Quote:
Originally Posted by Calgary4LIfe
From a Flames' alumni perspective, Gaudreau reminded me of Makarov the most.
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I had the honour of seeing Makarov's first NHL game – Flames 10, Detroit 7. (!) I remember one play especially:
Makarov is coming up the right wing boards, and a Wing (I forget who) lines him up to check him hard into the glass. Makarov, seeing the guy coming, lets go of the puck and puts on a little burst of speed. The Red Wing crashes into the boards and knocks himself silly. Then Makarov stops and reverses on a dime, skates back, picks up the puck and circles round to continue the play.
In effect, he evaded a check by making a drop pass to himself.
Gaudreau isn't that wily yet, but from what I saw of him in traffic against the Canucks, he's got the agility to make those kinds of moves. He looks like a pickpocket out there, which I expected. What I didn't expect is how effective he was without the puck. IIRC he had one takeaway on the forecheck, and it was a thing of beauty.
Because of Gaudreau, a lot of guys are going to be skating around with baffled looks on their faces next year, like a guy who can't find his car keys. 'Where's the puck? I know I had it with me when I came into the zone.'