On Jonathan Toews, Steven Stamkos and the 2015 Stanley Cup Final

Monday was media day prior to the Stanley Cup final face off between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks.

Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman took the opportunity to compare Chicago's Jonathan Toews to himself as a player.

"The reality is that Jon is bigger, stronger ... better," Yzerman, the Lightning general manager, said Tuesday. "He just is. Tremendous all-around player, great person. ... He's bigger, stronger than me. I'm not sure I could even take him in a race either. He's probably faster. Just a better hockey player."

Now that is saying something. Yzerman is one of the game's all time greatest players. No one would dare compared a current player to Yzerman. So when Yzerman raises this point, it is all the more special.

The truth is Yzerman may very well be right. Toews career will need to be completed to fully evaluate, but Toews definitely is closing in on a legacy that could rank him so highly. As it stands now Toews is probably somewhere above the likes of Doug Gilmour and Dave Keon and closing in fast on Yzerman, Joe Sakic, Bryan Trottier and Bobby Clarke.

Winning a third Stanley Cup here in the next two weeks will put him that much closer. And Toews has a lot of time left. Another Stanley Cup, another Olympic medal, and a World Cup title are all real possibilities. The difference in eras may keep Toews career scoring totals a little lower than his aforementioned contemporaries, but, health willing, he should score well above 1000 points.

Yzerman's comments on Toews stole the headlines. He could have very well have taken the opportunity to praise his own superstar captain Steven Stamkos.

I'm viewing Tampa Bay from afar, but for me Stamkos' maturation this spring is amazing. He's gone from pretty boy scoring star to a much respected playoff warrior. He has been contributing to the Lightning's great success in many ways beyond scoring goals. His physical play, his play without the puck and his obvious passion and leadership, in addition to his scoring ability, have his team on the verge of winning the Stanley Cup.

Other than Chicago's Stanley Cup pedigree and experience, there really is not much to choose from between the Hawks and Bolts. Both teams feature very good goaltending. Chicago has a little more depth up front, but both teams boast top lines that are the envy of the league. Chicago's blue line is a little shorthanded, but they Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook are at a higher level. Perhaps the key for Tampa is can young stud dman Victor Hedman and Anton Stralman match their play? If so the Stanley Cup may just return Tampa Bay.

That being said, Chicago seems to be the consensus pick. I think the match up is a lot closer than some of my western cohorts are suggesting. But I too will pick Chicago to win the Stanley Cup.

Toews Has Finish, But No Finnish Flash

I was taking a look at the rookie scoring leaders today. There's a lot of exciting new players entering the league, none more so, in my opinion, than rookie goal scoring leader Jonathan Toews.

Here's the season's current rookie goal scoring derby, as of Jan 1st, 2008:

Player	Team	GP	G
Jonathan Toews	CHI	36	15
Patrick Kane	CHI	38	9
Peter Mueller	PHO	36	9
Devin Setoguchi	SJS	24	8
Nicklas Backstrom	WSH	40	7
Andrew Cogliano	EDM	40	7
David Perron	STL	25	7
Torrey Mitchell	SJS	39	7

I like Jonathan Toews a lot. I think there's a very good chance he'll be on Team Canada for the 2010 Olympics. He's got a laser of a shot, not unlike Joe Sakic. In fact, I see a lot of Sakic in young Toews.

Mr. Toews impressive rookie season is far from the best hockey has seen, however. That is more of a statement of how the game has changed in the last 15 years as opposed to about Toews himself. Toews is on pace for 33 goals in his inaugural campaign, or at least prior to today's news about a knee injury. As solid as 33 goals would be, it is hard to believe that 33 goals wouldn't even get him half way to the NHL rookie record.

It was 15 years ago now that Teemu Selanne tore apart the NHL rookie scoring record book. The seasoned 22 year old joined the Winnipeg Jets in 1992-93, and proceeded to obliterate Mike Bossy's record of 53 goals by a rookie. Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Brett Hull and Mark Messier couldn't topple that mark, but Selanne unthinkably bettered the mark by another 23 tallies. That's right: the rookie scored 76 goals in his debut.

Selanne was something else. He was the machine gun goal scorer and a skater so fast he was nicknamed the Finnish Flash. He would battle a lot of injuries over his career, but there have been few better goal scorers than this former kindergarten teacher.

Teemu Selanne is the most recent addition to Greatest Hockey Legends.com, complete with a nice YouTube tribute.

A lot of fans ask me why I don't include active players. I figure there's enough coverage on most of them, so I exploit the niche market of retired stars instead. Selanne still hasn't officially retired, and there is a chance he will return this season in time for another playoff run with the Anaheim Ducks. I'm betting he won't, but you never know. Teemu Selanne may just be the first active greatest hockey legend.