Gretzky and Lemieux square off in 1990 NHL All-Star Skills Competition

[@howamidriving27]

I miss Mario. In all these skills competition videos he doesn't even look like he's trying and he's still on a different level than everyone.

[@johnrencheck2283]

If your a penguins fan who saw this every night most of his scoring and play was effortless its as if he knew he would score and not have to try as hard as others those one handed side goals were easy for him with an 8 or 9 foot reach

[@intellivisionmaster7999]

That was Mario, … looking casual! I saw him in Montreal around 1986 he looked half-effort skating faster than anyone - took a casual slap shot from inside the blue line (right in front of my seat) and scored off the crossbar and in the net beating Patrick Roy…. It was INSANE! And it was all done casually! Best player of all time!

[@amg863]

@@johnrencheck2283 I guess he was always cocky. My mom went to the same highschool he went to (after him) and his old teacher said he really didn't care about doing any work. He would just say "I don't need to because I'm going to play hockey" I'm paraphrasing a bit here. It's been decades since she told me the story. I was just a kid then but I still remember it.

[@GRChrzak]

What a glorious display of mullet.

[@conorwreckoner]

Where’s Jagr though?

[@GRChrzak]

@@conorwreckoner Kladno.

[@fvecc]

Mullitude

[@griv-jr12]

Lol

[@sillymonkey725]

Is the mullet inducted to the hockey HoF yet?

[@TampaTec]

Gretzky said himself Mario lemieux was a better goal scorer. Gretzky was great passer.

[@patientmental875]

Mario tied Gretzky with assists with 114 in 89 Gretzky's first year without the superstars & 70 of those went to Bernie Nicholls

[@maryk6192]

I agree with your comment BUT Gretzky was the greatest passer.... Ever. If Gretzky never scored a goal in the NHL he would still have retired as the time leading scorer on assists alone. Pretty crazy when you put it in that perspective.

[@tutubebitube5120]

just imagine the 2 of us playing in the same line line-u... wait ... canada cup ! :)

[@JAYJason6666]

@@patientmental875 ....and Mario scored 85 goals to Wayne's 54 that year....It was also 99's last 50 goal season

[@patientmental875]

@@JAYJason6666 Gretzky never put up better numbers than Lemieux after he left Edmonton unless Lemieux was out due to injury!

[@bigsteed007]

Mario did the Forsberg before Forsberg!!

[@Losrandir]

Yeah. I guess the thing is, Mario did everything so you can't really name anything specific after him.

[@mpuchar5003]

More like Forsberg did the Mario

[@Excalibur2112]

Peter Foreskin

[@phillytheflyerable]

more like mario did a nilsson- kent nilsson did that in 1989, in an actual game not in a skill competition

[@LorentzHallMusic]

Kent Nilsson did it before Forsberg and he played during the same time as Gretzky and Mario.

[@tylerdowd]

Mario was so good jeez

[@yannicnoah4948]

better than Gretzky..

[@NS-ie2ld]

@yannicnoah4948 Nobody was better than Gretzky. Lemieux was number 2. I saw both play in their prime.

[@MarcoFerrari179]

This is awesome...so many legends!

[@vengezize2708]

Lemieux figured out the one-handed tuck a long time ago

[@keithfloydjr4014]

Yep some of the young folk around that see moves today have to remember Lemieux invented most of em!

[@1bls]

@@keithfloydjr4014 100% he was innovative, big, smart, and talented.

[@jeremyrowe8224]

@@1bls I think its hard to understate how important his size/reach is. All the skilled players of today have a MUCH shorter reach at 5'10 to 6'2. It's almost unfair to be that much bigger

[@zTeaTheCoffee]

@@keithfloydjr4014 Tbf Lemieux didn't invent this one, Kenta Nilsson did it a year before in the world championships and he learnt it from Ulf Sterner in the swedish leagues

[@v4v819]

Cy Denneny was doing that in the late teens of the early 20th century... Nothing new, over the ice, my young friend...

[@vengezize2708]

NHL keep it up I love to watch the old greats 👍😁🏒

[@mikesablarry]

The 2 greatest players of all time...

