I live in Pittsburgh, and have had the great fortune to have watched Mario Lemieux play entire professional career here. I've seen many all-time great players over the years, but no one will EVER be a greater hockey player than Mario Lemieux. He is a once-in-a -lifetime player. Even in his retirement, and ownership of the Penguins, he continues to be a great ambassador for the great game of hockey. He's been the greatest ever.
they forget my fav, when he does that toe drag around the defenceman then brings it to his backhand and tucks it behind the goalie Mario Lemieux is the greatest player to ever play hockey. He is the type of player that could be great in any era of hockey. If Lemieux were in his prime right now he would by far lead the league. Half those passes he makes I wouldn't even see coming. It is my personal opinion that had he stayed healthy he would be the all-time leader in goals.
Again, I must say that I will never belittle the kind of player that Gretzky was, he was truly amazing. My only point is I wish we could have seen what Mario was truly capable of. A lot of notable players, coaches and sports writers wonder the same thing as well, so it's not just the fans.
what a sweet list. I love that they included the goal during the olympics scored by joe sakic that mario let through his legs, that takes such tremendous skill and discipline. Definetly his top 10 plays. Might have liked to see the goal he scored on his first nhl shift. Overall a great selection of plays by one of the greatest players the league will ever see.
About Lemieux: "In my mind the most talented player I've ever seen. If it were not for health problems, God only knows what his numbers would have been." - Bobby Orr (I guess it says it all).
I was 12 rows up from the blue line on the #7 goal. I've been a Mario Lemieux fan ever since my buddy took me to that game back in 88. He was a fluke of nature. Bar none, he was the greatest hockey player of them all.
I never saw legends like Bobby Orr or Gordie Howe, Gretsky was the emperor of assists and a world class scorer, Brett Hull could score even without the puck, but for me Mario Lemieux will always be number one. He was complete and probably one of the most valuable players of a team in NHL´s history
I'm not even a hockey fan, nor have I ever watched an entire hockey game but some of these goals are pure class. I was just playing NHL '98 on my old Saturn and I wanted to see how good Mario was in real life. This guy was a beast.
Lemieux was simply the greatest player of ANY sport to ever play!! He was so exciting every time he touched the puck that you just rose out of your seat to see what he would do. He's the most exciting player to every play in ANY sport without a doubt and no hockey player ever comes close to making the moves he did!
Lemieux's gifts and charachter are so manifest and pure that he constantly transcends the general nature of that objective. While it easy despite there gifts to have a dislike casual or not to harbour a dislike for the likes of alex rodriguez or barry bonds or the aforementioned jordan even at times someone as beloved as Ali or Gretzky. This never gets in the way of the pure joy, intelligence and skill of Mario's constant ingeniuety. Vive Le Magnifique ! :)
if you've ever known somebody whose undergone chemotherapy it makes Mario so much more amazing. On the day of Marios last chemotherapy session he traveled to philadelphia, played 23:17 of 60:00 minutes, scored 1 goal & had 1 assist. Thats the stuff of legend add the back problems that would debilitate most people and you understand why he will always be SUPER MARIO.
Number 2 was a heck of a gamble...you have a wide open player on the right and you play vs Russia and if you miss the whole country will hate you for this play...but with all this pressure he takes the shot and scores one of the most important goal in canada's history !!!! Wow Mario t'es le meilleur !!
The most beautiful goal in Canada history (yeah, Anderson's goal in 1972 against USSR is something, but never as amazing as the one from Lemieux that night in 1987... still gives me chills).
@ChachaChapati there's no denying Gretzky's enormous talent, but as a Pens fan--and seeing his size and agility--my favorite and the best of all time is Mario.
Super Mario deserves to be among the best hockey players of all time. He was a bright light thourghout his career. I really hope he will find a place in the Hockey hall of fame, he is just that good.
Gretzky was also thrust into a playoff caliber team. Lemieux was playing for a team at the bottom of the league. I don't know if it was so much he wasn't working hard, but he wasn't as motivated by other players and coaches to work as hard. You are correct though, playing with someone like Gretzky did motivate him to do better than what he was, and that is a very good thing. He did however still win the Calder his 1st year and the Pearson his 2nd and was only behing Gretzky in scoring that year.
