Sidney Crosby And Alex Ovechkin: The Two Greats
For the record straight, both are two of the greatest players in their generation and arguably their franchises as well. However, since they both have been dominant for so long, in the same division with multiple playoff matchups against each other, and coming into the league just a year apart, they are one of the biggest player rivalries in hockey amongst hockey fans.
However, these two do not view themselves as rivals and are actually good friends. Anytime they go head-to-head, they are always friendly and have even had the opportunity to play together during All-Star Weekend.
Head-To-Head
When two of the best go head-to-head, Sidney Crosby has the advantage as he is 39-23-4 overall with 88 points, which is 26 more than Alex Ovechkin. In their latest contest on October 13, the Pittsburgh Penguins won 4-0, with Crosby netting two goals.
In the playoffs, when they go head-to-head, Crosby and his Penguins have the advantage with a 13-12 record. In the four times they have met in the playoffs, the Penguins are 3-1 and have won the Stanley Cup each of those years, (2009,2016, and 2017).
Individual Statistics
When it comes to individual statistics, they are, for the most part, different players as they also play different positions as Crosby is a center and Ovechkin is a left wing. Also, Crosby is still a phenomenal goal scorer; however, he is more known for his playmaking abilities as he is one of the best passers in the league. While Ovechkin is one of the best pure goal scorers of all-time and is on pace to break Wayne Gretzky‘s scoring record, as he is just 68 goals away.
However, Crosby still has 21 more points than Ovechkin despite playing 157 fewer games. If Crosby, played in half of those games he missed, he may be 10th all-time in points and have significantly more points than Ovechkin. Also, Crosby is an exponentially better defensive forward than Ovechkin, as Crosby has a +/- of 215, and Ovechkin has a +/- of 69.
Also, it seems that Crosby is getting better with age as he is currently on an 8-game point streak and registered at least one point in 12 of the 13 games this season, all at year 19.
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Accolades
Both of them have solid accolades, as Ovechkin has more Hart Trophies, Rocket Richard Trophies, All-Star Selections, and Calder Trophies. On the other hand, Crosby has more Stanley Cups, Conn Smythe Trophies, and Art Ross Trophies. Stanley Cups, at the end of the day, is the ultimate goal for a hockey player and team, and Crosby’s style of play contributes more to his team winning since he is better record-wise than Ovechkin in head-to-head both in the playoffs and regular season as well as more Stanley Cups.
Similar Teams
Also, nobody can make the argument that the Capitals have had significantly worse teams than the Penguins for the majority cause they haven’t. These teams have been built similarly, with star players at the top surrounded by great depth.
The Penguins top guys have always been the big three of Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, and Kris Letang surrounded by guys such as Phil Kessel and others with great goaltending by either Marc-Andre Fleury and/or Matt Murray. The Capitals have had a big three of their own of Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, and John Carlson surrounded by guys like Tom Wilson and T.J. Oshie with solid goaltending in Braden Holtby.
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