When the trophy was initiated way back in the 50's,
it was awarded to the best defenseman, who was supposed to
be the BEST DEFENSIVE non-goaltending player.
Since offensive defensemen like Orr and Potvin emerged and
won the trophy, it changed the whole meaning of the trophy.
Granted, Orr and Potvin were excellent defensive players too,
but Coffey?
Coffey fans may ask whether there is
a better way to play defense by controlling the
puck in the other team's zone. But that's not the point,
playing defense is to stop the other team from scoring
when the puck is in your zone. Coffey may be responsible
for keeping the puck in the other zone 80% of the time, but
in the other 20%, he doesn't excel.
He may be good during the Stanley Cup finals,
but not a consistently great defensive player during the
regular season. As a matter of fact, the run and gun Oilers do
not need one.
In football and basketball, there are DEFENSIVE player of the
year awards, as well as all-defensive team selections,
why not in hockey? You can't tell me the Selke Trophy winner
is the best defensive player. I hate to see the defensive
excellence of Mark Howe and Rod Langley go unrewarded.
I consider Coffey, with his offensive skills,
is just a forward playing out of position.
--
Eddy Lor
...!(ihnp4,ucbvax)!ucla-cs!lor
l...@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU
Computer Science Department, UCLA