October 1st, 1997 was the date of an 18 year old Patrick Marleau's NHL Debut. Since then, he's registered 1,196 points (as of this writing) over 23 years in professional hockey. Not quite as many as Gordie Howe put up during his career, but still pretty impressive never the less. At 41 years old, Marleau can still play and is still productive, with 8 points in 44 games this season. Yes, the scoring production has gone down, but he's still able top step foot on the ice and take a regular sift every night he throws on a sweater.
It was almost tough to imagine anybody taking down this record. Jaromir Jagr could have done it, having not spent so much time during his prime years playing over in the KHL. Mario might have come close, had he not had injuries and health scares to worry about. Joe Thornton got drafted and started in the NHL the same year as Marleau, but has played in a thousand less games because of injuries.
Marleau wasn't the point producer that Howe was, and wasn't quite the same physical presence that Gordie was. What he was, and still is, is a steady hand. He's been productive in every year, scoring 20 or more goals in a full season in all but seven of his twenty three years in this league. He been a steady hand in the Sharks lineup for years, coming up with the key play when its needed. He may have been outshined by flashier players in the Sharks lineup like Thornton, Owen Nolan, Joe Pavelski, and Jonathan Cheechoo. Marleau has always been there being a steady hand and bieng healthy for most of his career. Sure he made a pit stop for a couple of years in Toronto and a cup of coffee last season in Pittsburgh, but there's really only one place to be for Patrick, and that's San Jose.
Congratulations for Patrick Marleau on braeking Gordie's games played record!
No comments:
Post a Comment