| 12 February 2010
Recently Sidney Crosby graced the cover of Sports Illustrated. But why Crosby? Why not another hockey great like Alexander Ovechkin? Is it because Crosby is Canada's golden boy or because all those teenage girls think he is like way cuter then that Ovechkin guy? And come on, we all know that teenage girls have the money to spend on Crosby memorabilia...
See, teenage girls LOVE him
But what is wrong with having a caveman on the cover of SI? There are just as many Ovechkin fans as Crosby. I dare say there may be more. Everyone I know prefers Ovechkin. As a hockey fan, you must pick a favorite. It is almost impossible to be a fan of both Crosby and Ovechkin. It's like saying you like both Pepsi and Coke...
Definitely a caveman....
Sure fans of Ovechkin can appreciate what Crosby brings to the game skill wise but that doesn't mean we have to like his constant whining and nutting practices. Besides... Ovechkin just brings so much more to the table.
Ovechkin is a scoring machine. He's ranked number one in the league with 42 goals in 51 games. He is definitely not selfish either, netting himself 44 assists which means a league leading 86 points. And Crosby? He's got more games (58), less goals and less assists. And thus... less points (I know, amazing how that works huh).
Not only is Ovechkin offensively gifted, he is not too shabby on the defensive end either. He leads the league in another stat, +/-. He is a +41. Crosby is only a +7, not bad but not nearly as good as Ovechkin. It seems someone needs to work on their defensive skills a bit...
Just a quick look at NHL career stats for these two and then I promise I am done with stats. This is for 4.5 NHL seasons:
Ovechkin 261G 245A 506P +60
Crosby 171G 300A 471P +37
So, Ovechkin has more goals, more points and a much higher +/-. Crosby only exceeds him in assists. To me that makes Ovechkin the better player stats and skill wise. But what else does Ovechkin bring to the table?
But he does clean up nicely!
Passion. Leadership. Entertainment. Charisma. Ovechkin makes the game fun to watch. You never know what will happen next when Ovechkin is around. He may lay out a huge game changing hit. He may score a hat trick. The boy does it all.
He shows emotion. I love goal scorers who celebrate every goal like it's their first NHL goal. It is pure jubilation each and every time he puts the biscuit in the basket.
Best. Celebrations. Ever. (and that girl in the mini-skirt? She has gotta be cold!)
When his team is down, he doesn't give up. He goes out every shift and gives everything he's got. He doesn't give up until the final horn sounds. He must be great in the locker room also because he was given the C earlier this season. The Caps have been playing extremely well since.
He gives great interviews. Who doesn't love reading, hearing, watching his candid, honest comments? Too many players feel the need to be PC and not say anything negative. It's refreshing when a player actually says whats on his mind. And how can you not love the accent and broken English? It makes him more endearing, like you could just sit down and chat with him.
And what is the Olympics all about? It's about patriotism. It's about representing your Country and winning the gold. And Ovechkin? He's got patriotism in spades. He is always willing to play for his Country. He has even said, if asked, he will play in the next Olympics, even though the NHL hasn't decided if they will send players or not. How can you not love someone that shows such loyalty to his country? This is why Ovechkin should have graced the cover of SI. Not only is he the best, he wants his Country to be the best. He wants to bring the gold home.
The Olympics Men's hockey will be the most exciting event because of Ovechkin. He will be at his best. Crosby may be a great player but he will never bring the level of thrill to the game like Ovechkin can.
Jenna Volden covers the Phoenix Coyotes at Hipchecks in addition to her work on Bloguin's Olympic Hockey Blog.
Follow Bloguin's Olympic Hockey Blog Twitter 
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