Absolutely! When you see how far ahead Gretzky is in regards to (almost) every stat, it's simply incredible. Messier has 1887 career points, while Gretzky has 1963 career assists!! We will NEVER see another hockey player like him again. 163 assists in one season? 51 games point scoring streak? Never again. But I personally still couldn't tell you if Gretzky was indeed THE greatest. Some say if Maurice Richard played in the 80's, he would've scored 100 goals. Of course, THAT we'll never know. =)
I'm glad you enjoyed Pittsburgh and the Igloo, we will miss it after this next season. I've only ever been to Toronto and Niagra, but always enjoyed any time I spent in Canada so far. Hope to make it to Montreal and Vancouver in the near future, I've heard nothing but good things about those cities.
Amazing hands to go along with that great size. Incredible plays. Weird thing is his parents still live in the same little house in a poor area of Montreal.
The goal where he fooled Bourque... I keep watching it ... how did he do that? Bourque of all ppl... amazing. There was one where he blew by Leetch as well....
I was more of a 99 fan growing up, and didn't like that Lemieux could threaten some of 99's records. But as I grew older and wiser, I began to appreciated Lemieux for what he was, even when I'd watch him play against my Habs - which was never pleasant...! I can't tell you how many times my jaw would drop watching this guy do the things only he could do. Gotta love these "Top Ten" plays! =)
It's no coincidence that 4 of the goals were against the Bruins. The Lemieux's Penguins absolutely owned the Bruins. He looked like he wasn't even trying that hard. But there was nothing you could do to stop him. I remember a game against the Bruins: The Bruins were on the power play in OT. There was a bad pass in the B's offensive zone, and as soon as Lemieux touched it, my heart sank because I knew the game was over. Sure enough, he splits the defense and score the short-handed game winner.
I happen to think the +/- rating is overvalued, but Orr throws my criticism right out the window. Check it out sometime. The first time I saw his career rating I thought it was a misprint. It's freaking OUTRAGEOUS. Way higher than chance could account for. What it all adds up to is - when Orr was on the ice, Boston scored goals and the opponent didn't.
# 3 = What's more amazing? The fact he made Ray Bourque of all people look like a minor-leaguer, or that he was able to roof it glove side from so close? I don't think I'll ever get tired of watching highlights of Lemieux and Gretzky. Incredible, those two...!
You know, I don't think anyone will break Gretzky's records, but this guy was playing at a whole new level. Had he stayed healthy (even though that didn't always keep him from racking up unreasonable stats)...I can only imagine.
I love this stat: 5 goals in different ways in one game (shorthanded, full strength, powerplay, penalty shot, and empty net) (December 31, 1988 against the New Jersey Devils; only player to accomplish the feat)
So true. During his time in the league, the calls weren't as forthcoming as they are now. What would be recognized as headhunting now, was just " pressuring" the talented players back then.
I agree with Ottvalley. I've been involved with hockey for too long and have seen alot of greats come and go, but none of them have possessed talent like unto Lemiuex. He may not be the 'best' hockey player ever, as you would have to debate the valuable skills and talents needed to play the game and in what amounts a player should have them to be the best. But he was the most talented, and a sight to see.
Mario was to hockey what Michael Jordan was to Basketball incredible skill, finesse and smarts. Great vid. As a Canadian who remembers seeing that goal in the Canada Cup, i would make that the number one goal. The teamwork between Gretzky and Mario was amazing. They knew exactly what the other was going to do. Gretzkt knew Mario was going to score the moment he made that perfect pass. Sublime. But then, I am a little biased.
In his record 51 consecutive game point streak (Mario never did that), Wayne scored 153 pts, 3 pts/game. When the streak ended, he missed 6 games because he was playing with injuries for a long time. Wayne played a lot more than Mario and his pts/game avg is higher, that's incredible. And if Gretzky had retired after the trade to LA (after only 9 seasons), he would have almost as many pts than Lemieux for his whole career, wow.
The fact Lemieux had many aweful injuries keeps us from a good comparison. I have to say that comparing the time in which they played, Lemieux would still stand out in todays hockey.
the only reason Gretzky's PPG avg. is higher is because Mario came out of retirement and played through more injuries. When Mario retired the first time, he had the highest PPG avg. in league history.
