C-Love Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 Näslund was selected 37th overall in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft. He was the second choice that year of the Montreal Canadiens. After three more years of playing hockey in Sweden, he joined the Canadiens for the 1982-83 NHL season. He was the first European-born player to play for Montreal. In his rookie season of 1982-83, Näslund recorded 71 points in 74 games, finishing third on the team in scoring behind Guy Lafleur and Ryan Walter. That year, he was recognized as the left winger on the NHL All-Rookie Team. His offensive abilities quickly endeared him to Montreal fans, and he was given the nickname of "Le Petit Viking" (The Little Viking), a reference to his Swedish citizenship and his diminutive stature. Näslund's best NHL season came in 1985-86. He recorded 43 goals and 67 assists for 110 points, the first Montreal player to top 100 points since Lafleur in 1979-80, and the last Canadien to reach 100 points as of March 18, 2006. His 67 assists were an NHL record for a left winger until Kevin Stevens of the Pittsburgh Penguins recorded 69 in 1991-92. Joe Juneau of the Boston Bruins subsequently recorded 70 assists in 1992-93. In the 1985-86 NHL playoffs, the speedy Näslund led all Montreal scorers with 19 points as the Habs won their 23rd Stanley Cup championship, their first since 1979. During his NHL career, Näslund was an infrequent visitor to the penalty box. Never logging more than 19 penalty minutes in any season during his career, his gentlemanly play was recognized when he was voted the winner of the 1988 Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, beating Wayne Gretzky in the voting. During the 1988 NHL All-Star Game, his five assists established a record, and he was instrumental in helping Mario Lemieux set the All-Star Game record with six points. After a sub-par 1989-90 season, Näslund left the Canadiens to return to Europe. He played one year in Switzerland, followed by three seasons in his native Sweden. He returned to the NHL to play for the Boston Bruins in the lockout shortened 1994-95 season. He left the NHL permanently after the season ended. Näslund ranks eleventh on the Canadiens all-time scoring list, with 612 points in 617 regular season games. He has played the same amount of years with the Habs as Dryden, and didn't have the team Dryden had, which is why we didn't have all the cups, however look at his performance in the all-star game with Lemieux, imagine what he would have done with another bonafide superstar on the team, which is the only reason why Steve Shutt put up the numbers he did, and I bet he will have his number retired some day. If you took Shutt off that line with Lafleur and put Naslund on it, his point production would have doubled. I think Naslund was a special player who played with a not so talented team for most of his career. I think that since he was the first European to play in Montreal it would be nice for him to be the first to have his number retired as well, not that I think it should be anytime soon, but in the next 15 years or so, I think they should look at him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 Just my opinion but I don't think Naslunds Jersey should be retired. I don't believe he was special enough. He never brought what Robinson, Lafleur, Plante, Gainey, Beliveau, the Richards, Cournoyer, Moore, Geoffrion, Savard, Morenz, Harvey or even Patrick Roy to the table. He was a very good player, but not a great player, and not for long enough. There are guys right now who have scored 600 career goals with a stanley cup and can't get into the Hall of Fame, so Mats Naslund 634 career points in 650 games shouldn't warrant his jersey being retired. Yes I consider Montreal retiring a jersey number just as great an honor as induction into the hall of fame. Naslund isn't in the hall nor should his jersey be retired. If you retire his you might as well retire Bobby Smith's and Stephane Richer's as well. No thanks But thats just my opinion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 (edited) i agree with you, kaos, that naslund probably doesn't deserve to get his jersey retired - but who has 600 goals and a cup and isnt going to the hall of fame? Shanahan, Yzerman and Robitaille are all going in when they are eligible IMHO... [EDIT]now if you meant 600 pts, i definitely agree with you... Edited December 13, 2006 by simonus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMMR Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 I love Naslund and when I was very little he was one of my favourites. But I would have to agree with Simonus and Kaos he just does not have the mistique that earns a number in the rafters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oleg Petrov Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 I loved Matt Snazzlund back in the day, but his point totals were from the high-flyin' eighties. If his career had taken place a decade later, I don't think he'd have topped more than 60 points in any season. But he was a great forward at a time when the Habs were all about defence and relying on Patrick Roy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huckleberry Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 i don't know about retiring his number. That honour should be taken VERY seriouslly. I do think he should get the nod for the Hall of Fame. When you consider some of the recent inductees, Naslund should fit into that criteria. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matsnaslundsuperfan Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 It would be cool to see his number in the rafters. His number has been abused in recent memory with the likes of Rucinsky and Dagenais. As much as I would like to see it there he may not have rubbed off on people as much as me when I was a kid. His number will be forever retired on my very own Canadiens jersey. Never to be substituted. :hlogo: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 i agree with you, kaos, that naslund probably doesn't deserve to get his jersey retired - but who has 600 goals and a cup and isnt going to the hall of fame? Shanahan, Yzerman and Robitaille are all going in when they are eligable IMHO... [EDIT]now if you meant 600 pts, i definitely agree with you... Actually now I'm not sure if Dino Ciccarelli played on Detroits Stanley Cup winner. But anyways he would be more deserving. Glenn Anderson scored 500 (or close to) and was an integral part of the Edmonton Oiler dynasty in the 80's. He would be more deserving Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kjell Dahlin Posted December 13, 2006 Share Posted December 13, 2006 Nasulnuts didn't have *beep* on me, if anyone's number gets retired it's going to be MINE...