[@MachoWrestling101]

Hasek and Orr ….jk but I like those two the best for innovative both we’re

[@AlaborJinta]

gretz and doug smail

[@musick777]

Lemieux on a breakaway isn't fair.

[@sammyweed4771]

I know he’s a center…. Cherry-pick much

[@1bls]

Simple state holds completely true

[@dl3988]

Lifelong Gretzky fan since I was 10, but I have to admit the most intimidating sight in NHL history is still Lemieux bearing down on the goalie 1 vs 1. Simply unstoppable.

[@jibberjabberr]

Mario. Best player I’ve ever seen. Messier and Yzerman were also amazing to watch.

[@raydouglas3549]

Two legends

[@stevesampson9693]

This had me smiling big😁😁 thank you for posting it !😎👍👍

[@111highgh]

The Magnificent One.

[@SverigeiSverige]

Didn't Show Turgeon goal...

[@MaliceInWonderlandx1]

Couldn’t take their eyes off of Mario’s flow

[@Losrandir]

@@MaliceInWonderlandx1 Sooo mesmerizing impossible to turn the camera away

[@GeorgeWashingtonX]

nice nostalgia..

[@lucaspodolsky7982]

Lemieux is the goat

[@coreywilliams6390]

Hands down!!

[@94champs]

I have Gretzky, Howe and Orr ahead of Lemieux. I rank Lemieux 4th best ever.

[@1bls]

All you know how to do is speak the truth!!!!

[@1bls]

@@94champsyour tripping, the great one might be first, but Mario is easily #2. Gordie Howe, not even close

[@LuisGabrielPhotography]

It should have been illegal to have the size, reach and skills that Mario had...GOAT!

[@TampaTec]

4:20 🐐 this is why he's the goat .

[@kidpoker9408]

99 1723 points in 9 seasons thats why he isnt

[@calbrown7439]

Both of them are really good

[@EAchank]

This era had the most talented players

[@charlesfrey660]

Awesome, I remember watching that.

[@emmanuelowino9626]

Wow Mario was very agile and quick for such a big guy

[@fouronetwo813]

0:37 Nathan MacKinnon is a time traveler

[@bgduqc6876]

FourOne Two lol is it chelios?

[@mikescorpio13]

@@bgduqc6876 Shayne Corson probably on coke

[@MichaelVeillette]

@@bgduqc6876 Non, c'est Shayne Corson. 😊

[@MichaelVeillette]

Shaythan MacCorson

[@mpuchar5003]

Lemieux made it look easy.

[@shoeboxbistro]

The Marlboro reds logo on the jumbotron...oof.

[@conorwreckoner]

Nice

[@kevinarmstrong751]

If Mario stayed healthy he might have topped Gretzky's records

[@RF-vg5kv]

I read a stat that said mario missed 761 total games in his carer due to injury /sickness/retirement . He averaged 1.8 points per game in his career, I think it definitely would have been alot closer if lemieux didn't miss so many games. It's possible he could have overtaken in total points. It's one of those What ifs we will never know.

[@edmourgagnon1504]

If Peter Stasny had arrived 8 years earlier... he would have beaten them both...

[@iwannaseenow1]

@@edmourgagnon1504 if the GREAT russian players would have been allowed to play in their prime, i.e. fetisov, they would have dominated..along with gretz and mario.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

R F - Gretzky has a higher points per game average (1.92) than Lemieux (1.88) DESPITE playing in 7 more seasons past his prime. After 915 games (the same number Lemieux played), Gretzky’s PPG average was 2.4 which destroys Lemieux’s over the same number of games.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

micheal pratt - Canada Cup 1991, Gary Suter, anyone? That one almost ended his career with a herniated disc that immediately dropped him from a 160+ point player to a 120+ point player. (And I can give you many more examples with linked sources if you like.)

[@kanegorgeous3046]

Mario Lemeieux handles that🏒with such elegance.

[@That90sShow]

Another win for Mario over Wayne

[@94champs]

LOL Wayne crushed Lemieux every time they went head to head. Get your facts straight.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Gretzky outscored Lemieux in head to head games with his assists alone, and also in goals as well.