Fun fact: Mark Messier (2nd highest point total of all time) only has 164 more points than Mario, despite playing in 841 more games. Mario is the only member of the top 35 point totals in NHL history to play in less than 1000 games, and he ranks 7th all time. Every player in front of him played a minimum of 433 more games. Mario was the only player who would play at 10% of his abilities, and be the best player on the ice while doing it.
If he got on a break away it was over. the most dominating hockey player ever and no one will ever come close in terms of overwhelming defense man and goalies. now gretzky is the greatest hockey player ever because of his ability to read plays and he had the greatest ice awareness ever, he was just always in the right place at the right time.
absolutely beautiful. Perhaps there is more grace and dare i say genius here then in any other athlete. Unlike jordan and many other great athletes whose skills are almost secondary to the tyranical bully like nature of the competitive drive. What we have with Mario is the sheer boundless overflowing of talent and conception. Sublime, subtle ... magical. While out of the will towards the objective of winning and at times dominance grace can be produced by the sheer singularity of the drive.
Nice video, but I just wanted to add something in regards to a few previous posts below. As far as Mike Bossy goes, let's face it: he was maybe the purest goal scorer the league ever saw after Maurice Richard, regardless of Gretzky's and Lemieux's stats, ok? Here's one for the road: according to some, Guy Lafleur was probably more exciting to watch than everybody mentioned above. Maybe more so than Bure, Crosby and Ovechkin! =) Thanks for posting the video! It's great to see # 66 flying!
Every one of these goals is an obstruction penalty (hooking/holding/interference). This is what made Lemieux so great. In today's game... He'd have 5 points a game.
If you read correctly, I said he didn't work very hard in his EARLY career. He learned a big lesson when he went to Canada Cup 87 and saw Gretzky practice hard, he then stole him the scoring title the next two years (Gretzky would've won the next year but he missed 16 games to injuries but, as you may know, it's part of the game...).
Check that - Pavel Bure scored the most Goals that season with 59. Sakic was the MVP. But by any measure that is incredible. Take 3 years off - and come back - and just like that, you are still the best player in the game. WoW!
The funniest part is on the game winning goal from the Canada cup second highlight from the last.. #8 was wide open and Gretzky never even thought of passing to him, Mario was getting it no matter what.
I totally agree with you. I'm a Gretzky fan myself, and I don't think Mario is any less great than what he actually was just because I like 99 better. They were both equally mind blowing, just as much as Bobby Orr or Lafleur were in their days, or Crosby and Ovechkin are today. Everybody can have their favourites, but it simply doesn't make the other players any worse. And boy are you right about you being blessed to have seen both 66 and 99, same with Jordan and Lebron James. =)
Somehow this guy reminds me about the early Steven Seagal! Huge self-confidence, heavy ass(haha), big body and skillfull as hell! He has that kind of heavyness in his presence that makes the guys around him look like kids!
They could have also chosen his 3rd goal in the 1990 all-star game (in Pittsburgh !) where he deked and fooled Al Iafrate, Ron Wilson and the goaler Mike Vernon in about 3 seconds. Pure magic.
The one and only for ever and ever... Robert Gordon Orr. I was born in 1980, so all I have to base myself on what Bobby did is my step-dad, some highlights, and a bunch of clips of old hockey players who either played with him or against him. And let me tell you, I wish I had a time machine to go back to 1970 so that I could see him play. Then I would make sure to check out Jimi Hendrix, Led Zep, Miles Davis, Frank Zappa and James Brown, but that's a whole other story... =)
damn...i can imagine what it would be like if 99 and 66 started their careers in todays era of hockey....they would be puttin up some ridiculous numbers thats for sure.
Having seen both of them in their prime, I would say that Gretzky had the luxury of playing on more better teams than Lemieux. Overall, I agree with the assessment that Lemieux & Orr were better players than Gretzky.
Mario the magnificent. I miss wathing him play. He'd have every scoring record if he wouldn't have had the health problems. Sid the Kid is pretty damn good too!
you might have thought that era was slow compared to today but Mario is more than fast enough to skate with todays players. He was the first big guy who had speed
i will say this goalie's of today are more disciplined. and much, much better then goalie's of year's ago. player's all around now day's are better. Mario was just ahead of his time, he had the style of players today cmon putting thru the leg's?!? that was unheard of back then. Im very happy i got to watch him growing up in the 90's.