#20 1985-86 Montreal Canadiens NHL 77 32 39 71 4 16 2 3 5 4 1986-87 Montreal Canadiens NHL 41 12 8 20 0 8 2 4 6 0 1987-88 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 13 12 25 6 11 2 4 6 2 Keep it real Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quebecois Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I can think of a bunch of players off the top of my head that deserve to have their number retired ahead of Naslund. Sorry, but it ain't going to happen and i don't think it will even garner too much consideration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sbhatt Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I liked Naslund a lot, but he's in the category of all Canadiens 'star' players except Robinson and Patrick Roy that played from the 80's to present: very good maybe, but not great. Retirement of one's jersey is a big deal no matter where you play, but I think the standard is higher (and rightfully should be) in Montreal. When you look at the resumes of the guys who's jerseys are in the rafter, being a very good player isn't anywhere near good enough to warrant consideration. I think to have your number hoisted, you should have a healthy combination of the following behind your name: leadership, long tenure with the Habs, multiple Stanley Cups, and some very impressive stats to boot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mont Royale Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I liked Naslund a lot, but he's in the category of all Canadiens 'star' players except Robinson and Patrick Roy that played from the 80's to present: very good maybe, but not great. Retirement of one's jersey is a big deal no matter where you play, but I think the standard is higher (and rightfully should be) in Montreal. When you look at the resumes of the guys who's jerseys are in the rafter, being a very good player isn't anywhere near good enough to warrant consideration. I think to have your number hoisted, you should have a healthy combination of the following behind your name: leadership, long tenure with the Habs, multiple Stanley Cups, and some very impressive stats to boot. Agree completely. Retiring a number is a greater honour than a HHOF induction. There a quite a few ex-Habs in the Hall who are not swinging from the rafters (their jerseys, I mean). However, we should recognize ex-greats like Naslund by instituting a rule... let's call it 'the Dagenais convention', which would prevent players of Pierre's calibre from sullying the numbers of prominent former players. That should keep everyone happy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Polarice Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I think the Habs should start a wall of fame for players like Naslund, they were really good and have a special place in our hearts, but not good enough to be in the Hall or having their number retired. IMO these guys deserve some sorta recognition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Athlétique.Canadien Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I can think of a bunch of players off the top of my head that deserve to have their number retired ahead of Naslund. Sorry, but it ain't going to happen and i don't think it will even garner too much consideration. This is virtually what I intended to type. No point to that. Agreed. Others should precede Naslund. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnyhasbeen Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 ....and Lemaire and Shutt and Richer...... we can't retire them all, that is the difference between Hall of Fame and number retired. Extra special players only. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KoZed Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 Nasulnuts didn't have *beep* on me, if anyone's number gets retired it's going to be MINE...#20 1985-86 Montreal Canadiens NHL 77 32 39 71 4 16 2 3 5 4 1986-87 Montreal Canadiens NHL 41 12 8 20 0 8 2 4 6 0 1987-88 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 13 12 25 6 11 2 4 6 2 Keep it real Kjell! You were my fave player once... until you developped that super trick of looking in the boards' glass to see who was coming up behind you so you could get rid of the puck asap! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matsnaslundsuperfan Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 Nasulnuts didn't have *beep* on me, if anyone's number gets retired it's going to be MINE...#20 1985-86 Montreal Canadiens NHL 77 32 39 71 4 16 2 3 5 4 1986-87 Montreal Canadiens NHL 41 12 8 20 0 8 2 4 6 0 1987-88 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 13 12 25 6 11 2 4 6 2 Keep it real I've never read such KAKA in my life... quite funny though. Welcome to Habsworld. Looking forward to reading your perspective on things. You've got quite the start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I think the Habs should start a wall of fame for players like Naslund, they were really good and have a special place in our hearts, but not good enough to be in the Hall or having their number retired. IMO these guys deserve some sorta recognition. that feels too leafy to me.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
huzer Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 Naslund? Retired number? What? I liked good ol' 26, but no need to have his number retired. Are we going to retire Richer's number? If anyone's next, it's SuperStar Bellows. Hehe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pierre the Great Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 the only numbers I see going up soon are Saku's and Roy's but thats just me and my canadiens history is pretty weak at the moment. Need to read that one book everyone keeps telling me to read. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simonus Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 (edited) the only numbers I see going up soon are Saku's and Roy's but thats just me and my canadiens history is pretty weak at the moment. Need to read that one book everyone keeps telling me to read. those guys are really nowhere near the top of the list right now. Certainly not before Gainey, Robinson... Not before Shutt. Edited December 14, 2006 by simonus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bacchus Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 I've always found it unfair comparing players from 30-40 years ago to players 15 years ago. Different league, different game, different time. What, they had like 16 teams back then? Now there are about twice that. Also, the draft was way different and MTL was stacked. So, just because Saku was surrounded by NOBODIES, doesn't mean he hasn't left his imprint on MTL. A cup would be nice, but lets not compare him to the Dryden era where the MTL teams were basically the allstar team minus a few notables. But, here is hoping Saku does win a cup in MTL. He definitely deserves it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Chicoutimi Cucumber Posted December 14, 2006 Share Posted December 14, 2006 Only all-time greats should have their jersey retired by Montreal. This isn't Nashville. Roy is the last all-time great player to dress for us. Period. 'Really good' players like Koivu and Naslund? No way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shortcat1 Posted December 15, 2006 Share Posted December 15, 2006 i sympathize with matsnaslundsuperfan... he was certainly a player of impact during his time but, to retire his number... i don't know... i'll leave it to the ones in charge (the mtl brass) to decide on that one. GO :hlogo: GO! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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