[OT] Retiring Moose's #

As an Isles fan I had a deep hatred for Mark... But to quote Vince Vaughn at the end of 'Anchorman,' "I hate you, but dammit do I respect you."

Messier's a class act, always has been.

Not that I care all that much, but Age *did* go to the trouble of creating an offtopic forum just for this kind of stuff.

Kyle

I disagree that hockey, just because it's pro, is off-topic enough to be in a different forum.

But then reasonable people can disagree, and I suppose that's why the new poll is there.

Beeeej

An [OT] tag is fine for this.

Even as an Isles fan, I never hated Messier -- that Edmonton team was a pleasure to watch. It was funny to hear him on Mike and the Mad Dog yesterday, gently letting down the hosts that his time with the Rangers was somehow the definitive experience of his career. Nice gesture to retire his number, but he'll always be an Oiler and Gretz' teammate -- the rest is just a footnote.

Agreed. Hockey is appropriate enough to simply be [OT} flagged. Other Cornell sports probably are as well. It's topics that have nothing to do with either "Cornell" or "hockey" that don't belong. All IMNSHO.

KeithK
Agreed. Hockey is appropriate enough to simply be [OT} flagged. Other Cornell sports probably are as well. It's topics that have nothing to do with either "Cornell" or "hockey" that don't belong. All IMNSHO.

That's how I would draw the line also.

My instinct was to think that "Moose" referred to Mike Mussina. I was less than shocked that Steinbrenner both had him killed and honored him. Then I stopped thinking.

I consider myself slapped.

FWIW, I've been a huge fan of Messier's since I started watching the Rangers back in high school. Didn't see him during his heyday with the Oilers, but I recall thinking he was pretty awesome nonetheless. The point of this is simply to demonstrate that I'm an equal opportunity crank.

Cheers,
Kyle

Trotsky
An [OT] tag is fine for this.

Even as an Isles fan, I never hated Messier -- that Edmonton team was a pleasure to watch. It was funny to hear him on Mike and the Mad Dog yesterday, gently letting down the hosts that his time with the Rangers was somehow the definitive experience of his career. Nice gesture to retire his number, but he'll always be an Oiler and Gretz' teammate -- the rest is just a footnote.

I'm hardly one to disrespect the Great One, but for what it's worth, Messier won two Cups on teams without Gretzky; Gretzky won none on teams without Messier.

For what it's worth, in the tribute video that aired before Messier's retirement ceremony, he refers to Rangers fans as the "Garden Faithful". Shout out?

His ten years in New York were hardly a "footnote" either in his hockey career or in his life.

He has talked about this many times, including during the Wed press conference and last night in the ceremonies.

Specifically for example, he said that his years in New York forever changed his life and those of his family members. Sounds like a lot more than a footnote.

Hockey-wise, he has often said that coming to NY to try to win a Cup was his "greatest challenge" in his pro career.

It may not have "defined" him as a player but it certainly cemented his stature as a leader. Again, far from a footnote.

Everyone conveniently glosses over his defection to Vancouver. Maybe if NY had changed his life a wee bit more he wouldn't have chased a bit more cash elsewhere. I felt like they really went all-out for last night's ceremony. It was significantly more extravagant that what they did for Richter, who was not only the best goalie ever to play for NYR, but a carreer Blueshirt. I guess loyalty isn't that important to them. For the record, I feel the same way about Leetch.

CowbellGuy
Everyone conveniently glosses over his defection to Vancouver. Maybe if NY had changed his life a wee bit more he wouldn't have chased a bit more cash elsewhere. I felt like they really went all-out for last night's ceremony. It was significantly more extravagant that what they did for Richter, who was not only the best goalie ever to play for NYR, but a carreer Blueshirt. I guess loyalty isn't that important to them. For the record, I feel the same way about Leetch.

You feel the same way about Leetch as you do about Richter? Or about Messier?

I feel the same way about Leetch as I do about Messier. Significantly tarnished their image with me by chasing $ elsewhere.

Not glossing over anything.

You're conveniently overlooking, perhaps, that Smith bungled the negotiations with the Messiers and didn't even return their calls while they were in Hilton Head, SC.

Smith admitted this later.

It wasn't that Mess chased the cash at all. More like Vancouver chased him when they sensed there was a chance that Smith wasn't going to sign him.

As for Leetch, Sather TRADED him. Leetch never wanted to leave.

I wonder if Sather willswallow his pride and pursue getting Leetch back this year. The Bruins are going nowhere and Leetch can help their mediocre powerplay.