Quote:
Originally Posted by Erick Estrada
Was Datsyuk that young? I remember the Flames and Oilers running all over him in 2004 and 2006 playoffs where he was a called out as being soft.
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Defensive play doesn't have much, if anything, to do with being tough. Year after year NHL players cited Niklas Lidstrom as the toughest opponent to play against. Less tough (and less skilled) European squads routinely beat Canadian teams in international hockey. And that's usually because they've gotten top-to-bottom buy-in from the whole roster to stick to the system and play as hard without the puck as with it.