My answer would be Lemieux because he was the most gifted natural power forward I've ever seen play the game. But my top choice would be Bobby Orr. He was so gifted and controlled the game so well that even the great Bobby Hull once said: ''Give us the puck and give Orr a puck to have fun with'', or something like that.
I live in Pittsburgh, and have had the great fortune to have watched Mario Lemieux play entire professional career here.
I've seen many all-time great players over the years, but no one will EVER be a greater hockey player than Mario Lemieux.
He is a once-in-a -lifetime player.
Even in his retirement, and ownership of the Penguins, he continues to be a great ambassador for the great game of hockey.
He's been the greatest ever.
#8 and 3 are simply a thing of beauty. how i miss watching mario, the 90s will always hold my greatest hockey memories.
they forget my fav, when he does that toe drag around the defenceman then brings it to his backhand and tucks it behind the goalie
Mario Lemieux is the greatest player to ever play hockey. He is the type of player that could be great in any era of hockey. If Lemieux were in his prime right now he would by far lead the league. Half those passes he makes I wouldn't even see coming. It is my personal opinion that had he stayed healthy he would be the all-time leader in goals.
Again, I must say that I will never belittle the kind of player that Gretzky was, he was truly amazing. My only point is I wish we could have seen what Mario was truly capable of. A lot of notable players, coaches and sports writers wonder the same thing as well, so it's not just the fans.
what a sweet list. I love that they included the goal during the olympics scored by joe sakic that mario let through his legs, that takes such tremendous skill and discipline. Definetly his top 10 plays. Might have liked to see the goal he scored on his first nhl shift. Overall a great selection of plays by one of the greatest players the league will ever see.
"The most complete player I've ever seen"
-Scotty Bowman (greatest coach of all time)
Enough said!
i watch this video at least once a week. it humbles me because i know i will never be as good at ANYTHING as this man was at hockey
this is the only top 10 video where i was simply STUNNED by ALL the goals
lemieux can do that to you.
About Lemieux: "In my mind the most talented player I've ever seen. If it were not for health problems, God only knows what his numbers would have been." - Bobby Orr (I guess it says it all).
The greatest in any sport I've ever seen. Legend!
I was 12 rows up from the blue line on the #7 goal. I've been a Mario Lemieux fan ever since my buddy took me to that game back in 88. He was a fluke of nature. Bar none, he was the greatest hockey player of them all.
a freak of nature,no fluke
I never saw legends like Bobby Orr or Gordie Howe, Gretsky was the emperor of assists and a world class scorer, Brett Hull could score even without the puck, but for me Mario Lemieux will always be number one. He was complete and probably one of the most valuable players of a team in NHL´s history
I'm not even a hockey fan, nor have I ever watched an entire hockey game but some of these goals are pure class. I was just playing NHL '98 on my old Saturn and I wanted to see how good Mario was in real life. This guy was a beast.
Definitely the #1 or 2 player ever. Happy I got to see him play multiple times in person. THANK MARIO!!!
Thanks for the stat check Catalinadee. This story always gives me goosebump. I mean super Mario was having some supernatural talent.
super mario is the best nickname in hockey ever. he was so awesome.
Lemieux was simply the greatest player of ANY sport to ever play!! He was so exciting every time he touched the puck that you just rose out of your seat to see what he would do. He's the most exciting player to every play in ANY sport without a doubt and no hockey player ever comes close to making the moves he did!
I think Mario Lemieux single-handedly invented the deke, the dangle, and the highlight reel goal, all at the same time.
That last play was a one on two break...... incredible!!!
"doesn't know whether to cry or wind his watch" i wish mike lange still did tv
Lemieux's gifts and charachter are so manifest and pure that he constantly transcends the general nature of that objective. While it easy despite there gifts to have a dislike casual or not to harbour a dislike for the likes of alex rodriguez or barry bonds or the aforementioned jordan even at times someone as beloved as Ali or Gretzky. This never gets in the way of the pure joy, intelligence and skill of Mario's constant ingeniuety. Vive Le Magnifique ! :)
if you've ever known somebody whose undergone chemotherapy it makes Mario so much more amazing. On the day of Marios last chemotherapy session he traveled to philadelphia, played 23:17 of 60:00 minutes, scored 1 goal & had 1 assist. Thats the stuff of legend add the back problems that would debilitate most people and you understand why he will always be SUPER MARIO.
