"You watch Ovechkin every night and figure his most spectacular goal will be the next one. The Capitals' star scored from his seat against Phoenix in 2006, but he notched an even prettier goal against Montreal in 2009 when he passed to himself off the boards, spun around defenseman Roman Hamrlik, went backhand to forehand, beat another defender and scored by chipping the puck over the goalie while practically prone on the ice. This was the first time in NHL history a player deserved an assist on his own goal. His eagerness to throw big hits and his animated goal celebrations make him worth the price of admission, even among the it's-free-it's-me YouTube generation."
- SI.com's Michael Farber on the third-most thrilling hockey player of all time
4 months ago
J.P.
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Picture Caption - What????
The caption under Ovi’s picture says: Alexander Ovechkin led the Capitals with 11 goals last season. Am I missing something?
by capfan on Jul 9, 2009 12:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Maybe they forgot to add “by Thanksgiving”.
by superjuan on Jul 9, 2009 12:47 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Damn – they corrected it before I could be sufficiently snarky on Twitter.
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by J.P. on Jul 9, 2009 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
And he didn’t even mention the undress-a-pair-of-Rangers, get-hauled-down, and poke-the-puck-past Lundqvist playoff goal.
If you've read this far...seek help.
by ThePeerless on Jul 9, 2009 12:57 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
or the belly slide goal against buffalo
by RedBirdie on Jul 9, 2009 1:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I’ll say this watching this guy play day in and day out ( live no less) is one of the luckiest things I’ve been able to do in my life. I’m grateful we are lucky enough to have him in this city.
I still think I owe that Caps rep — who called me back after the lockout and offered me ‘2 spectacular seats’ if I renewed with him by the end of the week — a beer. it was in late December… my buddies thought I was throwing money away. Now they’re begging me to get them tickets. They spent more money to go to playoff games and sit in horrible seats then I did for that lockout year on my season tickets.
Thanks Caps rep whose name I can’t remember.
by vt caps fan on Jul 9, 2009 1:22 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
I’ll say this watching this guy play day in and day out ( live no less) is one of the luckiest things I’ve been able to do in my life.
I’m not going to go that far, but it’s definitely a thrill to be able to say I saw [pick a goal] live rather than watching on TV (or even YouTube).
by gfcaps fan on Jul 9, 2009 1:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
nothing quite like getting calls and messages from friends and family: “Are you there?! DID YOU SEE THAT?!” Yes, yes I did.
by RedBirdie on Jul 9, 2009 1:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The February game vs. MTL was only the second one I ever attended, and it pretty much cemented my decision to get season tickets for 09-10. Ovie’s goal that night had much to do with it, for sure.
Rockin' the Red in Section 412
by boutros23 on Jul 9, 2009 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I only made it through the first sentence. Lemieux wasn’t Pavel Bure but to say he didn’t get it in gear is ridiculous. Don’t mind that they ranked him #10, but come on.
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by Hooks Orpik on Jul 9, 2009 1:25 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The 1991-1992 period is really a demarcation line for Lemieux. Before that, he was a slam dunk — to borrow a metaphor from a different sport — on breakaways and on stickhandling through traffic. After that, the combination of injury and illness robbed him of a good deal of that, but he made up for it with his pure instinct for the sport. I said when he retired (the first time, I think) that he could fall out of bed at age 50 and get 50 assists. I still think he could.
If you've read this far...seek help.
by ThePeerless on Jul 9, 2009 1:32 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I think It’s awesome he’s only 4 years into his career and he’s already one of the most thrilling players.
"And next year it will be ours."
by Ovechwin on Jul 9, 2009 2:00 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I never got to see Richard play so I’ll have to say I’m OK with the #3 ranking for now. And having watched the guy who’s ranked #1 for a lot of years, I’m pretty happy with that ranking as well. However, and I never thought I’d ever say this, but when it’s all said and done I think Ovie may go down as the most exciting player in the history of the game (and possibly the greatest). We should all count our blessings that we get to see this guy in person.
by b.orr4 on Jul 9, 2009 4:08 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
This is a terrific list and I think he definitely got it right. That Wayne isn’t on it is correct because he wasn’t a thrilling player on the ice, he was a ruthless competitor, but he was coolly efficient in his ways.
Listing Bobby Orr first is absolutely correct. Orr is arguably the best player ever, although I’d take Wayne over him with the first choice. Orr was thrilling to watch and he was scary in so many ways. He was Paul Coffey before Paul Coffey and at the same time he was Rod Langway before Rod Langway. If only his knees weren’t made of glass held together with masking tape….
Let's go Caps!
by MikeL-Caps on Jul 9, 2009 4:44 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Watching old Oilers games, it always seems like a great scoring chance happens when Gretzky is on the ice, every one of his shifts. But similar to Crosby, rarely does he put on a skill show.
by red army line on Jul 10, 2009 3:12 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
but he notched an even prettier goal against Montreal in 2009
seriously? i think “The Goal” will be nearly impossible to beat. the one against montreal was really good, but it doesnt beat scoring while sliding one your back with no vision of the goal.
(ha I dont know how to end the blue box)
by hockeyman33 on Jul 9, 2009 5:20 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I think Ovi’s goal in Phoenix was by far his best, most exciting, most ridiculous goal. It was not, however, pretty. Ovechkin gets knocked on his but and flails his stick past a sprawled goalie. Hilarious? Yes. Pretty…not so much.
The goal against Montreal was prettier. Maybe not quite as absurd, though. Against Phoenix, Ovi was rough around the edges, he used brute force and pure instinct to nail it. Against Montreal, he used his skill and athleticism.
by Marshall Pirate on Jul 9, 2009 5:40 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
What do you mean "goal"?
Does a goal mean simply the way the stick moves the puck across the line? Or does it include all the play that leads up to that final move? I think the Rangers playoff goal was fairly standard, but the incredible offensive play that brought him from the zone to the crease was maybe the best thing on ice. (Although my own favorite is the Montreal goal.)
That’s just semantics, though. We all agree that Ovi’s talent is astounding and we’re lucky to have him here.
by CapitalCentre on Jul 9, 2009 11:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Superman and Batman are DC, not Marvel.
TTT Hockey: tictactoehockey.blogspot.com
TTT Photo: myunjustifiedego.blogspot.com
by turnituptoeleven on Jul 10, 2009 4:57 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
A difference that only matters to a comic book geek :)
"It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees." - Delores Ibarruri
by gotsparkly on Jul 10, 2009 7:44 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
what, no Theo? He’s thrilling, in that “Oh god, what the hell are you doing?!?!” sort of way…..
by RedBirdie on Jul 10, 2009 11:14 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Theo sometimes makes me want to chug Maalox.
Rockin' the Red in Section 412
by boutros23 on Jul 10, 2009 11:48 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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Southeast Standings
| GP | W | L | OTL | PT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Washington
|
16 | 9 | 3 | 4 | 22 |
|
Tampa Bay
|
14 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 15 |
|
Atlanta
|
12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 13 |
|
Florida
|
14 | 5 | 8 | 1 | 11 |
|
Carolina
|
15 | 2 | 10 | 3 | 7 |
(updated 11.7.2009 at 9:10 AM EST)
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