Yzerman was more versatile, Sakic remained a better pure scorer later in his career, but to decide who was the “best player” of the two?  That’s a tough one.  Both were great, great players and captains.

And it kills me to complement an Av/Dique like that, but Sakic is one of the hardest players to dislike.  I think you could ask any Red Wing or Dive fan and no matter what, they respected the hell out of number 19 on the other side.

What’s interesting to me is that I think Sakic and Yzerman will always be mentioned in the same breath, as opposing captains in the most heated rivalry in the NHL in decades, as players wearing the same number, and as players following similar career paths (i.e. offensive guys who added defense to their game to win).

Posted by Incognetis from Exile in Alabama on 07/08/09 at 04:07 PM ET

Silly debate - it’s like asking whether fudge brownies are better with milk chocolate chips, dark chocolate chunks, or mint chocolate chips.  They’re FUDGE BROWNIES! By definition they are awesome no matter what slight details differ.

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 07/08/09 at 04:07 PM ET

Agree with Baroque.  Ask which is your more preferred skater and you’ve got easy answers on both sides.  But, ask who was better and you’ve got yourself a a quagmire that no amount of statistical analysis will pull you out of.

Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 07/08/09 at 04:14 PM ET

And anyone who doesn’t like fudge brownies is a dirty commie.  Or evil.  Whatever.  Or just substitute your own favorite desert in the analogy. 

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 07/08/09 at 04:16 PM ET

here is a nice little article i just found on sakic and stevie:

http://www.examiner.com/x-2141-Colorado-Avalanche-Examiner~y2009m7d7-Tribute-to-two-grand-men-of-the-NHL

we are pretty luck to have been able to see these two guys play. something tells me, dany heatley wont get a write-up like this when he hangs em up

Posted by mike from austin on 07/08/09 at 04:16 PM ET

Amazing, Paul and all you Dead Wings fans are in serious need, some might say obsessed, for some kind of recognition/affirmation?  Enjoy the sun, get out of the house, it’s the summer.

Posted by Pens Fan in DC on 07/08/09 at 04:21 PM ET

Posted by mike from austin on 07/08/09 at 05:16 PM ET

Nice find, thanks for sharing.

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 07/08/09 at 04:25 PM ET

my lasting memories of Stevie Y are not statistical, they are not of him holding the cup in the air, they are not big overtime playoff goals, and they are not of a young kid scoring incredibly skillful goals by the dozen.

they are of the WARRIOR that couldn’t get up off the ice without using his stick as a crutch… that is what separates the two in my mind. while i have infinite respect for sakic as a player and a captain, i’ve never seen anything quite resembling the inner-warrior of Stevie Y from any other hockey player ever.

Posted by perfection on 07/08/09 at 04:27 PM ET

Pens Fan in DC, I can’t speak for Dead Wings fans, but do wonder why you have been all over KK today?

Posted by Paul from Motown Area on 07/08/09 at 04:27 PM ET

Geez, give them one little championship and all of a sudden everything that’s not centered around the Penguins is a hint that somebody needs to get out of the house more (ironic)

Here’s a lesson for you, Troll.  I don’t speak for all Wings fans here, but I’d like to think that my thoughts on this are pretty common.  Joe Sakic’s retirement means the world to Avalanche fans, it’s the end of an era for them.  Second only to Avs fans, Joe Sakic’s retirement means the the world to Red Wings fans.  Your Penguins don’t have a rivalry with anybody that looks anything like what Detroit and Colorado went through.  Throughout all the years of mudslinging, one thing remained constant.  Avs fans’ respect for Steve Yzerman and Wings fans’ respect for Joe Sakic.  Thinking about Joe Sakic hanging up the skates closes the door on a chapter of history that’s very personal to every fan of both teams.  This isn’t about Red Wings fans (in fact, the article linked was written by an Avalanche fan who’s found himself at odds with tons of Wings fans over the years).  We Wings fans are just paying respects to Sakic’s career.  He’s a great leader and an all around class act.  Sakic and Yzerman are the gold standard for leadership against which your boy Crosby is going to be measured at the end of his playing days.  He’s got a long way to go before he measures up.

Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 07/08/09 at 04:33 PM ET

I don’t think it’s a silly debate.  They are both so evenly matched ,that’s what makes it a great debate. You can match certain aspects of each’s career then compare and contrast. That’s what I like about sports . Now a silly debate would be who’s better Steve Yzerman or Brian Lawton. Everybody knows it’s Lawton. Easy , just kidding Hockeytown. Also,one thought I always had was they were 2 players in a chain of players(sort of links) I always liked. I kind of thought of it as “The Chain Of Nineteens”. Great 2-way centers who led their team to the Stanley Cup. First was Trottier, second was Yzerman and third was Sakic. The fourth I thought was going to be Joe Thornton in Boston but he was traded and can’t get by the 2nd round with San Jose in the playoffs. Then, I thought maybe Brad Richards in Tampa Bay,especially after his ‘04 S.C. Playoffs. But he hasn’t mantain an elite level of play. So maybe the chain is out of links.

