A History Lesson For Vincent Lecavalier

Here's a gem from a Roy MacGregor column on the weekend:

"Have you heard of Max Bentley?" Lecavalier is asked in a quiet moment after practice.

"What's that?" he responds.

Vinnie, Vinnie, Vinnie! Here you are my favorite player in the league currently, and you could upped your status in my mind to that of living legend if you only knew your hockey history.

I guess today's players are too busy training, playing, traveling, eating, breathing and sleeping hockey to spend spare moments studying the sport's glorious history.

So for the benefit of Vincent Lecavalier and all the fans who were around 61 years ago when Max Bentley was the game's top player but stuck on a last place club, here's a full biography on Max Bentley.

The Lecavalier-Bentley comparison is apt to be sure, as both may be the most exciting player of their generation. Both live up to Bentley's nickname - the Dipsy Doodle Dandy. Bentley mind you was a tiny little guy, much more comparable to Denis Savard. The hulking Lecavalier has been compared to the great Jean Beliveau for some time now.

By the way, MacGregor's column is, as always, a joy to read. But you should also check out Alan Ryder's comparison of Lecavalier vs. Sidney Crosby as the Globe & Mail tries to figure out which of the two phenoms is truly the best player on the planet today.