[@adrianthomas5104]

That Gretzky may be a gem.

[@mpuchar5003]

The NHL should retire the number 66. Maybe because I was born in the 80's, but to me Gretzky and Lemieux will always be in a class of their own.

[@johnrencheck2283]

They are and will always be besides lemieux scored 5 ways in a game even short handed power play empty net and penalty shot....i gaurantee it will never occur in a game ever and thats lemieux!

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Gretzky outscored Lemieux in career head to head games with his assists alone, and also in goals as well.

[@donriley6732]

Check out games played , if Lemieux was healthy there would be no debate.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

@@donriley6732 - I am talking about head to head games, as I said. They played exactly the same number of games against each other.

[@unkutcorleone7499]

Lemieux was the most dominant player ever

[@kidpoker9408]

hmm 66 1723 points in career 99 1723 points in less than 9 seasons thats dominance

[@lildebty9347]

@@kidpoker9408 Did gretzky have to take a break from his prime because of cancer, and back problems? No. That's what I thought..... bozo

[@northernassassin6056]

Gretzky best career, Lemieux best player in a single game. If it's us against the aliens you pick Lemieux.

[@jeremyrowe8224]

Certainly if its 1990s style hockey

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Gretzky outscored Lemieux in the 1987 Canada Cup in the same number of games, and also outscored him in head-to-head games with his assists alone (and this despite outscoring Lemieux in goals as well in head to head games). Lemieux has a 1.88 PPG average in 915 games vs Gretzky who had 2.33 PPG after the same 915 games.

[@tomislavgrozdanic]

@@michaelgriffiths8068Lemieux was 40 at game 915, how old was Gretzky at his 915th game. When both of them played from 1984-1997, Gretzky’s PPG was 1.95, Lemieux’s 2.02.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

@@tomislavgrozdanic- Gretzky played about 600 games after age 31, whereas Lemieux only played 170 games after age 31. Of course Gretzky’s PPG average suffered way more than Lemieux’s as a result of those extra 400 post-prime games that Gretzky had to play. The fact that Gretzky still somehow finished with a higher PPG than Lemieux is insane in this context. Lemieux should have blown him out of the water.

[@thekingspeedjackson]

Gretzky had whey more icetime in the Canada Cup and only like 4 points more then Lemieux.@@michaelgriffiths8068

[@ericoutofsight]

Kevin Lowe kept up with Phil Housley. Wow!

[@Losrandir]

Good job Lowe!

[@elijahrobinson2362]

Lowe got blown away Housley in the sprint, and he wasn’t even pushing hard while Lowe was going all out 🤣

[@SluggerStark]

Edmonton guy here, who grew up watching the glory day Oilers as a kid. Lowe was a good defensive d-man, but was not in the same league as guys like Housley when it came to the offensive game. Housley was silky smooth and also had a sneaky good shot. I remember him and Hawerchuk standing out with the Jets.

[@Losrandir]

I'm surprised Lowe did that well, he wasn't far behind. As Slugger said, they're different types. Oh, and a really good skater is just as fast if not faster without doing so many strides, he just lets it slide so well.

[@sergsokol846]

Mario was fantastic player as and Wayne. This was in other life

[@JuiceThe511]

on the first challenge, Gretzky was only weaving his body, he wasn't taking the puck around the cones with him. That's how he was able to catch up.

[@alexei27pensg5]

Noticed this back in 1990 when it originally aired....on the NBC telecast, it showed only the Lemieux vs Gretzky part of the relay. I recorded the game (still have it on DVD - over 20 futture Hall of Famers in this game! I was 11 and watched Gretzky cheat and not get called out for it. Didn't want to make himself look bad, I guess... Cheating will get you nowhere Wayne....now bow down to the true GOAT, Mr. Lemieux.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

alexei27pens g - actually they said at the time there was no rule against not taking the puck around the cone. And without a rule, there is no cheating. Just another example of a genius move by Gretz that no one else thought about.

