FanHouse is Alexander Ovechkin man-crush country, so arguing against etching his name on this year's Hart Trophy is a bit like proposing an increase on the price of bullets at an NRA conference. His 60-goal season combined with Washington's dogged pursuit of a postseason berth has made his candidacy practically Messianic amongst Capitals fans: Without him, it would be a question of "Seattle or Kansas City" rather than the playoffs, and his performance in the second half has been that of "a Messier-like leader."Recall that Messier found the postseason in 17 of his first 18 seasons in the League. And since Ovechkin is the League's best player this season by any statistic measurement -- from the glamour stats to game-winning goals to his remarkable numbers after signing his $124 million contract extension -- the only legitimate argument against giving him the award is if he and the Capitals fall short of the playoff cut. That's the case Ross McKeon builds on Yahoo Sports today in touting Jarome Iginla for the Hart (a player who'd have my vote should the Capitals miss). It's also at the heart of Damien Cox's Hart argument for Nicklas Lidstrom, really nailing the point by calling it "the Marcel Dionne standard" and that "picking an MVP off a non-playoff team just doesn't pass the smell test."
Steve Simmons of Sun Media argues: "If the Caps miss out by a point or two, how does that lessen what Ovechkin has accomplished?" The answer is that it doesn't ... but making the playoffs and winning a division certainly helps increase the prestige for players like Lidstrom and Iginla and Marty Brodeur, whom his rivals argue is without question the MVP if he didn't have his own award to win. (Mirtle's argument for Ovechkin -- "poor coaching early on, bad management decisions, an inexperienced blueline, lack of secondary scoring" -- should be on Brodeur's tombstone for the 2007-08 season.)
While the super-delegates haven't all lined up behind him yet, I believe Ovie's final numbers and his panache -- with a little East Coast bias, 'natch -- will win him the Hart even if the Capitals miss the postseason. And it would be a cruel fate for Ovechkin, who has vehemently downplayed the importance of his own accomplishments when compared the significance of making the playoffs. I wonder which player would have his vote...
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Reader Comments ( Page 1 of 1)
1. "I wonder which player would have his vote..."
Owen Nolan
Posted at 12:34PM on Mar 24th 2008 by ben
2. You people are kidding me right. Where would the Pens be without Malkin. Just goes to prove my point. 80% of people watching hockey don't know nothing about it. Listening to the nitwit announcers.
Posted at 8:49PM on Mar 30th 2008 by Joe
3. Joe's right. Have any of you "experts" noticed what Geno Malkin's done for The Penguins? Crosby and Hossa get all the press while Malkin does all the playing and puts the team in First Place! "Opie" can't even get The Caps in the playoffs.
Posted at 8:50PM on Mar 30th 2008 by tjamwhit1
4. It was pretty dissappointing reading that and there not even being ention of Malkin. He pretty much is the reason they have a shot at being the best team in the east.
Posted at 9:01AM on Mar 31st 2008 by Jason
5. What does making the playoffs have to do with the Hart? It's an MVP award not a team award.
Malkin and Lidstrom have remarkable teams around them...how can you reasonable attribute all of their success to buoying the team?
AO has contributed to over 50% of the scoring his team has put up. Without him, the caps are at the bottom again this year.
Just look at how the team has prospered under Boudreau. AO has something like 43 points in his last 20 some games.
Posted at 2:31PM on Apr 1st 2008 by mike
6. Forgot to mention for the Malkin sniffers...Lemieux won the Hart on a non playoff team. Justified?
Posted at 3:27PM on Apr 1st 2008 by mike