[calgaryred]

Originally Posted by Jay Random

And when he did, according to an article I just read, Gretzky told him point-blank: ‘You're setting yourself up to fail.’







I forget who it was, but it was a fairly major pundit some years ago who said that the 1984 Oilers had six of the best players in the NHL and six of the worst players in the NHL. They were able to win because the worst players rarely saw the ice.



It's been said (the official stats don't go back that far) that Gretzky used to play as much as 30 minutes a night on a regular basis. You can't do that anymore; the game is so much faster that it would kill you. That makes depth more important.



Every team used to have a face-puncher on the fourth line, and most had two. The fans loved them, but most of them could hardly play. Coaches used to roll three lines unless the game was out of reach. In fact, until 1982, teams only dressed 17 skaters and there really was no such thing as a fourth line, just a couple of spare players in case of injuries or misconduct penalties. I believe the Flames' own Bob Johnson was one of the first coaches to use four lines regularly, and the media praised his teams for their amazing depth.



There is no bringing any of that back. It's bizarre watching the Oilers try.

The 80s Oilers has always been their blueprint for success, as soon as they got McDavid he was set up to play Gretzky minutes.