Should Ovechkin Stay in Russia?
Alexander Ovechkin came into the lockout NHL and quickly became one of the most exciting players to watch-ever. His rare blend of physicality and “killer” instincts coupled with explosive skating and a bullet shot made him unstoppable. In the modern NHL where goals per game dropped way down, Ovechkin scored at a rate that would have made him one of the bests in any era. And he scored all of these goals while being one of the hardest hitters in the game. I got to see Alex play in Toronto during his second year in the league. I have never witnessed a single player dominate the game the way he did.
But in the last two seasons we saw Ovechkin’s goal scoring start to decline. By the standards he set for himself earlier in his career, his play over the past two seasons has only been a glimmer of his capabilities. Numerous hockey analysts have tried to figure out what’s up with Ovi. The following have all been considered:
(1) He doesn’t train hard enough. His lack of training and proper nutrition is starting to catch up with him as he gets older.
(2) He parties too much and travels with an entourage of potentially bad influences. He loves spending time in the summer partying with friends in Turkey. Meanwhile Steven Stamkos kills himself everyday in the gym under the supervision fitness nut Gary Roberts.
(3) He was fighting with the Caps staff (coach Boudreau?) and this negatively impacted his play on the ice.
(4) He spends too much time and energy in games trying to be physical. He runs around too much instead of picking his spots on the ice.
(5) He’s too distracted by things outside of hockey like the work that comes with endorsement deals.
(6) He’s just out of gas???
It’s hard to comment on the truth of any of these suggestions. Maybe all of them are true, just some, or none at all. It’s hard to imagine a player that Wayne Gretzky endorsed by claiming something like “Ovi has a 90 goal season in him” as simply just not being nearly as effective anymore. What’s the reason?
I love watching Ovechkin play when he’s hitting opponents through the boards and a threat to score every time he steps on the ice. But at a 9.5 million cap hit per season, maybe the Caps would be better off is Ovi stays in Russia to play in the KHL, even after the current lockout ends. For around 9 million per season the Caps could have two players like Lucic and Hartnell- a far better combo than just the current Ovi. I hope that Ovi comes back to the NHL, but only if he’s back as the old Ovi- the player who dominated the game with an incredible blend of raw power and skill.
-Kirk Lougheed
But in the last two seasons we saw Ovechkin’s goal scoring start to decline. By the standards he set for himself earlier in his career, his play over the past two seasons has only been a glimmer of his capabilities. Numerous hockey analysts have tried to figure out what’s up with Ovi. The following have all been considered:
(1) He doesn’t train hard enough. His lack of training and proper nutrition is starting to catch up with him as he gets older.
(2) He parties too much and travels with an entourage of potentially bad influences. He loves spending time in the summer partying with friends in Turkey. Meanwhile Steven Stamkos kills himself everyday in the gym under the supervision fitness nut Gary Roberts.
(3) He was fighting with the Caps staff (coach Boudreau?) and this negatively impacted his play on the ice.
(4) He spends too much time and energy in games trying to be physical. He runs around too much instead of picking his spots on the ice.
(5) He’s too distracted by things outside of hockey like the work that comes with endorsement deals.
(6) He’s just out of gas???
It’s hard to comment on the truth of any of these suggestions. Maybe all of them are true, just some, or none at all. It’s hard to imagine a player that Wayne Gretzky endorsed by claiming something like “Ovi has a 90 goal season in him” as simply just not being nearly as effective anymore. What’s the reason?
I love watching Ovechkin play when he’s hitting opponents through the boards and a threat to score every time he steps on the ice. But at a 9.5 million cap hit per season, maybe the Caps would be better off is Ovi stays in Russia to play in the KHL, even after the current lockout ends. For around 9 million per season the Caps could have two players like Lucic and Hartnell- a far better combo than just the current Ovi. I hope that Ovi comes back to the NHL, but only if he’s back as the old Ovi- the player who dominated the game with an incredible blend of raw power and skill.
-Kirk Lougheed
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