Apr

30

CROSBY VS. OVECHKIN – - The NHL Wins Either Way

Filed Under NHL, Russ Cohen, Sports | Leave a Comment

This is the matchup that everybody has been waiting for. The NHL has been hoping for this and now they have it. The Pittsburgh Penguins are playing the Washington Capitals in the playoffs. That means Alex Ovechkin will face Sidney Crosby  and by the time the series is over fans will hopefully have seen a very memorable series and not just a bunch of isolated cameras on the two superstars of the sport.


I feel bad for Evgeni Malkin because he is the low profile superstar in this battle but the NHL has something to market here and I suspect most of this series will be played out on NBC and that could mean big ratings which could mean a bigger television contract down the road. If you want to hear a discussion about this tune into the Business of Hockey on XM 204, Sirius 208 1PM est on Saturday or 5PM est on Sunday.

These two players are polar opposites and yet they both have helped to elevate the coolest sport. Crosby does things the right way and he’s not very demonstrative and he plays the game the way purists want to see it played. Even with their quotes there is a tremendous difference. When Crosby won the Winter Classic in a shootout two year’s ago he had this to say.

“Yeah I think that we all watched the Edmonton-Montreal game and I think a lot of guys wished that they were a part of it and we were lucky enough to get to have that opportunity,” said Crosby. “You know for me growing up, I played a lot outside and a lot of their guys did too and when you see 70,000 people jammed into a stadium to watch hockey it’s a good sign.”

He signed some autographs right after the goal in the tunnel. He is an ambassador for the game to one segment of fans.

But that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t get mad, take bad penalties, and lose his cool from time to time. He does take a pounding from the Philadelphia Flyers fans and he once had this to say about that.

“It’s always a challenge coming in here,” said Crosby. “It’s always a hostile crowd here. You have to respect that. These are fun games to play in.”

Ovechkin  on the other hand wants to be the center of attention, that doesn’t mean he’s not a team player because he is, but he is also an ambassador for the game and he reaches a different segment than Crosby. One time he was getting booed by a particular fan in Philadelphia for most of the game. Some players would ignore that, some would yell back, but “Ovie” handled it in a very different way.

“Well it’s for the fans,” said a happy Ovie. “The guy who I gave the stick to, he called me not such a good player. (as he signaled the thumbs down sign). It doesn’t matter I gave him the stick because he is a little boy. He was surprised and he took my stick. It was nice.”

Sure he drives fast, and he jokes around and he annoys Don Cherry with his goal celebrations but this anomaly never gives up and last year when his team was down 3-1 against Philadelphia in the playoffs he took responsibility for his game.

“The puck was behind the net and I just tried to go down, and it was delayed so…It was my mistake,” Ovechkin said with pain in his voice. “We don’t give up and it’s not over yet.”

With his team down 3-1 he obviously took that same approach against the New York Rangers this season and this time he came out on the winning side of the ledger.

This series will offer so much to so many fans, hardcore and otherwise. Even if you aren’t a fan of either player, you will watch. You know you will.