Same here, even being born in 90 I was young but Hockey was my life from the age of 3 so I watched every single game. Had everything on VHS from both brawls to every playoff game. They will never be able to take our “HOCKEYTOWN” label from us. Never.
@@jackharrington697 don’t get me wrong there are great rivalries, but this rivalry was intense, two stacked teams who absolutely hated each other. Their regular season games were like playoff hockey. This was real hockey.
@@adam_c_music I mean let's be honest here, how many hockey rivalries in the NHL were there like Detroit/Colorado. There's probably only been a couple and none lasted nearly as long as this. Hard to complain about there not being any rivalries like this when there never was anything like this.
@@flippy66 If you a big or even a regular NHL fan during the period between say 1996-2004 you was knew what it was. I was more talking the majority of the causal/non NHL sports fan in America that this now classic rival was grossly insane.
Growing up a die hard Wings fan in southeastern Michigan, I was 12 in 1996 when the rivalry began. Boy oh boy what a treat it was to watch this rivalry and enjoy 3 Stanley Cup wins all throughout my teen years!
Peter Forsberg was the most skilled hockey player ever, but the only ones who came close were those who challenged him and made him a better player on his team and on Detroit such as Pavel Datsyuk, Joe Sakic, Steve Yzerman, Niklas Lidstrom, Milan Hejduk, Patrick Roy, Alex Tanguay, Brett Hull, etc. Both teams made each other better.
As a Detroit Red Wings fan I did not sit down for any playoff game against The Avalanche during this time period, how could I. I was up on my feet the whole time...Pacing, cheering, moaning, cursing, laughing, crying, screaming. Every emotion goes thru your body in a game, a series, a rivalry as fierce, as intense, and as bloody as this one. I can just imagine how the players and coaches on each team felt. This rivalry is not just one of the best in hockey history, but in sports history, because The Detroit Red Wings truly hated The Colorado Avalanche, and The Colorado Avalanche truly hated The Detroit Red Wings. Both teams paid the price with the blood that was spilt on the ice to just have a shot at playing for Lord Stanley's Cup. It doesn't get any better than what we witnessed from 1996 to 2002.
This was hockey. Two skilled teams who absolutely despised one another and this was the epitome of playoff hockey. As a wings fan I used to get pumped for playing the Avs even though they gave us a fair share of beatings, this is what it was all about. Doing whatever it took to win.
Good riddance of the cheap ass clutching and grabbing of old with $5,000 players to grab and hold Hockey players and skilled goal scorers, helpers, and true skaters!!! Glad to see the shit of holding clutching and grabbing... disafetchingpearing!
I have to agree with Sakic and Shanahan. What made the rivalry between these two teams so great was that they were practically mirror images of each other. Whether it was goal scorers, grinders or defense...they were just so evenly matched. The only consistent advantage was that Roy was a better all around goaltender throughout most of it. Imagine if Detroit had Hasek in his prime for more than just the 01-02 season? Whether it was at the Joe, Pepsi Center or a blackjack table in Las Vegas (me in my Yzerman jersey and a guy wearing a Sakic sweater...ahh so fun) this rivalry made it fun to be a hockey fan. In my opinion the 2002 WCF is still the best all around hockey series ever.
100% agree with you. 2002 was so good. I can talk about that team for hours. Hull one of my favorite players to never wear the winged wheel CAME to Detroit! That team was so stacked and deep there was no way we was going out without a cup with that team. Still which we could of done it back to back in 03 but eh lol. going back to the hate that still bleeds deep in me. I hate Colorado. Still to this day. Was so so happy we beat them for the last time ever in the joe!
(wipes away a tear) I know. I'm gonna miss the Joe. It may not have been the best building to see hockey, but it was the building where I grew up watching it. As I called it...it was the Temple where the Gods skate. I don't hate those player from those Colorado teams anymore. I respect them many of them (NEVER Lepuke). May not like them too much...LOL. But I respect them. Sakic was a class act. I will always respect what he did during the 2004 World Cup. When Yzerman was out with an injury Sakic refused to wear 19 our of respect for Yzerman. That earned my respect for Sakic.
Yeah I could see the good in Sakic doing that. And he really wasn't the problem just him and Steve got compared so much it turned my stomach. And yeah I don't want to see the joe be torn down I hope they leave it there as a museum. I still have disdain for Turtle. I'll never like Roy. But I guess I can see it your way. It was a really long time ago now lol.
Unfortunately what I think is going to happen is they are going to expand the Riverfront complex on the land the Joe now sits on. I'll be heading down there to see if I can snag a piece of it before they haul it all away.
