Crosby vs. Ovechkin

[DEAD!]

Nice...fat jokes. What class you have. Go listen to Mark Madden while reading Pensblog kay?

Oh and for the record I would say Malkin led them to that Cup, since, you know, he won the Conn Smythe?

He's a Pittsburgh fan what do you expect? none of them have class

Ovechkin is better, just look at the way they play the game. I've never seen anyone with the speed and goal scoring ability that Ovie has. Not to mention the guy scored a goal from his f'n back! Ovechkin has about 50 more goals, both have 6 years in the league and about the same pt total. Cups don't really matter, if you're using that argument you could say that some random guy like Stéphane Yelle is better than both because he has 2 cups. Not to mention Crosby plays for Pittsburgh, so I lose respect for him there...

Please, no more bitching about Pittsburgh fans.

Yeah, let's bitch about Cleveland fans...

[Don]

Nice...fat jokes. What class you have. Go listen to Mark Madden while reading Pensblog kay?

Oh and for the record I would say Malkin led them to that Cup, since, you know, he won the Conn Smythe?

He's a Pittsburgh fan what do you expect? none of them have class

Ovechkin is better, just look at the way they play the game. I've never seen anyone with the speed and goal scoring ability that Ovie has. Not to mention the guy scored a goal from his f'n back! Ovechkin has about 50 more goals, both have 6 years in the league and about the same pt total. Cups don't really matter, if you're using that argument you could say that some random guy like Stéphane Yelle is better than both because he has 2 cups. Not to mention Crosby plays for Pittsburgh, so I lose respect for him there...

Ive known quite a few Penguins fans with class, that can debate with dignity. I wouldnt paint all with the same brush.

And dont knock Stephane Yelle...

[IceCap]

Ovechkin has chocked in every big game he's played. Crosby captained a Stanley Cup winning team and scored the game winning goal for his team in the gold medal game of the Olympics. In overtime.

Just saying.

[wildwing64]

Winning a Stanley Cup doesn't always make one player better than another. But it does make them more expensive

It's hard to say which of the two is better, but if we're talking numbers then technically Ovechkin has been more successful in the scoring department, having more career goals than Crosby and leading him by quite a margin in total points earned. Sid however has 44 more assists, and he has been catching up with goals in recent years, even matching Ovechkin's goals total this past season despite being out for the entire latter half with his concussion.

Though from my personal preference, I'm gonna pick Alex. Some of the goals he scored have been incredible to watch.

[maz]

Nice...fat jokes. What class you have. Go listen to Mark Madden while reading Pensblog kay?

Oh and for the record I would say Malkin led them to that Cup, since, you know, he won the Conn Smythe?

He's a Pittsburgh fan what do you expect? none of them have class

Aaaand it's this stereotypical nonsense that causes me to avoid any and all sports discussions around here.

That said, I'd take a concussed Sidney on his couch over Alex. They both are equally as effective come playoffs time.

[Don]

Nice...fat jokes. What class you have. Go listen to Mark Madden while reading Pensblog kay?

Oh and for the record I would say Malkin led them to that Cup, since, you know, he won the Conn Smythe?

He's a Pittsburgh fan what do you expect? none of them have class

Aaaand it's this stereotypical nonsense that causes me to avoid any and all sports discussions around here.

That said, I'd take a concussed Sidney on his couch over Alex. They both are equally as effective come playoffs time.

Aaaaaaaaaand its this nonfactual nonsense that causes me to avoid any and all sports discussions around here.

[BLUELANDbeliever]

Ovi's upside: Faster skater and much more physical player.

Crosby's upside: great mix of pure goal scorer and playmaker.

[maz]

Nice...fat jokes. What class you have. Go listen to Mark Madden while reading Pensblog kay?

Oh and for the record I would say Malkin led them to that Cup, since, you know, he won the Conn Smythe?

He's a Pittsburgh fan what do you expect? none of them have class

Aaaand it's this stereotypical nonsense that causes me to avoid any and all sports discussions around here.

That said, I'd take a concussed Sidney on his couch over Alex. They both are equally as effective come playoffs time.

Aaaaaaaaaand its this nonfactual nonsense that causes me to avoid any and all sports discussions around here.

Hyperbole, dude. It was a simple way of saying Sid has led his team and/or showed up when it counted most in the big games, whether it be in the Playoffs or Olympics.

Here is my full breakdown in as objective a view as I can possibly have (whether or not you all believe it.)

