What the Blackhawks have done during the last six seasons is impressive, and it has caught the eye of Wayne Gretzky.
The Great One appeared on ESPN 1000 with David Kaplan and Nick Friedell on Tuesday, and talked about how Chicago’s success compares to the most dominant teams from the 1980s.
“I think what the organization has been able to do to keep their team as competitive as they are — to have to move players out only on the basis of salary cap issues for business purposes — and yet be able to sustain the record and the way they play each and every night and the competitive spirit and opportunity to win another Stanley Cup, it’s probably even harder to do today than what the (New York) Islanders did in the 80s or what the (Edmonton) Oilers did in the late 80s,” said Gretzky on ESPN 1000. “It’s just difficult and they deserve all the credit in the world.”
The Islanders won four straight Cups to start the decade, followed by Gretzky and the Oilers winning four of the next five championships. Montreal (1986) and Calgary (1989) also won in the 80s.