinion.
This was Detroit's best season since they last made the playoffs in 2016. Progress is happening. But without a generational superstar it takes longer.
I would disagree the yzerplan doesn't look promising. He was left with a smoking crater and I think has done a great job. The team is still really thin because Tyler wright was terrible and Kenny kept the streak alive far past time, but Stevie seems to be hitting on his drafting and flips assets for picks.
April 12th, 2023 at 10:10 PM ^
McDavid was absolutely labeled the “next phenom”.
Agreed. His OHL games were on NHL network when he was 17. Anyone who paid attention knew McDavid was a generational talent, even more than Matthews in 2016 or Bedard now.
"if only the wings had a superstar they'd be so fun to watch"
players like McDavid come around only once a generation.
I'd argue that Seider is a superstar (just not at a glamour position) and Raymond certainly is on that path. He's just now starting his prime and he only has 2 full seasons under his belt.
Ehh, I disagree on both points. Defensemen can be superstars - I don't think I need to go down the long, long, long list of current and former defensemen who are superstars. I think Seider is a very good defensemen and will grow into an even better one, but he has a ways to go before he's in the same conversation of guys like Karlsson, Hughes, Makar, etc.
Raymond, I'm very hopeful for, but I think he needs to get stronger as well. A little bit of a sophomore slump, but I think there were a lot of moving pieces around the team this year.
Hockey analysts definitely viewed McDavid as an elite talent from a young age. He was given exceptional player status to allow him to play Junior hockey at the age of 15. Anybody that didn't view him as a generational talent just wasn't paying attention.
One game more
Another day, another destiny
This never-ending road to Calgary...
April 12th, 2023 at 10:43 PM ^
Fucking brilliant reference SD!
Thank you kindly.
Easier to score goals nowadays with no prohibition of 2-line passes, less tolerated interference, etc. So it's hard to compare eras, just like most sports.
I was aware of him as of 5-6 yrs ago, he was drafted first overall, won MVP in 2016/7. Pretty heralded if you ask me.
It's easier to score goals now than 20 years ago, yes, but not compared to the mid-70s through early 90s. The NHL goals-per-game average can be found here.
For example,
This season: 3.18
Twenty years ago: 2.65
Forty years ago: 3.86
Goalies are a lot better too though. They started restricting the size of the equipment so now they just use bigger goalies. A lot of times there isn't much to shoot at but goal-scorers still find a way.
I was watching some highlights a month ago and there was a great camera angle behind the shooter. He was off to the right side of the net, outside the dot, about a 30 degree angle with the goal line. The goalie had good position, nothing really to shoot at but maybe a 3" hole over the goalie's left shoulder. The shooter sniped it right in that little hole.
Yes, he's a pro making millions of dollars but from the perspective of an old guy playing pickup twice a week, it was amazing. I've seen a few goals recently shot from the side, along the goal line, off the goalie's neck or the side of his helmet.
Like all sports, the skill keeps evolving and players keep getting better.
I’ve always wondered what is preventing a team from just plopping a 700lb dude in front of the goal and calling it a day.
Probably the fact that any human that large would be bedridden, in need of assistance.
Even in college the talent level is crazy. Just last weekend I saw a game where a team scored 2 goals from behind the net and one more on a snipe from all the way out at the half boards, over the shoulder of a 6'-6" goalie. I couldn't believe what I was watching.
It’s actually not easier to score goals in this era. Goalies are much better than they were say 20 years ago. The players today though just keep improving. The skill and speed of todays game is just crazy. Things that McDavid and even Ovie are just crazy
He's on his way to being the GOAT. What an unreal talent. The speed at which he does everything is just mind blowing. NHL.com had a pretty cool video of all 60 goals when he hit that milestone a few weeks ago and it was highly entertaining. My favorite one being in OT when he burned the goalie but hit the post on a breakaway, got the puck back ten seconds later and toasted the goalie with the same exact move and buried it top shelf. He makes the other greatest players in the world look like beer leaguers at times.
As a Wings fan I've had very little high end talent to watch ever since Datsyuk was traded to the Yotes, so I find myself watching every Oilers game I can. He just makes me happy and fills the void that the Wings just can't fill.
He's not even in the same discussion at Gretzky and Lemieux. Mario had more points in 60 games one season than McDavid is going to get in 82 this year.
I mean, when you adjust for era, he's pretty close.
EDIT: Or maybe not, depending on how you adjust for era. Couple approaches in this thread vary with respect to how close it brings McDavid.
April 13th, 2023 at 12:31 PM ^
There's a triumvirate when it comes to hockey GOAT: Gretzky, Howe and Orr. Super Mario is in a very small group just behind... McDavid could absolutely join that tier one day. However, all the stats won't matter if McDavid doesn't win a few cups and Conn Smythes.
If you look at the last player (Lemieux) to have a statistical season like McDavid, the seasons themselves are eerily similar.
- Lemieux 162 pts (in 11 less games), McDavid 152 pts
- 2nd place: Linemate Jagr 12 pts back, Teammate Draisaitl 27 pts back
- '95/96 - 12 players with 100+ pts, '22/23 - currently 11 players with 100+ pts
'95/96 was the last (or 2nd to last) year before the dead puck era was in full effect with most teams soon utilizing some form of the NJ neutral zone trap or a leftwing lock system. The game has so many more skilled and faster players than back then. Yes, they could get away with more clutching and holding, but today those big defensemen and wingers with cinderblock feet who were mere pylons for Lemieux no longer can make the NHL.
Clearly McDavid's production this season puts him rarefied air... especially when considering the differences in eras. One other point... Lemieux's linemmates during that '95/96 season: Jagr and Ron Francis... McDavid gets some icetime with Draisaitl, but for most of the season his 5v5 playing time has been with some combo of Nugent-Hopkins/Kane/Hyman... i.e. not exactly Francis and Jagr.
He gets very little press. I couldn't pick him out of lineup.
He might as well be Mike Trout in the US.
Imagine cheering for a team that has not just one, but two generational talents at the same time and you have absolutely nothing to show for it.
I'm sure Trout has some kind of emotional connection to the area at this point, not sure why else he would've stuck around for such an underperforming team, but he's probably only got a few years left where he's in his prime. By the time he's a free agent, he'll be pushing 38 and almost certainly be a guy who can't contribute anywhere close to what he can do now.
At what point does he sit there and say "I've accomplished everything except getting a ring, and if I really want to get one, its probably not going to happen here"?
I'm sure the Angels would only take a king's ransom for him if the subject of a trade ever came up, but if he really wants a championship before he hangs it all up, that may end up being what he has to do. Otherwise, his only other option would be to wait out the next eight seasons and sign with a contender as a guy who, like Peyton in his final season in Denver, was just along for the ride.
The thought of Trout in a Yankees uniform makes me feel ill.