Thanks for posting this - such great memories!
Number 2 was a heck of a gamble...you have a wide open player on the right and you play vs Russia and if you miss the whole country will hate you for this play...but with all this pressure he takes the shot and scores one of the most important goal in canada's history !!!! Wow Mario t'es le meilleur !!
The most beautiful goal in Canada history (yeah, Anderson's goal in 1972 against USSR is something, but never as amazing as the one from Lemieux that night in 1987... still gives me chills).
@ChachaChapati
there's no denying Gretzky's enormous talent, but as a Pens fan--and seeing his size and agility--my favorite and the best of all time is Mario.
Super Mario deserves to be among the best hockey players of all time. He was a bright light thourghout his career. I really hope he will find a place in the Hockey hall of fame, he is just that good.
He's insanely good. Great to see him assisted by Gretzky, too. I would not want to be the goalie facing Lemieux, damn!
No one is even close to this man, best player ever
What can we say. Hes just the BEST player of all time.
The best goal listed at number one was sick and to do it in the finals was unreal!
Gretzky was also thrust into a playoff caliber team. Lemieux was playing for a team at the bottom of the league. I don't know if it was so much he wasn't working hard, but he wasn't as motivated by other players and coaches to work as hard. You are correct though, playing with someone like Gretzky did motivate him to do better than what he was, and that is a very good thing. He did however still win the Calder his 1st year and the Pearson his 2nd and was only behing Gretzky in scoring that year.
Absolutely! When you see how far ahead Gretzky is in regards to (almost) every stat, it's simply incredible. Messier has 1887 career points, while Gretzky has 1963 career assists!! We will NEVER see another hockey player like him again. 163 assists in one season? 51 games point scoring streak? Never again. But I personally still couldn't tell you if Gretzky was indeed THE greatest. Some say if Maurice Richard played in the 80's, he would've scored 100 goals. Of course, THAT we'll never know. =)
I'm glad you enjoyed Pittsburgh and the Igloo, we will miss it after this next season. I've only ever been to Toronto and Niagra, but always enjoyed any time I spent in Canada so far. Hope to make it to Montreal and Vancouver in the near future, I've heard nothing but good things about those cities.
Amazing hands to go along with that great size. Incredible plays. Weird thing is his parents still live in the same little house in a poor area of Montreal.
The goal where he fooled Bourque... I keep watching it ... how did he do that? Bourque of all ppl... amazing. There was one where he blew by Leetch as well....
mario was the greatest goal scorer ever
OMFG that number 1 play was one of the sickest goals i'd ever seen.
The analyst does such a great job... 'Waiting for Bourque to make the move, which. of course. was the wrong move'.
I was more of a 99 fan growing up, and didn't like that Lemieux could threaten some of 99's records. But as I grew older and wiser, I began to appreciated Lemieux for what he was, even when I'd watch him play against my Habs - which was never pleasant...! I can't tell you how many times my jaw would drop watching this guy do the things only he could do. Gotta love these "Top Ten" plays! =)
It's no coincidence that 4 of the goals were against the Bruins. The Lemieux's Penguins absolutely owned the Bruins.
He looked like he wasn't even trying that hard. But there was nothing you could do to stop him.
I remember a game against the Bruins: The Bruins were on the power play in OT. There was a bad pass in the B's offensive zone, and as soon as Lemieux touched it, my heart sank because I knew the game was over. Sure enough, he splits the defense and score the short-handed game winner.
I happen to think the +/- rating is overvalued, but Orr throws my criticism right out the window. Check it out sometime. The first time I saw his career rating I thought it was a misprint. It's freaking OUTRAGEOUS. Way higher than chance could account for. What it all adds up to is - when Orr was on the ice, Boston scored goals and the opponent didn't.
# 3 =
What's more amazing? The fact he made Ray Bourque of all people look like a minor-leaguer, or that he was able to roof it glove side from so close?
I don't think I'll ever get tired of watching highlights of Lemieux and Gretzky. Incredible, those two...!
You know, I don't think anyone will break Gretzky's records, but this guy was playing at a whole new level. Had he stayed healthy (even though that didn't always keep him from racking up unreasonable stats)...I can only imagine.