Posted by Lindas1st on 07/08/09 at 04:36 PM ET

I like Steve better than Sakic, but respect those guys all the way.

Posted by Guilherme from Brasil on 07/08/09 at 04:47 PM ET

both are great. comparing them is stupid.
if i picked one based on pure skill, id take Sakic.
dude could probably put up 80+ points this year if he wanted to play.

Posted by Death Metal Nightmare from MKE on 07/08/09 at 05:16 PM ET

Really, who cares.  They’re both very gracious and talented (in their own ways) Captains.  I think it all depends on your exposure to either one of those guys.

For me, since I grew up with Yzerman on my screen in Detroit and wearing his name and number on my back, of course, I’m going to defer to Yzerman before Sakic.  But Sakic has earned my respects for playing the game the right way as much as Yzerman has:  with classiness rarely emulated by today’s athletes in ANY sport.

Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 07/08/09 at 05:55 PM ET

I’m sure Yzerman would say that Sakic was better and Sakic would say that Yzerman was better.  That’s what matters.

Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 07/08/09 at 06:02 PM ET

’m sure Yzerman would say that Sakic was better and Sakic would say that Yzerman was better.  That’s what matters.

Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 07/08/09 at 07:02 PM ET

That came out of my nose because it’s true.

Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 07/08/09 at 06:07 PM ET

So maybe the chain is out of links.

Doesn’t Toews wear nineteen in Chicago?

Of course, we’ll all have to wait 10-15 years, but don’t rule it out just yet.

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 07/08/09 at 06:21 PM ET

Doesn’t Toews wear nineteen in Chicago?

Baroque, Great point about Toews. He definitly could be. I just thought their should be 1 or 2 links between Sakic and Toews.

Posted by Lindas1st on 07/08/09 at 06:32 PM ET

Yzerman.

Only because Yzerman would have definitely won Harts (as in plural) if not for the misfortune to play at the same time as Gretzky AND Lemieux.  If even one of those two hadn’t been around, Yzerman still would have won a couple probably.  And I don’t think Sakic’s name ever really came into consideration for a Hart Trophy.

Otherwise I simply don’t see much difference between the two.

Posted by Primis on 07/08/09 at 06:43 PM ET

I think the difference between the two is not in their stats but how they went about playing the game. Yzerman played the game with greater outwardly emotion than Joe. Yzerman played hockey like Jordan or Bird played basketball or like Tiger plays golf. You could see the Yzerman’s intensity level, his determination level and his sheer will to win attitude was amazing. Now I didn’t follow the Avs, but I don’t think Joe was known for showing all that. He was more quiet, more modest in his playing style. Now that doesn’t necessarily make Yzerman a better player than Joe, that is just the difference I see.

Posted by UMFan from Colorado on 07/08/09 at 07:24 PM ET

Really, who cares. 

Posted by SYF from Las Vegas, NV on 07/08/09 at 06:55 PM ET

Exactly. These debates are pointless. As hockey fans we have been blessed to see players like this, and instead of enjoying it, we sit here and fight over who’s better.

All these players are amazing and we should be glad that we get players like this to watch instead of the TO’s and Shaq’s of other sports.

Posted by Kstewy16 on 07/08/09 at 07:59 PM ET

Primis, Sakic won the Hart Trophy in 2000-01.

Posted by Lindas1st on 07/08/09 at 08:19 PM ET

All these players are amazing and we should be glad that we get players like this to watch instead of the TO’s and Shaq’s of other sports.

Posted by Kstewy16 on 07/08/09 at 08:59 PM ET

Not to mention the inimitable Chad Ochocinco.

//rolls eyes right out of my sockets

Posted by Baroque from Michigan on 07/08/09 at 08:45 PM ET

I’m sure Yzerman would say that Sakic was better and Sakic would say that Yzerman was better.  That’s what matters.

No, seriously. I can’t debate this simply because Stevie was The Captain and Sakic was an ideal that any hockey player should look up to. They were unbelievable players that we were fortunate to see in their primes, battling and leading their teams to Championships. Chain of 19s indeed.

I’ve repeated this story before, but I am still amazed by it: simply, Sakic wore 91 so Stevie could wear 19 while Captaining Canada. That was an amazing demonstration of mutual respect because, as JJ pointed out, I’m sure they had a discussion about their numbers.

Posted by Osrt on 07/08/09 at 10:08 PM ET

I’m sure Yzerman would say that Sakic was better and Sakic would say that Yzerman was better.  That’s what matters.

Posted by J.J. from Kansas on 07/08/09 at 07:02 PM ET

Bingo.

Posted by Puckhead from Jersey, you dolts! on 07/08/09 at 10:18 PM ET

I’m sure Yzerman would say that Sakic was better and Sakic would say that Yzerman was better.  That’s what matters.

There’s no need to say who’s better.  They were both great.  And still are.

Here here.

Posted by Hippy Dave from San Francisco by way of Detroit on 07/09/09 at 02:16 AM ET

I don’t think I could pick one who I thought was better. Both players put amazing numbers and we’re some of the best hockey players to ever play the game.

I was hoping Joe would give it one more round.

Posted by Performance Parts on 07/09/09 at 07:32 AM ET