whcanuck Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I wanted to get your guys' thoughts on what made Luc Robitaille and Ron Francis such great players for such a long time. I chose those guys because they couldn't skate like Bure, shoot like Hull or stickhandle like Lemieux, but they still piled up the points and Robitaille has tons of KIngs records and Francis has a pair of rings with the Pens and is like 3rd in all-time NHL scoring. Don't get me wrong, they had a lot of ability, but they weren't incrediblly gifted in any one area. My opinion is that they played the game smart. Robitaille knew where to be and when to be there to score and Francis is one of the all-time best in terms of hockey sense. What do you guys think made them hall of famers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lychees Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Lucky Luc had a heck of a shot, Francis I don't remember too much of but he was a shifty player IIRC, he wasn't speedy but in a clutch-and-grab era he was able to elude defenseman. I think my memory of Francis is dented by the Stevens hit, since that's all that comes to mind when I think of him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Heffy Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Yeah. Actually the twins would be the best modern comparison. Luc = Daniel, but more of a pure sniper and less passing ability Francis = Hank but better defensively. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erkayloomeh Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 You could put Mike Bossy in there as well. Luc had an inate ability to cruise around the slot and as long as you could get the puck to him he had a grat enough shot to bad as goal on most occasions. He would have been perfect for the sedins. Brett Hull, Can you imagine him with the twins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amish Rake Fighter Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Francis was one of the best 2 way centers of his era, he could play in any situation against anybody and be successful, he even played the point on the powerplay. He spent his career either in obscurity with Hartford/Carolina or in the shadow of Lemieux/ Jagr with Pittsburgh but he was instrumental in the Pens winning their first 2 Stanley Cups. Like someone mentioned above Robitaille was like a left handed Brett Hull, the opposing team always knew when he was on the ice but he still got open and scored....and scored...and scored, also a pretty decent playmaker and deadly on the powerplay. He wasn't noted for his defensive game (or his skating) but he was a good penalty killer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Heffy Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Francis was one of the best 2 way centers of his era, he could play in any situation against anybody and be successful, he even played the point on the powerplay. He spent his career either in obscurity with Hartford/Carolina or in the shadow of Lemieux/ Jagr with Pittsburgh but he was instrumental in the Pens winning their first 2 Stanley Cups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alchemy Time Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Francis and Robitaille spent a lot of time with Lemieux and Gretzky respectively. Not to say that they weren't great and couldn't produce by themselves(which they both proved), but like Kurri and Jagr, it almost definitely boosted their stats a bunch. They were mainly successful because they were shifty. They knew how to escape from tight spots with ease, and they were hard workers. They also were both great playmakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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