Tavares is better now, but Malkin was better at his prime.

Well said and I agree.

I am a big admirer of Tavares and I would put him ahead of most centers but Geno in his prime was a monster.

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if you could get engaged malkin every night hed still be better, id rather Tavares now

Tavares has a lot of trophies so I think its him


wait

Tavares now, Malkin career

I'm not even going to read this nonsense. Malkin by a country mile.

How high do you think Tavares deserves to be rated (out of 99) when he's at his best? Maybe 93?

@pharrow

What is your thought on this?

Malkin in a “down year” put up 72 points in 68 games. That’s a 1.06 ppg. Rounded up. This was a very unmotivated Malkin.

Tavares last year played with arguably the most talented players he ever has scored 88 points in 82 games. That’s 1.07ppg.

So an unmotivated Malkin was just as productive as Tavares playing with one of the best young wingers in the game.

Long story short. Malkin in his prime could compete with Crosby as the 2nd best player in the world. Cough cough Ovechkin is the best. (Jk I don’t want beef). Tavares prime vs Malkin prime I’m taking Malkin every time. It’s imo not even close. Right now? They are about even. Malkin is playing “average “ for Malkin and still as productive as Tavares. Imagine if he’s actually trying

Last thing.... Malkin is generational and will never get the respect he deserves. Swap kessel with Marner and last year Malkin gets 100 points. Impossible to prove but the guy is one of the most talented players in the nhl.


Also the islander advanced farther without him haha leafs lost in round 1.

he's reliable at both ends of the ice

You've never seen him back-check eh? Completely lackadaisical

Better comparison imo.

Do Stamkos first 4 years in the nhl vs Matthews. They are basically identical

There's not too much I can disagree on but I'm surprised that you Caps fans here view Geno so highly. I thought you would all say that Kuznetsov is better than Malkin (peak). I do think Tavares is a more complete player, but Malkin is a freak of nature. Give him Marner and he'd score 50 goals and 100 points in those 62 games.

Well, it's certainly gotten better over the years and one of the reasons why the Leafs were successful last season at even strength during their 7 game series against Boston.

16

Career Malkin has 657 take always 719 giveaways (-62 turnover ratio) but a +69

Tavares has 584 take aways 643 giveaways (-59 turnover ratio) but he’s a -23


I’d say they are both pretty average defensively. Malkin is just that cliche “lazy” player but they both have similar tk gv numbers. You could argue Malkin is better defensively



As a caps fan I hate Malkin but as a hockey fan I hate how he gets zero respect. He’s the penguins Backstrom. Penguins have 0 cups without him

JT is a better overall player. Malkin was never much for faceoffs, he's not the most defensively responsible player and never has been.

But Malkin is the guy who wins you games. Especially in his prime. He plays in ways still today that JT just can't.
He'll run you over on the way to the net and just drive the puck down your throat. It's why he ends up injured frequently.
It's why he's better at driving play.
He'll always be the better offensive option. It's why he works really well behind a guy like Crosby who can be put in the positions that allow Malkin to simply due what he does best while avoiding the things where he struggles aka faceoffs and playing in his own zone.

Do you think Malkin was on the same level as Backstrom?

As far as skill? No. Malkin is better than Backstrom. Backstrom is actually more comparable to Tavares than Malkin. I would actually take Backy ove Tavares any day. They are on the same level of people disrespecting them. Malkin wasn’t a top 100 player all time but Toews was? What world is Toews nearly as good as Malkin or Backstrom ?

If they made a top 100 players list now, I'm sure Malkin would get in. I think a lot of people forget how good Toews was. He wasn't as big as the hype (ie Crosby comparisons) but he was a really reliable two way center. Faced other teams' top players every night and was extremely good at generating possession in the offensive zone. Playing with Hossa definitely helped, but he was right up there with Bergeron and Kopitar.

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I think Malkin has fallen off, no longer the player he once was but can still be an elite contributor to his team.

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He was a solid shut down guy. His turnover ratio is very impressive but malkin has played 32 less games and has 245 more points. Malkins offensive upside is much better than Toews. Malkins 2 way play isn’t great but that’s not his style of play. Would you rather prevent 50 goals and score 20 or score 50 goals and give up 30?

Well, I can't disagree with that. What about Malkin and Kane? Who do you take in their primes?