Moore, Draisaitl play same game, Fischler says

Legendary hockey reporter and analyst Stan Fischler writes a weekly scrapbook for NHL.com. Fischler, known as "The Hockey Maven," shares his knowledge, humor and insight with readers each Wednesday.
Once a month, he compares a star of yesterday with a similar current player. Today, it's Dickie Moore, a two-time Art Ross Trophy winner and a key member of the Montreal Canadiens' dynasty in the late 1950s, and Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers, who's on pace to win the NHL scoring championship this season.

Few forwards in the Original Six era could surpass left wing
Dickie Moore
of the Montreal Canadiens for all-round superior play while getting minimal attention from fans and media.
"Dickie was a fighter, a real worker and he could do just about everything offensively," Hall of Fame linemate
Maurice Richard
said. "And that included playing right wing as well as left when necessary."
Leon Draisaitl is in a similar situation with today's Edmonton Oilers. The native of Germany is listed as a center but can play either wing -- and he puts up big offensive numbers no matter where he plays. Draisaitl was one of two 50-goal scorers in the NHL last season and is on track to win the scoring title this season, yet he's always been overshadowed by teammate Connor McDavid, acclaimed by many as the best player in the world.
Moore was at his best playing on the left side of a line with Maurice Richard on the right and kid brother
Henri Richard
in the middle. They keyed Montreal's run to an NHL-record five consecutive Stanley Cup championships from 1955-56 through 1959-60.
Though he was listed at 5-foot-10 and 168 pounds, Moore was as tough as they came. He won the
Art Ross Trophy
as NHL scoring champion in 1957-58 despite playing with a broken left hand and damaged wrist. He didn't miss a game despite playing with a plaster cast on his left arm.
"Sure it hurt when I shot the puck," he admitted, "But the only time I ever thought of not playing would be if the hand broke off."
A season later, minus the injuries, Moore finished with an NHL-record 96 points (41 goals, 55 assists), helping the Canadiens to their fourth straight Stanley Cup title.
"Dickie was as much a key to our winning the Cups as anyone on our team," said Richard, who was captain during Montreal's dynasty years. "Yet he never got enough recognition."
Moore's publicity "problem" was that he played in the shadows of such French-Canadian heroes as Richard,
Jean Beliveau
,
Jacques Plante
and
Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion
, all Hockey Hall of Famers. All won the
Hart Trophy
, voted to the NHL's most valuable player, at least once. Moore was consistently overlooked for the Hart, although he was twice voted to the NHL First All-Star Team.
"Dickie was the most valuable player on that Canadiens club," wrote Montreal Star columnist Red Fisher, then considered the dean of hockey writers. "There wasn't a thing he wouldn't -- or couldn't -- do to help that team win."
More than six decades later, Draisaitl's brilliance is often overshadowed by McDavid, one of the NHL's fastest, most dynamic player. But teammates such as Alex Chiasson understand how good he is.

"Connor is Connor," Chiasson said, "but I consider Leon one of the most underrated guys in the League."
However, Draisaitl's "underrated" status may be disappearing. He's got a comfortable lead in the race for the NHL scoring championship and has flourished under new coach Dave Tippett.
"What's so special about Leon is that he's a student of the game," Tippett said. "He studies players who starred in the league before him; how they played and what made them tick. It's part of what makes him so good.
"If there's one word that best describes Leon it's 'thoughtful.' It's how he wants to play and how he wants his game to be perceived."
One trait shared by Moore and Draisaitl is unadulterated scoring talent. There are even some who contend that Draisaitl might be more valuable to the Oilers than McDavid, a two-time scoring champion.
"Leon is the MVP of that team," Arizona Coyotes coach Rick Tocchet said. "Put it this way, I respect Draisaitl as much as I do McDavid."
Not surprisingly, McDavid is lavish in his praise for his teammate. Together, they have given new hope to Edmonton fans who had seen their team qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs just once since 2006.
"For me, Leon is a fun guy to play with because he can do just about anything," McDavid said. "He can shoot, he can pass, he can play any type of game that [coach] Dave [Tippett] wants him to play."

Like Draisaitl, Moore never craved the acclaim his higher-profile teammates received. Even after winning his second scoring title, Moore blinked from the limelight.
"Sometimes," he admitted, "I felt I'd rather be down about the middle of the scoring list. Then, people don't notice you. When I first broke in I used to wonder what it would be like to lead the League. Once I learned, it sort of scared me."
Draisaitl has no fears about beating out his buddy for the Art Ross Trophy.
"I'd be stupid to say I don't want individual trophies," he said. "Of course, I'd like to win some. But me and Connor are not competitive that way. We want to make each other better. We expect the most and best out of each other."
For Draisaitl, the sky's the limit in terms of his skill set. But like Moore, he and McDavid are much more motivated by team rewards than individual ones.
Moore retired at age 37 after coming out of retirement to play 27 games with the St. Louis Blues in 1967-68. But he'll always be remembered for the six Stanley Cup championships he won with the Canadiens, as well as his insatiable desire to play hockey.
"I would have played until I was 60 if I was able," he said. "I always maintained that you'd never see Dickie Moore retire from hockey because he's rich."
Someday, perhaps after a championship or two, Draisaitl will feel the same way as his play-alike from six decades earlier.