Besides the lakers and Celtics, and Red Sox Yankees, this was the greatest and most heated rivalry in pro sports history, and as a wings fan, it was a joy and heart ache to watch
Legend has it that before that 2006 WCF game 6 Hasek gave a illegal stick to one of the Avs officials as a present for his child. Obviously Hartley picked up on that. If that was deliberate Hasek is genius
I love my wings past and current, but nothing will bet this era of hockey. Bone crushing physicality, Silky smooth plays, really just the cream of the crop.
1995-1996 was Colorado 96-97 was Detroit 1997-1998 was Detroit again 98-99 was Dallas my team 1999-2000 was the devils 2000-2001 was Colorado and 2001-2002 was Detroit again.
It can be consolidated to 8 of 9 for Colorado, Detroit & New Jersey. Colorado: `96` & `01` Detroit: `97` `98` `02` New Jersey: `95` `00` `03` & Dallas: `99`
@@mommytolfa2 Montreal and Boston is a way bigger rivalry than Buffalo and Boston. But everybody hates both the Bruins and the Pats so you could really pick any number of cities/teams.
I was 10 years old when I saw Claude Lemieux crush Kris Draper's face on live TV. I will never forget the bone-crunching sound that it made as they played the replay over and over, nor will I forget the passionate seething rage that it put in the hearts of the Detroit Red Wings fans and organization. The rivalry was so intense that even on School nights I was allowed to stay up as late as the games took to finish. I still vividly remember sitting in my bed and watching the huge team brawl unfold, and relishing in every moment of vengeance taken upon Lemieux and the Colorado Avalanche team. I remember talking about what happened at school the next day with my friends that were also allowed to stay up late to watch the games. The rivalry made for what was arguably the best hockey in history between two of the best put together teams of all time. The energy that was unleashed in each game has gone unmatched in any of the hockey that I have watched since. However, as I look back on it now as a guy in his 30's, I understand that Scotty Bowman was right about the brutality, it really didn't have to be like that. Lemieux should have apologized, and he should have been barred from ever playing in the NHL again. I honestly don't have any remaining animosity towards Lemieux. It's well in the past now, but he quite literally could have killed someone with the viciousness of that hit. It wasn't at all about what team either of them played for.... you just don't do something like that to someone. To this day the Draper hit and the Kozlov sucker punch were the two worst things I have ever seen a player do. Lemieux behaved like a coward, and the way he embarrassed himself by turtling on the ice was to the tremendous delight of all Red Wings fans. McCarty was our judge, jury, and executioner, and Detroit loved him for it. The reality of the situation was that it frustrated all of us to no end that no adequate responsibility was taken to address the hit on Draper. It wasn't just Red Wings fans that wanted Lemieux gone, and by failing to do anything significant about it the Red Wings organization itself was forced to take matter into their own hands by the only way that they could, out on the ice. It's a bummer to know that I will never see such great hockey played ever again, but even back then as a 10 year old I understood that what I was seeing was something truly special. The 42 year Stanley Cup drought coming to an end, winning back to back cups, and having a team that hardly ever lost... What a time it was to be a Red Wings fan! It's interesting how time changes people and things. These days I actually like the Colorado Avalanche team, and I haven't seen them in a negative light for quite some time now. When the rivalry was in full swing I could have never imagined that some 25 years later I would actually like the organization that I had once loathed above all else.
If that's the worst thing you've seen a player do, then you mustn't have followed much hockey, and don't tell that to Steve Moore. Geesh. And Crawford was practically a saint in this rivalry compared to how he acted towards Moore. That's the most disgusting thing I've ever seen a player do, and it's not even close. Crawford and Bertuzzi should have both been banned from the NHL for longer than Shoeless Joe's been banned from MLB.
@@koreygeren2677 Todd Bertuzzi actually apologized. Furthermore, the way that multiple players piled on top of Steve Moore is what led to his injury. The sucker punch was nasty and it was a dark stain on Bertuzzi's career, but he actually took responsibility for it and something was done about it. I actually respect Bertuzzi for what he did after what happened. I can't say the same for Lemieux.
@@Adam202 None of which excuses his actions. And he smashed Moore's head, while he was unconscious, into the ice. That's what lead to his head injury. Good that you can excuse it though. Probably a fan of McSorely's last game as well, I'll assume.
@@koreygeren2677 I believe in forgiveness. I don't have any animosity towards Bertuzzi or Lemieux. However, I actually respect Bertuzzi because he actually apologized and suffered real consequences. Lemieux on the other hand suffered no consequences and took no responsibility. As I have already said, it's easy to take advantage of a vulnerable player. It's hard to admit you were wrong and seek repentance. If you want to behave like a bitter clown even decades later that is your own business. The fact that you can't see the difference between these two situations is telling of your ignorant and judgemental point of view. Feel free to post your own comment about Todd Bertuzzi and the coward Steve Moore.
