With the news that one of the NHL's superstars may be coming back from post-concussion symptoms, I thought it'd be interesting to look at Sidney Crosby's career arc and how it compares to Alexander Ovechkin's. The two will be forever linked in NHL lore as rivals and young guns that took the league by storm. Ovechkin was the No. 1 pick in the 2004 NHL Draft while Sid the Kid was No. 1 in 2005 (many people think they were 1-2 picks in the same draft; but, because of the lockout, the first season for both was 2005-2006). The hype was immense, and both guys have lived up to it.
Looking first at Ovechkin, we find a dynamic scorer and tremendous player. Ovechkin seems to be the more marketable player (even seen in ESPN commercials), the better individual player, and the more polarizing figure. Ovi won the Calder during the 2005-06 season (for Rookie of the Year), has scored 50 goals in 4 of his 6 seasons, won 2 Hart Trophies (MVP) and has never missed more than 10 games in a season. However, this hasn't translated into team success for Ovechkin. His talented Capitals teams have never made it out of the 2nd round of the playoffs; and in 2 Olympics, Russia has not medalled in either. With the addition of Thomas Vokoun to solidify their goaltending and getting a healthy Mike Green back, the Capitals are looking like a force in the East this season. |
| Concussions have become a hot-button topic in the NHL |
As for Crosby, we get an Olympic hero and fantastic player. Being a center, Crosby doesn't find the back of the net as often as Ovechkin. In 6 seasons, Sid the Kid has scored more than 39 goals only once, led the league in points once (his only Hart Trophy season), and has missed parts of 3 seasons with injuries. Crosby's teams, though, have enjoyed much more success than Ovechkin's. For one, he scored the game-winning goal in the 2010 Olympic gold medal game against the U.S. Secondly, his Penguins went to 2 straight Stanley Cup Finals, winning a Stanley Cup in 2009. Crosby seemed to finally be turning the corner as an incredible offensive player in 2010. That year, he had his highest goal total of his career (51) and the second highest point total (109). It seemed that he was in the midst of becoming an unstoppable force and much better all-around player than Oveckin. Last year, it seemed the transition was complete. Through 41 games (exactly half of a season), Crosby had 32 goals and 34 assists, on pace for 64 goals and 132 points. Those totals would have been the 2nd highest since Mario Lemieux's 69 goal, 161 point 95-96 season. Sadly, Crosby's season ended prematurely with a concussion and post-concussion symptoms. There are rumors that he's close to returning. Let's hope he's made a full recovery back to his pre-concussion form and comes back to the ice soon so that Ovi and Sid the Kid can continue their rivalry.
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