Nicklas Lidstrom's greatness is honored

DETROIT - Nicklas Lidstrom was never as dazzling as Erik Karlsson or as physically imposing as Zdeno Chara. He didn't hammer the puck like Al MacInnis. He didn't slam opponents like Shea Weber.

But what Lidstrom could do was the think the position of defense at a higher level than everyone else. It was like he was playing three-dimensional chess while everyone else was playing checkers.

The Detroit Red Wings hung Lidstrom's No. 5 from the rafters Thursday, making him the seventh player in franchise history to earn that honor.

The word "incomparable" is often misused, but it applies to Lidstrom because there was uniqueness to his game that can't be duplicated.

If you are determined to have a comparison, you might want to leave the ice and enter the baseball world. You can make a case that Lidstrom was hockey's version of Lou Gehrig.

Like Gehrig, Lidstrom was a humble, soft-spoken man who played his sport with dominance and dignity. Like Gehrig, Lidstrom was a team-first player, a leader who led with class and professional. Like Gehrig, Lidstrom was an iron man in his sport. Lidstrom played 20 years and rarely was out.

At 40, Lidstrom was playing like a 30-year-old. He won four Norris Trophies after age 35.

It is hard to define greatness, and it is more difficult to define why Lidstrom was so much better than his peers.

For many years, Lidstrom was the best in the game at making the first pass out of his zone. He had an uncanny ability to keep the puck in the offensive zone when he was the point on the power play. Nobody could knock the puck out of the air like Lidstrom could. Nobody was more accurate with his shot from the point than Lidstrom.

If Lidstrom runs short of cash, he could sell his services to NHL teams to teach defensemen how to not get their shot blocked.

Lidstrom always found a way to put his shot on net. He banked them off the boards or off Tomas Holmstrom's rear end. Do remember Lidstrom getting many shots blocked? Of course you don't.

As a defensive player, he was a genius. He finished his career with a plus-minus of plus-450. He had one roughing penalty over two decades. That's simply remarkable.

Nobody was better than Lidstrom at tying up opponents without drawing a penalty. You'd watch Lidstrom attack a puck carrier and it looked like a game of Twister. He would be draped over them without touching him.

Lidstrom had a way of bringing the game to him. It was like he could employ Jedi mind tricks. A forward would think he had found a seam in Detroit's defensive coverage and then suddenly discover Lidstrom was in front of him sweeping the puck away with his stick.

Bobby Orr will always be known as the top defenseman in NHL history because he changed the game with his dynamic puck-moving artistry.

Lidstrom, with his seven Norris Trophies, gets my vote as the top defenseman in the mere mortal category. I wouldn't quibble with anyone who preferred the great Ray Bourque, or fantastic Larry Robinson, or the legendary Doug Harvey, or the gritty and talented Denis Potvin. It's a personal choice.

But if I had a grandchild who was starting out as a young defenseman, I would tell him or her to watch video of how Lidstrom played the position. His teammates called Lidstrom the Perfect Human because he always did the right thing on or off the ice. Teammate Niklas Kronwall once said, "I don't think I know anyone who doesn't like Nick Lidstrom."

Lidstrom played like Superman and lived his life like Clark Kent. I'd tell my grandchild to be like Lidstrom in that way as well.