Crosby vs. Ovechkin

Dave Pazzaglia

It has been a long time since the NHL has seen two superstar players that were the face of the game such as Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky. This Saturday will mark the start of the second round series of playoffs, in journey to the Stanley Cup, with two of the most prolific athletes that the sport of hockey has long been waiting for. These two superstars are Sidney Crosby or “Sid the Kid” as known by teammates and fans, and Alexander Ovechkin, also known as “Alexander the Great.” The two are the faces of their franchises and the NHL representing their respective teams of the Pittsburg Penguins (Crosby) and the Washington Capitals (Ovechkin).

Since entering the league in 2005 together the two have once again brought excitement to the game and been linked statistically and through their personal rivalry since the beginning. Crosby, a center and captain of the Penguins was the first overall pick in 2005 and hails from Cole Harbour, NS, Canada. Ovechkin, a left winger, was drafted 1^st overall in 2004 and hails from the Moscow, Russia.

Crosby is referred to as a personality like a movie star with Ovechkin having the rock star personality. This rock star personality was shown last week on ESPN show E60 with Ovechkin whipping around his brand new Mercedes SL 65 where he admits driving 180 mph. Aside from this the clubs, drinking, and of course the women is all shown in this biography that direct relates to his style on ice. Ovechkin is 220 pounds of pure power and speed, with an uncanny amount of energy. Ovechkin celebrates goals by speeding around jumping off glass and putting the fire out on his hockey stick. Crosby a smooth skater, gritty player, with keen vision keeps his emotions in check until the two meet on the ice like during their last regular season matchup where both threw shots at each other on and off the ice.

Although it’s not the Stanley Cup, this series will forever be remembered as the first playoff battle of the two faces of their respective franchise on who comes out on top. Sports analyst are referring to the rivalry as similar to Larry Bird and Magic Johnson (especially the 1979 NCAA National Championship between the two) with Crosby having the same characteristics and composure of Bird and Ovechkin being loud, outspoken, and very confident like that of Magic. The sports world and the hockey world now have the rivalry between the Canadian star of Crosby and the Russian star of Ovechkin. Whether or not you like hockey you can only respect what these two are doing and will do for the sport of hockey. The rivalry will be at its highest peak beginning Saturday where the two meet for the first time in playoffs to mark a piece of history and many more to come.