Quote:
Originally Posted by Strange Brew
This is a weird argument. Again I’ll ask, how many elite centers have there been in NHL history by your count?
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It isn't about NHL history. It's about the players in the league at any given time. If you're not in the top third of #1 centres at a particular time, you'll have a hard time convincing me that you're elite at that position. In a 21-team league, I wouldn't consider more than 7 players (if that) elite at any one position, and Gilmour and Nieuwendyk simply weren't that high up the list.
Remember when people were saying that you're not really a #1 C unless you would be #1 on a playoff team, and therefore there are no more than 16 #1s in the league? I don't subscribe to that view, but I do think the bar for ‘elite #1 C’ is a lot higher than for just ‘#1 C’.