Ovechkin has a crap-ton of skill, yes, no denying that. And he has fun doing what he does, and there's nothing wrong with that. Is he really freaking annoying to play against? Yes. Is he a threat? Yes. Does he have mad offensive skill? Yes. However, Sidney also has all of those things. He is also insanely skilled, he also enjoys the game (the only difference is that he doesn't show it like Ovi does), and he gets on the nerves of fans of every team he plays against.

So far, they are equal.

Okay, let's look at how they get their points. Sid gets tons of assists, he's more of a playmaker. Alex loves to shoot and amasses many goals, so he's more of a goal-scorer. That said, year after year both of them have started to get more of the other guy's style of points. Alex has been passing more, Sid has been shooting more and getting a lot more goals.

So in a way, they're still even.

Their respective teams' success isn't a good way of determining things. Capitals distaste aside, the penguins have been much more successful than them in recent years, but this doesn't necessarily speak for the players themselves.

So it really comes down to, how they perform in the big games. They have been pretty even when it comes to points in the playoffs, and you can look back to Sid's memorable plays, but a worthy challenge to that would be "it's memorable because they won." So even here, it is hard to decide. Crosby has had some big plays that have ended up with some big wins for his teams, the prime example being the Gold Medal goal. Ovechkin has yet to do something like that. But even that isn't fair. So in retrospect the gap in their performance is not as big as I made it out to be, I'll admit, but Sid does perform well when it matters.

Before I've made the point that Ovechkin doesn't play defense like Crosby does. And while it wouldn't hurt Ovechkin at all to be alittle more active in his own defensive zone, alot of that comes with him being a winger as opposed to a center like Crosby, so of course Sid is going to be more defensive.

In the end it comes down to preference, because there is no real winner here. If you want a great offensive player who hits hard, has some fancy goals, and isn't afraid to let out his emotions, but isn't necessarily a looker, you want Ovechkin. If you want a someone more reserved and modest, is hard-worker, an all-around great player, and also just as much of an offensive threat when you need it, you want Crosby.

While I've taken a strong anti-Ovechkin stance before, I believe it's okay for someone to later on change their opinion based on increased knowledge and maturity. I'll still hate the guy, no doubt about it, but in the end this argument goes nowhere.

It's all in personal preference.

[Don]

And thats what I was talking about. Its a dumb argument cause they are both great players who have different roles for their team. Wanna compare Crosby to Toews? Go for it, its a legit argument. Compare Ovechkin to D. Sedin, sure. But to compare Ovechkin to Crosby is a media manufactured argument that only came about cause they were great rookies that came out the year after the lockout and they both, together, helped bring the NHL out of it. Is the "rivalry" stoked by NBC to where everyone is sick of it? Absolutely. But I remember a time where Pens vs Caps were rivalry games before those guys (although Pens fans may not agree cause it was so one sided for so long).

[north dakota]

Crosby

[oddball]

Is this any different than other past arguments such as Magic vs Bird? Or Elway vs Montana vs Marino? Who's better is who or what you prefer. Far all the stats you can throw out, for all the championships you can throw out people are going to like who they are going to like no matter what you say. These are always endless and pointless arguments because someone has a preference and the originator of the question is asking the question hoping more people will side with him, thus boosting his ego.

[lopernv]

If I want to win the trophy that matters, I take Crosby first and Ovechkin second, everytime. Ovechkin is the better player but I think you make greater strides as an organization with Crosby.

[texfischer]

Sorry everyone, I didn't mean to come off classless, its a phrase alot of people use. I dont hear anyone on these boards saying that people who call Sid "Cindy" are classless. Also, I actually HATE Mark Madden. And you people who think Pittsburgh fans are classless, think again, they are no less classy as any other city. I think that Sid is the more complete player, but this discussion is pointless, people will like who they like. And people will think one is better than the other no matter what.

[BLUELANDbeliever]

Nice...fat jokes. What class you have. Go listen to Mark Madden while reading Pensblog kay?

Oh and for the record I would say Malkin led them to that Cup, since, you know, he won the Conn Smythe?

He's a Pittsburgh fan what do you expect? none of them have class

Ovechkin is better, just look at the way they play the game. I've never seen anyone with the speed and goal scoring ability that Ovie has. Not to mention the guy scored a goal from his f'n back! Ovechkin has about 50 more goals, both have 6 years in the league and about the same pt total. Cups don't really matter, if you're using that argument you could say that some random guy like Stéphane Yelle is better than both because he has 2 cups. Not to mention Crosby plays for Pittsburgh, so I lose respect for him there...

Wow, most untrue thing i've heard all week!

What's your deal? Beef much?