I can remember when a nor’easter meant a 3 day blizzard with 2-3 FEET of snow. Anything else was just simply, a snow storm. I still think of it that way. Otherwise, it’s just sensationalizing. The weather stations tend to do that any more.
A nor’easter is just another name for an east coast low, one that comes up the coast from either the Gulf or off the coast of FL.
It’s the origin and storm track that gives it that designation.
And from what I’ve seen, they don’t last three days. Maybe some in the past have if they move really slow, but generally they are over in about 24 hours. It just takes 3 days to dig out from them.