Tournament of Champions: #1 2002 Red Wings vs #4 1998 Red Wings

The 02 team was the pinnacle of championship buying. We had Hasek, hungry to finally get that ring. We had Brett Hull looking for one last hoorah. Chelios looking to get his first since the Canadiens won #24 in ’93. Federov looking to prove he could still anchor a team (glad that worked out for the Ducks). Bowman looking to go out on top. Larionov, Shanahan, Yzerman, etc. looking for another. The list goes on and on and on. That team had 8 or 9 sure fire hall of famers on it with another 3-4 possibles. In modern hockey, there has never been another team like it.

The ’98 team was a younger version, sure. The biggest difference was having Hasek and not Ozzy, though. And I think the Wings have proven time and time again that wise and mature players will trump younger players 9 times out of 10. I mean… look at what a difference maker McCarty was in 2002. Past his prime but better than he ever was.

Not only that, but 2002 was about the time people truly started to see that players felt it was an honor to play for the Wings. There was prestige involved, something the 98 and 97 teams didn’t really have. The 02 Wings knew they were the best team in the league, but not in a cocky way. They knew that they were the best and that they were meant to show the next generation the right way to play hockey (watch the way Datsyuk plays and you’ll see how some of Hull rubbed off on him, for example).

Long story short: 2002 Wings in a landslide.

On the stat sheet the ’02 blows the ’98 team away. But in a 7-game series, the drive that the ’98 team had to win it for Vlad tips the scales. That ’98 team was not going to be stopped by anything.

The ’02 team was certainly more talented, but the ’98 squad was mentally tough and driven by a mission bigger than winning that cup for a handful of guys who wanted one.

I think that the ’02 squad wins any one game against the ’98ers, but over the course of a seven-gamer, the tougher squad frustrates the future hall-of-famers and edges out a tough victory.

I think I would give them the slight edge in 6 or 7 games

That ‘98 team had the ultimate emotional reason to win, but let’s not kid ourselves and say that the ‘02 team was just a team of automatons out there with no feeling. That was a team that had a number of extremely motivated individuals, including the X factor that makes the ’02 team better: Dominik Hasek. Let’s also not forget the emotional response to seeing Steve Yzerman playing on a destroyed knee and doing all the things he did in that playoff (including carrying them past Vancouver in the first round) as a kick in the ass to the rest of that 2002 team.

I think it would be close, but I think the 2002 team wins in a 7 game series because Hasek steals 2 games.

Trading home ice accordingly. The “home” team won every game in a thrilling 7 gamer.

Game 1: 2002 Wins 5-1
Game 2: 2002 Wins 3-0
Game 3: 1998 Wins 1-0
Game 4: 1998 Wins 4-2
Game 5: 2002 Wins 3-2
Game 6: 1998 Wins 5-4
Game 7: 2002 Wins 4-2, Fedorov netting the winning goal

I would pick pretty much the exact same. 2002 was a team constructed to win. If it couldn’t be decided in the games, I would ask for a Scotty vs. Scotty sumo match at center ice to determine the winner.

1st – because it was for Vladdy and Sergey – and nothing would have stopped that team from winning, not even 10 HOFers

2nd – because I was at Game 4, and saw them win, in Washington, and collect all the hardware.

1998 team – yes.
Kendal

were simply the most ridiculous hockey roster ever assembled. I remember watching Datsyuk (in what, his sophomore season?) and saying “That guy’s gonna be a star.” And he was probably the worst player on the ice at that time. Luc freaking Robitaille on the 4th line always cracks me up. And yes, 2002 Hasek > 1998 Ozzie. Still think Ozzie should make the HoF, but once the Dominator got out of Buffalo, there was no way he was not going to stonewall everyone.

Also, my favourite Wings game of all time is that WCF Game 7 against the Avs (and Game 6 is a perfect setup for it, since that was a shutout as well). Roy looked like he was about to blow a gasket, and I loved every second of it.

The emotional x-factors have to be a wash; Vladdy vs. one-legged Stevie Y + other guys looking for a ring. You can argue them all you want, but unless we or TPL can get Nick Lidstrom on the phone and ask him straight-up which was the greater motivator, you can’t definitively say which drove their respective teams harder.

2002 in 6.

WhatIfSports.com:

2008-09 Pittsburgh Penguins @ 2008-09 Detroit Red Wings (playoff-type):

Period 1

15:32 08-09 Red Wings Goal Jiri Hudler, asst: Valtteri Filppula, Brian Rafalski — Red Wings 1-0

Period 2

1:51 08-09 Penguins Goal: Sidney Crosby, asst: Ruslan Fedotenko, Bill Guerin — Game tied 1-1
3:50 08-09 Penguins 2 minute penalty on Kris Letang for unsportsmanlike conduct
9:54 08-09 Penguins Goal: Miroslav Satan, asst: Brooks Orpik, Sergei Gonchar — 08-09 Penguins 2-1
11:09 08-09 Penguins Goal: Chris Kunitz, asst: Petr Sykora, Rob Scuderi — 08-09 Penguins 3-1
15:52 08-09 Red Wings Goal: Kirk Maltby, asst: Nicklas Lidstrom, Pavel Datsyuk — 08-09 Red Wings 2-3
18:43 08-09 Red Wings 2 minute penalty on Kirk Maltby for interference with goaltender 08-09 Red Wings 2-3

Period 3

7:14 08-09 Penguins Goal: Miroslav Satan, asst: Jordan Staal — 08-09 Penguins 4-2
8:29 08-09 Red Wings Goal: Marian Hossa, asst: Pavel Datsyuk, Henrik Zetterberg — 08-09 Red Wings 3-4
8:40 08-09 Red Wings Goal: Marian Hossa, asst: Henrik Zetterberg — Game tied 4-4
12:59 08-09 Red Wings Goal: Johan Franzen, asst: Daniel Cleary — 08-09 Red Wings 5-4
17:14 08-09 Penguins 2 minute penalty on Brooks Orpik for cross check 08-09 Penguins 4-5

……………………………….PIT…………DET
FINAL SCORE………………. 4 ………….. 5
Shots On Goal………………53…………..46
Shooting %…………………..7.5…………10.9
Powerplay Scoring………….0/1………….0/2
Shorthanded Scoring………0/2………….0/1
Faceoffs Won……………….17/50………33/50
Time Of Possession……….29:44………30:16