Quote:
Originally Posted by vilzeh
The athleticism this generation is so much better than it was back in the days, that's why you can't have HUGE gaps on players anymore, they are all professional athletes, nothing away from Gretzky though, but its like that in every sport these days.
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If Gretzky played in today's NHL, with the current conditioning and physical training that today's athletes have, he's still be head and shoulders above the rest of the pack.... Crosby included.
The guy saw the ice like nobody before or since. You'd swear he had 360 degree radar. He knew where everyone was, all the time, and the guy could float a pass, through sticks an skates, like it was on a cloud. The worst klutz in the NHL, if he was playing on Gretzky's line, could score 20 goals.
Also, because of his on-ice awareness, he was almost impossible to hit. Sure, once in a while someone would get a piece of him, but rarely did anyone get all of him.
Even at 38 years old (after playing for 20 years) he was still a better player than 99% of all the other pros.