Gretzky, Lemieux going head-to-head in battle for NHL's Greatest Moment

Wayne Gretzky
and
Mario Lemieux
never faced each other in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but the hockey legends will be going head-to-head in the second round of the battle for the Greatest NHL Moment -- twice.
Six Gretzky moments and two by Lemieux have advanced to the second round of voting, which began Wednesday. First-round voting by fans took place Oct. 18-24.

A bracket of 64 moments, as determined by a blue-ribbon panel consisting of broadcasters from NHL national rightsholders NBC Sports Group, NHL Network, Sportsnet and TVA, has been cut to 32. The bracket is divided into four regions: Hart, Norris, Calder and Vezina.
In the Hart Region, Gretzky's 802nd NHL goal, which he scored
March 23, 1994
with the Los Angeles Kings to pass
Gordie Howe
for the most in League history, goes up against Lemieux scoring five ways in one game for the Pittsburgh Penguins on
Dec. 31, 1988
.

In the Calder Region, Gretzky scoring 50 goals in 39 games in 1981-82 with the Edmonton Oilers is battling Lemieux's signature goal for the Penguins in Game 2 of the 1991 Stanley Cup Final.
Other Gretzky moments with the Oilers to advance: Scoring his single season-record 77th goal
Feb. 24, 1982
, which will face Detroit Red Wings coach Scotty Bowman winning the Stanley Cup for an NHL-record ninth and final time in
2002
; setting the single-season points record in 1981-82, which is going against Toronto Maple Leafs forward
Darryl Sittler
's 10-point game
Feb. 7, 1976
; becoming the fastest player to 1,000 NHL points
Dec. 19, 1984
, which is up against the 2014 Winter Classic at Michigan Stadium; and his 51-game point streak in 1983-84, which will face
Phil Esposito
of the Boston Bruins breaking
Bobby Hull
's single-season goal mark.
\[RELATED: Daneyko can't forget Lemieux scoring goals five ways in one game\]
Other second-round matchups include Maple Leafs rookie Auston Matthews' four-goal NHL debut
Oct. 12, 2016
, against
Bobby Orr
of the Bruins becoming the first NHL defenseman with 100 points in a season in 1969-70; the Philadelphia Flyers' record 35-game unbeaten streak in 1979-80 against
Teemu Selanne
scoring 76 goals as a rookie with the Winnipeg Jets in 1992-93; and
Mark Messier
delivering on his guarantee for the New York Rangers in Game 6 of the 1994 Eastern Conference Final, against
Ron Hextall
of the Flyers becoming the first goalie to score a goal by shooting the puck into the net on
Dec. 8, 1987
.

To vote on second-round matchups, fans can visit
NHL.com/GreatestMoments
. They can join the conversation using the hashtag #NHLGreatestMoments. The fans' choice for the Greatest NHL Moment will be announced during the
2017 Scotiabank NHL100 Classic
between the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators at Lansdowne Park in Ottawa on Dec. 16.
Here are the voting dates:
Oct. 25-31 -- Round 2
Nov. 1-7 -- Round 3
Nov. 8-14 -- Round 4
Nov. 15-21 - Semifinals
Nov. 22-28 - Final
Dec. 16 -- Greatest NHL Moment announced at 2017 Scotiabank NHL100 Classic