[@alexei27pensg5]

@@michaelgriffiths8068 it's still cheating.

[@alexei27pensg5]

@@michaelgriffiths8068 it's still cheating.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

alexei27pens g - He found the cheat code. Genius as usual.

[@1bls]

We have been talking about who is better for decades. Probably will never be solved. I just know that they are 1 and 2 as far as the all time best. We all have our opinion, but no doubt they are 1 and 2.

[@mafiacaptin9918]

Can u imagine what would happne if the played together in their primes in the same team. I legit think each would have 200 points and shatter any goals an point record held by a team

[@1bls]

@@mafiacaptin9918 oh man, a dream of dream team. Would probably have like ten straight championships.

[@mafiacaptin9918]

@@1bls do u think they would hit a 100 goals each I definitely think so

[@1bls]

@@mafiacaptin9918 heck ya they would. And each would likely have 100 assists

[@kextrz]

You forget about Orr and Howe.

[@christamurray6799]

I was at this game it was awsome

[@lealach2927]

Mario at home. The last time Pittsburgh hosted this.

[@tomboston9669]

Gretzky was the greatest passer who ever lived. But Mario wasn't very far behind. Mario was the most skilled player who ever lived. But Gretzky wasn't far behind. But Bobby Orr had a MUCH MUCH better plus/minus per game than either of them.

[@kidpoker9408]

how was wayne less skilled where he demolishes anyone in all stats

[@tomboston9669]

@@kidpoker9408 Like I said, Gretzky wasn't far behind at all, and nobody else was close to either of them in the skills department. But Mario was simply other-worldly at times. Had he stayed healthy he would have challenged many of Gretzky's records. Gretzky played with a few all stars at all stages of his career. Mario played with a bunch of fire hydrants for his first few years. But both players made everyone around them better. Gretzky had better vision, but Mario was close behind.

[@kidpoker9408]

@@tomboston9669 other worldy yea avg 199 over 6 seasons is other worldy his totals over 6 seasons is 500 points behind marios career total

[@kidpoker9408]

passing wise mario was very far behind

[@onthegrow8403]

Not hating but i deff think mario could have beat or tied gretzkys numbers without cancer and his injuries.

[@kidpoker9408]

waynes ppg per season prior to the suter hit was 178 over 12 seasons he avg less than 100 his last 8

[@Starry.0646]

Yes

[@zerosteel0123]

Gretzky was the best ever but as a Penguin fan still love Mario. The goat #2

[@ThirdEye3pic]

Its crazy how at this point, Gretzky had already won his final Cup and Mario was on his way to winning 2

[@yukondeighton8075]

wow Mario did the Forsberg 4 years before Forsberg!

[@robertchflynn]

and twice as good...

[@Mat-ss8uw]

Fantastic camera work. Cut out the Turgeon's two goals there at the end just so we can watch Lemieux casually skate around doing nothing.

[@joedecristoforo5434]

Bring back the old jets Jersey's!

[@LorentzHallMusic]

Two of the best ever behind the GOAT Peter 21 Forsberg. None of those two guys were close to being as complete as Forsberg. But they're still legends. I would rank Mario as the second best ever. Gretzky is sharing third together with Crosby, Orr and Howie.

[@fvecc]

Forsberg played in a defensive era so we have to factor that in. But calling him the goat may still be a stretch. The guy never scored more than 30 goals in a season. He only scored 885 points in his entire career. Gretzky has over three times that.

[@sammyweed4771]

It’s not Howie…. It’s Gordie Howe the best ever. He take these guys to school.

[@erikkarrier4533]

The Best players of all time? kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3eaaXxoYqd_gK8

[@patientmental875]

Forsberg isnt as close as complete as Crosby sorry

[@Conada1002]

Back when players actually competing and cared about putting on a good show for the fans

[@Taooflu]

Shayne Corson was there, how times have changed.

[@mrdan26261]

Lemieux to strong for gretzky...

[@sammyweed4771]

Gordie Howe too strong for both of them

[@realtan9026]

If Mario was healthy he would have Gretzky like numbers

[@iCoolaxe]

Mario would have hit 1000 goals if he stayed healthy.