@@Adam202 Wow, you called Steve Moore a coward? Victim blaming now? You really have no credibility. Exactly how deep were you in the hockey world again? Watching all the sports talk shows on TSN, all the interviews? What is your comment about "not seeing the difference" even suppose to mean? I never even mentioned Lemieux. lol
no rivalry in hockey comes close in the past 25 years; Prior to that Oilers/Flames, Habs/Bruins and Habs/Nords come to mind! 3 elements that make any hockey rivalry great-2 teams playing regularly for the Cup, players and coaches that have mutual hatred for each other and best of all fans from each city arguing endlessly about who is the best team! i agree that 2002 WCF was awesome to watch!
Any true competitor knows… Your greatness is defined by the level of your opponent. When I got out of the service and moved back home to Colorado.. the Avalanche came too… I fell in Love with hockey because of this rivalry and our brand new team. We were all so blessed in Colorado and Michigan to get to see this live.
There's simply nothing like the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Everything about it. The beards, the handshake line of utmost respect after a hard fought series... It's sports at it's finest.
Whenever I get bored with today's sports I watch these old videos. I remember going to the games as a kid and even caught a puck at one of these games. The back stories, the intensity, the fights, but it was really all about getting that puck in the back of the net. Nothing like it. Now the Avs have to put out the Flames!
I remember all of it...as it unfolded...living in detroit and this was no simple rivalry, it was well beyond that...like a hatred for the enemy. There is no more dramatic rivalry in all of sports close to how this was. And it all started when Drapes was plowed into that wall. In the end both teams really ended up being just equals in almost every way.
I was pretty young (born in 1990) but I remember how it seemed like all of southeast Michigan was at war whenever an Avs/Wings game was looming. Daily operations seemed to stop on game days.
I have been watching and a fan of the Wings since the 80's and I think that during this rivalry was some of the best hockey I've ever seen. I'm pretty sure that it drove the Wings to be the best they could so they beat Colorado.
Being 25 yrs old when the Avs came to Denver-this rivalry is what started my love affair with hockey,& the Avs. I work at Ball arena now for Av,& Nug games,& we had no clue back then how special this rivalry was. I knew it was intense,& the best hockey rivalry at the time. But didnt realize itd go down in history,& now rightfully makes almost every list of "best rivalries in all of sports history"-not just hockey. We kinda knew these teams were both ridiculously stacked,& the hockey was amazing-but it also was all some of us in Denvrr really knew bout hockey back then. That having Sakic,Forsberg,Roy,etc was something super rare. Same could be said of those Wings teams.
As a Flyers Fan I Grew Up During This Rivalry In The 90's While Being a Flyers Fan But This Rivalry Was So Good All The Way Go Flyers P.S. This Rivalry Did Set The Tone For The Flyers Penguins Rivalry Later On After The 2004-05 NHL Lockout!
I loved Roy, Fedorov, Yzerman, Sakic, Forsberg among others during this time. Never got into the rivalry ’cause I was a kid back then but looking back…hockey won’t ever get as good as this again.
From 1996-2002, this was the best rivalry in sports. Five Stanley Cups, nine...NINE HOFers (Roy, Sakic, Forsberg, Blake for the Avs, Yzerman, Shanahan, Fedorov, Slava Fetisov, and Ciccarelli from Detroit), and gallons of blood. I knew many of the print journalists who covered the Avs and they were unequivocal about the on ice animosity that bled into the press box. The fans hated each other, the goalies fought, the press genuinely loathed the others on the opposite side, championships, great hockey, multiple wikipedia pages, etc. This was as nasty, intense, and gripping as I've ever seen in a sports rivalry. And let's face it..god it was fun to watch.
Can’t wait to watch Unrivaled. Too bad can’t stream it. After this many years it’s still the best rivalry ever. The amount of stars on each side. It will never happen again.
How the hell do you like both teams? That's just messed up to like 2 teams that were as hated rivals as this and even worse that you were born in Detroit. You must be the definition of a bandwagon fan.
This was a Bad Blood Rivalry around 96’ 97’ 98’ as a rangers fan I had my rivalries but this was knock down drag out affair with these 2 teams prime example 3/26/97 Patrick Roy vs Mike Vernon what a rumble that was!
Tom, I want to say thank you for an excellent video and performance on your part. I've done some minor voice work in the past and you came across as knowledgeable, exciting, non-partisan, and professional. With respect, Leland Medvison
Sick! My dad was super close friends with Ozzy. I have so much stuff from him. Osgood sent a limo to our house after the win in 02, and we got to party with them after they won the cup, McCarty, Osgood, and Dandenault, poured me up a bowl of Coca Cola in the top of the cup, and gave me a straw to drink out of it. Then for the parade that week, Ozzy let me drive in his Corvette with him in the parade. Such great times of my life. And im so blessed to have the pictures and a bunch of equipment with dozens of red wings signatures.
