One of them has grey hair. The other bears a nickname, “Sid the Kid,” that no longer fits.
One is unquestionably the greatest goal-scorer of his time and perhaps of all time. The other is the most prolific point-producer of his time.
They are, of course, Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby, the hockey giants of the early 21st century, the players whose excellence and rivalry have dominated the NHL since they finished one-two in the Calder Trophy voting in 2006.
The rebuilding Canadiens to have to face them back-to back on the road last week and the result was perhaps predictable. Ovechkin drew an assist on a power-play goal for Tom Wilson and a third-period goal from the towering Belarusian Aliaksei Protas that put the game out of reach before scoring Washington’s final goal in the third period of a 6-3 win.
(Note that Canadiens sniper Cole Caufield potted his 10th goal the same night.)
Two nights later, it was Crosby’s turn. He scored on Sam Montembeault in the first period and added the winning goal on the power play with 1:20 left in the second, bringing his three-game total to four goals and seven points.
As this season unfolds, Ovechkin’s pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goal-scoring record will become a dominant storyline. Gretzky’s mark stands at 894. Ovechkin is only 34 goals behind at 860. As of this writing, he has seven goals in 11 games, on pace for a 52-goal season — meaning that he would smash the Great One’s record with room to spare.
“On pace for” is a meaningless phrase until you actually do it. Ovechkin turned 39 on Sept. 17, an age when he ought to be slowing down. A year ago, it appeared that was the case, but Ovechkin seems to have found a new gear.
Whether or not he breaks the record this season likely doesn’t matter. Given his fitness and his goal-scoring prowess, Ovechkin is going to smash Gretzky’s record with room to spare. It’s not inconceivable that he might score 1,000 goals before he’s through.
So who is the greater player, Crosby or Ovechkin? (For the sake of the hockey discussion, let’s put aside Ovechkin’s blind support for the murderous Vladimir Putin.)
Russians will say Ovechkin is greater because of his goal-scoring prowess. Canadians will favour Crosby because of his three Stanley Cup rings and two gold medals.
There is no definitive answer. Like Gretzky vs. Mario Lemieux, or Gordie Howe vs. the Rocket, or Bobby Orr vs. Gretzky, the debate will rage in hot-stove arguments 50 years from now.
Our verdict? We’ve been very fortunate to see two such great players for so many years.
Rehashing the rebuild: The Canadiens are locked into a three-game losing streak going into Tuesday night’s tilt against the Flames, so the inevitable knives are out and Martin St. Louis is the inevitable target.
St. Louis won’t let it bother him. Panicky fools will always be part of the landscape around here, as they were during the 1976-77 season. In the midst of the greatest campaign in NHL history, there were bad 7-2 and 7-3 losses in St. Louis and Boston wrapped around a 6-0 shutout over the Kings — and there were calls to fire Scotty Bowman.
“The rebuild’s biggest threat,” Global News’s Brian Wilde said last week, “might be media/fans wanting it to happen fast. As it stands, (Kent) Hughes has a long leash to work with. If the leash shortens, he’ll need wins. If he needs wins, he’s trading future for present. Fine when Cup’s in view. Not fine in rebuild year three of five.”
It bears repeating: St. Louis is a masterful teacher, patient and soft-spoken. Perhaps he’s the coach to lead this team to a Stanley Cup three or four years down the road, perhaps not. For this team at this time, he’s exactly the coach these young players need.
Bring on the Argos: When the Alouettes met Toronto in the Eastern Final last year, the Argos were the overwhelming favourites.
They were trampled by Montreal’s defence in a 38-17 loss. This year, the Argos and toxic quarterback Chad Kelly will be seeking revenge against an Alouettes team that has been treading water since midseason.
With a huge conference lead and quarterback Cody Fajardo missing six games, the Als kept winning, for the most part, until, with nothing to play for, they lost three out of four down the stretch.
So what happens when the two teams meet again Saturday afternoon at Percival Molson? It’s a safe bet the Argonauts will not come close to matching the 58 points they put up in drubbing the Redblacks. Not against Tyrice Beverette and that rugged Montreal defence.
Fearless prediction? Alouettes, 21-19.
Heroes:Pierre Houde, Marc-André Fleury, Sidney Crosby, Cole Caufield, Nick Suzuki, Jake Evans, Brendan Gallagher, Josh Anderson, Jessica Campbell, Tara Dower, Leylah Fernandez, William Dandjinou, Steven Dubois &&&& last but not least, Martin St. Louis.
Zeros: Chad Kelly, Drake, Tom Brady, Nick Bosa, Harrison Butker,Jerry Jones, Jaxson Hayes, John Tavares, John Fisher, Bud Selig Jr., Claude Brochu, David Samson &&&& last but not least, Jeffrey Loria.
Now and forever.