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

iCoolaxe - If Gretzky had not had his back destroyed by Gary Suter in the 91 Canada Cup, he would’ve had a 1000 goals too. And if you took away the 94/95 lockout, along with no back injury, he definitely would have had well over 3000 regular season points as well...

[@RF-vg5kv]

I think it would have been alot closer if mario didn't miss as many games as he did, his career total was somewhere near 761 games missed.

[@kidpoker9408]

@@iCoolaxe no he wouldnt have your going to tell me he would score 40 goals per season in his late 30's keep dreaming gretzky had just under 700 goals his first 10 seasons mario less than 500

[@kidpoker9408]

@@RF-vg5kv yea but the 761 games missed would not account for past prime. which wayne had to deal with along with the suter hit which brought his production down almost 50 percent post 91 canada cup

[@Ukko_0]

Mario"super Mario"lemiux

[@gabos7892]

can they bring this skill back?

[@That90sShow]

VERNON THE PLUG

[@kozmeetorez]

Mario did the forsberg!!

[@frankmack9505]

Pure skill wise Mario is much better and bigger. However Gretzky was extremely skilled and prob understood and thought the game better then Mario. Both were amazing. Im glad i got to watch both in their prime. Mario was my all time favorite player too.

[@mikegualjr]

Guess no one said puck has to go around cone too haha

[@masternhl]

Классно было. По-настоящему

[@MineCraftDadnSon]

You'd have to be kareem Abdul to get that one lmao

[@domikodie9565]

0:42 Whalersss💚

[@TheExcuse9]

Here because of Tony Marinaro

[@toddandersen5742]

Some serious flo going on between gretzky and lemieux.... 🙃

[@Coach_Dustin_C]

Vernon looks tiny in that goal, now those guys have oversized pads and are 6'5

[@actlike5095]

Super Mario

[@mrktyb]

you can see that gretsky put in it a lot more energy than lemieux. at the very end, mario makes any effort to skate faster...

[@kidpoker9408]

ok google each players stats and go year by year and theres only one conlusion u can come up with even the goal scoring

[@jaymorris9952]

Lemieux took off way faster than Gretzky.. but then of course Gretzky had to cheat around the cones to beat him back

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Technically Gretzky didn’t cheat, as there was no rule against not taking the puck around the cone. The rule was just the skates. So once again, 99 outsmarts everyone…including Mario.

[@ded6072]

Lemieux namber one

[@tatisjrwho8664]

Hi

[@rosannarossi4472]

IF your taller and bigger way to easy. Gretzky smaller way better my choice as my greatest player ever. WAYNE GRETZKY.

[@publicusxray]

GRETZKY CHEATED!!! He didn't take the puck around the cone with him on a few of them!

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Actually there was no rule against that, so Gretzky was just being smarter than everyone else as usual.

[@publicusxray]

@@michaelgriffiths8068Wow. Big advantage, but if it was allowed, then good for him!

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Moo - yes, Mario had a head start on him, so Gretzky probably did it so he could catch up!

[@kidpoker9408]

66 10 100 point seasons 99 11 on assist alone.

[@adrianthomas5104]

was there a lot of cheating there?

[@_c3a3m_88]

Only thing Lemieux had on gretzky was goal scoring and size. And goal scoring wasn’t even by much.

[@patientmental875]

Mario tied Gretzky with assists with 114 in 89 Gretzky's first year without the superstars & 70 of those went to Bernie Nicholls

[@_c3a3m_88]

PatientMental I didn’t say Lemieux was bad at getting assists.

[@patientmental875]

@@_c3a3m_88 Right but Lemieux could pass just as good if not better

[@_c3a3m_88]

PatientMental that is definitely not true lol he was a great passer but not nearly as good as gretzky. Gretzky is hands down the best passer of all time. If he had no goals, his assists alone would still carry him to the top of the all time points list.

[@patientmental875]

@@_c3a3m_88 Whos the last guy whos name isnt Gretzky to record 100 assists in a season? Put Lemieux on that Oilers team & you would have seen a 100 goal 250 point season!