Mario's the best!
Never saw #4 before - THANKS!~
I love this stat:
5 goals in different ways in one game (shorthanded, full strength, powerplay, penalty shot, and empty net) (December 31, 1988 against the New Jersey Devils; only player to accomplish the feat)
So true. During his time in the league, the calls weren't as forthcoming as they are now. What would be recognized as headhunting now, was just " pressuring" the talented players back then.
That one game in 1987, Canada vs le Sovietique, Lemieux and Gretzky on the same squad is poetry in motion.
Simply the greatest.
Bob Cole: "Have you ever seen such finesse?"
Hockey world: "No."
I saw the #2 goal live and it was amazing.
mario lemieux is the best hockey player that ever lived. theres way to many amazing things he did to have a top ten.
I agree with Ottvalley. I've been involved with hockey for too long and have seen alot of greats come and go, but none of them have possessed talent like unto Lemiuex. He may not be the 'best' hockey player ever, as you would have to debate the valuable skills and talents needed to play the game and in what amounts a player should have them to be the best. But he was the most talented, and a sight to see.
Best player ever...greetings from Sarajevo :w
Mario was to hockey what Michael Jordan was to Basketball incredible skill, finesse and smarts. Great vid. As a Canadian who remembers seeing that goal in the Canada Cup, i would make that the number one goal. The teamwork between Gretzky and Mario was amazing. They knew exactly what the other was going to do. Gretzkt knew Mario was going to score the moment he made that perfect pass. Sublime. But then, I am a little biased.
Number 1 is incredible. What an amazing player.
In his record 51 consecutive game point streak (Mario never did that), Wayne scored 153 pts, 3 pts/game. When the streak ended, he missed 6 games because he was playing with injuries for a long time.
Wayne played a lot more than Mario and his pts/game avg is higher, that's incredible. And if Gretzky had retired after the trade to LA (after only 9 seasons), he would have almost as many pts than Lemieux for his whole career, wow.
Lemieux and Jager has to be the best line in history. They was both so big, fast and tecnical
man had the moves, one of a kind.
Greatest to ever play the greatest game on earth which makes him of course the greatest!!!!
Wayne had the vision and the hockey sense, Lemieux had all the phyiscal gifts, and Bobby Orr had everything :-P
2:03 Gretzky to Lemieux the best set up man of all time to the best goal scorer of all time
The fact Lemieux had many aweful injuries keeps us from a good comparison. I have to say that comparing the time in which they played, Lemieux would still stand out in todays hockey.
That number 1 was probably the most beautiful goal in NHL history
My fav all-time goal.
the only reason Gretzky's PPG avg. is higher is because Mario came out of retirement and played through more injuries. When Mario retired the first time, he had the highest PPG avg. in league history.
Fun fact: Mark Messier (2nd highest point total of all time) only has 164 more points than Mario, despite playing in 841 more games.
Mario is the only member of the top 35 point totals in NHL history to play in less than 1000 games, and he ranks 7th all time. Every player in front of him played a minimum of 433 more games.
Mario was the only player who would play at 10% of his abilities, and be the best player on the ice while doing it.
1 word: BEAST!
If he got on a break away it was over. the most dominating hockey player ever and no one will ever come close in terms of overwhelming defense man and goalies. now gretzky is the greatest hockey player ever because of his ability to read plays and he had the greatest ice awareness ever, he was just always in the right place at the right time.
absolutely beautiful. Perhaps there is more grace and dare i say genius here then in any other athlete. Unlike jordan and many other great athletes whose skills are almost secondary to the tyranical bully like nature of the competitive drive. What we have with Mario is the sheer boundless overflowing of talent and conception. Sublime, subtle ... magical.
While out of the will towards the objective of winning and at times dominance grace can be produced by the sheer singularity of the drive.
Nice video, but I just wanted to add something in regards to a few previous posts below.
As far as Mike Bossy goes, let's face it: he was maybe the purest goal scorer the league ever saw after Maurice Richard, regardless of Gretzky's and Lemieux's stats, ok?
Here's one for the road: according to some, Guy Lafleur was probably more exciting to watch than everybody mentioned above. Maybe more so than Bure, Crosby and Ovechkin! =)
Thanks for posting the video! It's great to see # 66 flying!
