The strongest argument to be made is that Gretzky didn't just break records -- he obliterated them. I believe he retired with 62 official NHL records, and now -- more than 22 years ago -- still holds 61* records.
Most of Brady's records were set for two reasons: (1) he hung around long after most players would have retired, and (2) his career coincided with a period when the NFL rules changed to make it easier for quarterbacks and receivers to compile epic statistics.
* -- Interestingly, TWO of Gretzky's records were actually broken, but he gained a new record (average points per game) when Mario Lemieux came out of retirement and couldn't maintain the average scoring pace from the first part of his career.
Ruth. Because he was a great pitcher and the best hitter, and saved the game of Baseball.
What are the two records that have been broken? I need to up my hockey knowledge.
As an American I like using sports analogies in teaching, but am finding, particularly as the years pass, my sports knowledge and interest doesn’t fit well with Canadian students. I brought up Bonds and Clemens in class yesterday, and only two people had the vaguest idea of who they were.
One of the students observed that baseball “really isn’t a Canadian thing” and this was generally agreed to—in a room with at least a plurality if not majority of Ontarians. The point that Toronto has the Jays was largely offset by another point made originally (or at least most emphatically) by the (relatively obscure) Edmonton band “Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie” about Toronto “They think their New York.” Canadian popular culture isn’t the same as American popular culture—at least among younger Canadians it seems that Three Dead Trolls in a Baggie carry much more weight than a couple of major American historical sports figures. I wouldn’t say that is bad, but it wasn’t what I had expected.
Still, many no their hockey, and thus my question.