[@sanfordsson]

Gretzky owned Lemieux in the first event. Underrated skater. Not crazy fast, but so good moving with the puck.

[@SRangerMtl]

sanfordsson Yeah and Lemieux is 6'4" and weighed 230 lbs...

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

Gretzky owned Lemieux in pretty much every statistical respect, not just skating. Gretzky has 8 of the top 10 highest scoring seasons of all time (including the top 4). Points per game average, they always say. Well Gretzky has 10 of the top 15 highest PPG average seasons of all time (including the top 2). And don’t even get me started on the playoff domination - Lemieux doesn’t even come close.

[@JAYJason6666]

@@michaelgriffiths8068 Are you mad....? Mario was filling up arenas since he was 8 years old. At 14 he was already a household name in Quebec. By age 18 he had shattered pretty well every junior hockey league record known to man. At age 23 he beat out the greatest player ever by 31 points (all goals) to run away with his 2nd straight NHL scoring title .(Wayne btw was 27/28 yrs old at the time and in the prime of his career) . Often injured, 2 of Mario's run away scoring title wins he missed a 1/4 of the season each time.. At age 37 Mario was still dominating the NHL.....99 was the game's best player from 80-85, Mario from 1986-2003. Imagine Lemieux on those Oiler teams during that high scoring early-mid 80s era,, he would of had 100 goal/230 + point seasons every year . Once 99 left the Oil dynasty at age 27 and in the prime of his career, his points per game #s with L.A were much closer to Stevie Y's , then they were to Mario Lemieux's.

[@JAYJason6666]

@@michaelgriffiths8068 ....and how many times did 99 come even remotely close to a 70+ goal/ 200 point season once he left EDM in the prime of his career? How many 50 goal seasons did he have again the last 10 years of his career ? Not only didn't 99 ever have a 50 goal campaign from 1989-1999,, but he never even came remotely close to having one...

[@michaelgriffiths8068]

JAYJason6666 - you do realize that Gretzky annihilated Lemieux in 1986, right? (You state he was only the best player till 1985.) In 1986 he outscored Lemieux 215 points to 141 points (74 point difference). Gretz destroyed him with just his ASSISTS alone (163 assists is still 21 points more than 141 points, even if you take away every single one of Gretzky’s 52 goals). And has Mario ever led the NHL in scoring with his assists alone? Gretzky did that 4 times. Gretzky not only did that 4 times, but on one of those occasions (1986/87), he did something Mario wouldn’t have been able to do in his wildest imagination: He led the league in scoring with his assists alone while *simultaneously* leading the NHL in goals. Total madness. Let’s see Mario do that! Would never happen. By the way - interesting how you use Gretzky’s SEVENTH worst season (1988/89) to compare against Lemieux’s best ever season. Talk about cherry picking, old boy....

[@tutubebitube5120]

who's the f is doug smail

[@MMGJ10]

Firstish

[@kidpoker9408]

theres also a recency bias as waynes god like seasons were 35 years ago

[@RobertLidstroem]

Nice cheating by Gretzky at the cones, his puck isnt goibg around the cone 🤣

[@danielcotnoir8230]

Also also first

[@nbad6253]

Also also also first

[@yellowcoin6559]

First

[@kidpoker9408]

99 oilers 66 Pens games played 696 games played 915 goals 583 goals 690 assists 1086 assists 1033 points 1669 points 1723

[@michelseguin3661]

wow a man in trouble

[@kidpoker9408]

gretzky passed 1723 points in less than 9 seasons case closed

[@kidpoker9408]

mario would not have defeated father time as no one ever has until 2020 with sports medicine see lebron and brady. 99 had nearly 700 goals his first 10 seasons 284 his next 10 mario had just under 500 his first 10 seasons just over 200 his next 7 so 1000 goals yea not even close for mario unless he played until he was 50 plus giving someone 40 percent more goals than they actually scored is a bit of a exageration

[@crushit9576]

Could you do it any better? Nop... Still to this day no one can do it better.

[@chrispybacon1288]

Also also also also first