Of course Oates just watched,he didnt want to miss one of the greatest goals in history.
Every one of these goals is an obstruction penalty (hooking/holding/interference). This is what made Lemieux so great. In today's game... He'd have 5 points a game.
If you read correctly, I said he didn't work very hard in his EARLY career. He learned a big lesson when he went to Canada Cup 87 and saw Gretzky practice hard, he then stole him the scoring title the next two years (Gretzky would've won the next year but he missed 16 games to injuries but, as you may know, it's part of the game...).
My favorite one was the between the legs. That was just sick.
Check that - Pavel Bure scored the most Goals that season with 59. Sakic was the MVP.
But by any measure that is incredible. Take 3 years off - and come back - and just like that, you are still the best player in the game. WoW!
The funniest part is on the game winning goal from the Canada cup second highlight from the last.. #8 was wide open and Gretzky never even thought of passing to him, Mario was getting it no matter what.
8 wasnt wide open, lemiex scored cause gretzky passed him the puck thats just the way it is and always has been just look up the stats
I think he had the greatest instincts and patience in the history of the game...greater than Gretzky.
Yeah 9 the best, calmly just strolls in but still can’t be stopped
The best ever no doubt, also one of the best athlete ever
I totally agree with you. I'm a Gretzky fan myself, and I don't think Mario is any less great than what he actually was just because I like 99 better. They were both equally mind blowing, just as much as Bobby Orr or Lafleur were in their days, or Crosby and Ovechkin are today. Everybody can have their favourites, but it simply doesn't make the other players any worse.
And boy are you right about you being blessed to have seen both 66 and 99, same with Jordan and Lebron James. =)
Somehow this guy reminds me about the early Steven Seagal! Huge self-confidence, heavy ass(haha), big body and skillfull as hell! He has that kind of heavyness in his presence that makes the guys around him look like kids!
They could have also chosen his 3rd goal in the 1990 all-star game (in Pittsburgh !) where he deked and fooled Al Iafrate, Ron Wilson and the goaler Mike Vernon in about 3 seconds. Pure magic.
The one and only for ever and ever... Robert Gordon Orr. I was born in 1980, so all I have to base myself on what Bobby did is my step-dad, some highlights, and a bunch of clips of old hockey players who either played with him or against him. And let me tell you, I wish I had a time machine to go back to 1970 so that I could see him play.
Then I would make sure to check out Jimi Hendrix, Led Zep, Miles Davis, Frank Zappa and James Brown, but that's a whole other story... =)
damn...i can imagine what it would be like if 99 and 66 started their careers in todays era of hockey....they would be puttin up some ridiculous numbers thats for sure.
Having seen both of them in their prime, I would say that Gretzky had the luxury of playing on more better teams than Lemieux. Overall, I agree with the assessment that Lemieux & Orr were better players than Gretzky.
Number 6: Doesn't even touch the puck and it is still brilliant. I remember that like it was yesterday!
Mario the magnificent. I miss wathing him play. He'd have every scoring record if he wouldn't have had the health problems.
Sid the Kid is pretty damn good too!
Have you ever seen such finesse?
Purely Effortless Natural Beauty
Mario Lemieux never seemed to try, it was he got the puck, and you always felt he was gonna score
you might have thought that era was slow compared to today but Mario is more than fast enough to skate with todays players. He was the first big guy who had speed
#9 such a sweet goal
Mario Lemieux is the greatest! Hands down!
i will say this goalie's of today are more disciplined. and much, much better then goalie's of year's ago. player's all around now day's are better. Mario was just ahead of his time, he had the style of players today cmon putting thru the leg's?!? that was unheard of back then. Im very happy i got to watch him growing up in the 90's.
Best player to ever lace them up.
Yeah wow he made Bourque look like a minor leaguer.. my heart always jumps with pride when I see his highlights.. amazing.
wow I thought I was the only one, I don't feel so alone anymore.
My answer would be Lemieux because he was the most gifted natural power forward I've ever seen play the game. But my top choice would be Bobby Orr. He was so gifted and controlled the game so well that even the great Bobby Hull once said: ''Give us the puck and give Orr a puck to have fun with'', or something like that.
i remember being little and being mesmerized by him
Simply the best...