@very-rusty saidYou guys are right, IMO, that Orr's output would increase in today's game because they did not protect the uber players back then and guys like Orr and Howe and others took a beating. That's what amazes me about Howe's longevity.
I once met him in person at a Halifax radio station. He was with one other person who didn't look to really be a body guard. He was really friendly, I shook hands with him, told him a was fan, but not a Boston Bruin fan....LOL....He just laughed about that and said, you're a fan which is great! He wasn't as big as I thought he might be, but looked pretty solid. If it wasn' ...[text shortened]... d biggest fan. He did give me an autographed photo though even though I wasn't a Bruin Fan 😉
-VR
But let's reverse it, could Gretzky have played for very long back in Orr's/Howe's days?
I sincerely doubt it! The most frail, weakest player in the NHL
@earl-of-trumps saidHowe was a tough guy, had to watch his elbows!!! He wasn't afraid to drop the gloves either. He played hard every game, was in excellent physical condition which helped is longevity in the NHL/WHL
You guys are right, IMO, that Orr's output would increase in today's game because they did not protect the uber players back then and guys like Orr and Howe and others took a beating. That's what amazes me about Howe's longevity.
But let's reverse it, could Gretzky have played for very long back in Orr's/Howe's days?
I sincerely doubt it! The most frail, weakest player in the NHL
I believe Gretzky could have played back in Orr's/Howe's day and did very well in any era. Even back in their time key players were protected, one of the reasons 3rd man in was made a 5 minute major penalty in later years.
Orr didn't want anyone to protect him, he wanted to fight his own battles or he could have been protected. That came right from Don Cherry who use to be his coach!!!
They didn't retire Gretzky's number from the NHL because he was a weak frail player, it was because he was simply the best to have played the game. No one will ever wear number 99 again! He beat pretty much every record in the NHL!!!
He was known as the "Great One"!
When someone else comes along who beats all his records then he will be the "Greatest One" and his number will most likely be retired from all of the NHL too. I don't believe I will live to see it happen though.
-VR
@Very-Rusty
This is good stuff! Rusty, I agree 100% that nobody will break Gretzky's records in our lifetime. He was a machine out there. But he was so much a liability on defense that he is not close to the +- record, set by Bobby Orr in the first year they instituted the system. Actually, in the top 4, 3 are defensemen. Orr at +124, Larry Robinson at +120, Gretzky at +100, and Dallas Smith (Orr's defense partner) at +98. Fascinating, huh?
So if you could take anyone (any era) to be on your team, 99% would jump on Gretzky because people love offense. But if you want the one player that will contribute to winning the most, it's Bobby Orr, man, sorry to tell you 🙂
Tell you another thing that Orr did that Gretzky would NEVER do,, kill penalties! And that did not figure into the +- system.
Bobby Orr,,,, 'Ta best!
PS: Funny story for ya. A buddy met Gretzky at a casino in Las Vegas. He went up to Gretzky and said something like, "Hi Wayne, I always wanted to meet the second best player of all time!". Gretzky smiled and said, "You're from Boston, aren't you" LOL love it
@earl-of-trumps saidGood argument one small issue with it.... Both Orr and Robinson (known as big bird) were defenceman it was their job....Getzky was a forward his job was to put the puck in the net which he did better than anyone else. I watched him play in the day, 3 or 4 goals in a game became routine for quite a few years. I think he should have retired some years before he did.
@Very-Rusty
This is good stuff! Rusty, I agree 100% that nobody will break Gretzky's records in our lifetime. He was a machine out there. But he was so much a liability on defense that he is not close to the +- record, set by Bobby Orr in the first year they instituted the system. Actually, in the top 4, 3 are defensemen. Orr at +124, Larry Robinson at +120, Gretzk ...[text shortened]... d best player of all time!". Gretzky smiled and said, "You're from Boston, aren't you" LOL love it
How many goals did Wayne Gretzky score in his career?
894
Gretzky set records in both regular season and post-season play, holding the record for most career regular season goals (894), assists (1,963), points (2,857) and hat-tricks (50).
No doubt Bobby Orr was the best rushing defenceman of all time....In my opinion Gretzky was and still is the best goals scorer and set up guy EVER....He had many assists also and would pass when he could have scored himself, which made him a great team player.
You must be a Bruin Fan also!!!! 😉
-VR
@earl-of-trumps saidSo that would make you bias to Boston which I can see!
@Very-Rusty
Oh, yes I am, Rusty 😏
Do you know what country Bobby Orr is from? 😉
-VR