The hockey world will once again be treated to another instalment of the Sidney Crosby vs. Alexander Ovechkin rivalry when the Washington Capitals host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday night.
As first overall draft selections a year apart, Ovechkin in 2004 and Crosby in 2005, these two greats first met in the 2005 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship gold medal final where Crosby and the legendary Canadian team defeated Ovechkin and team Russia.
Due to the NHL lockout of 2004-05, both players began their NHL careers in October of 2005, and they did not disappoint.
The two rookies both broke the 100 point mark in their inaugural season, Ovechkin finishing with 106, including 50 goals, and Crosby finishing with 102. Ovechkin eventually ended up winning the Calder Trophy.
16 years, 2275 combined games, and 2699 combined points later, these icons are still playing at an elite level.
With 750 career goals, Ovechkin currently sits in fourth on the NHL’s all-time goals list, just 144 behind Wayne Gretzky.
“I think it would be pretty cool, score those goals against everyone else. Not us,” Crosby said in an October interview with Colby Armstrong when asked about Ovechkin potentially breaking Gretzky’s goal record.
Individual accolades aside, Crosby and Ovechkin’s teams have had some classic battles over the years. None bigger than the 2009 Eastern Conference semifinals, particularly game two, where both players would score duelling hat-tricks with Crosby and the Penguins losing the game, but eventually winning the series.
Since that first playoff meeting, the two have won a combined four Stanley Cups, Crosby winning three in 2009, 2016 and 2017, and Ovechkin winning one in 2018.
Linked together after all of these years, both players believe they have a lot of hockey left, and the time for reflection will be sometime in the not so immediate future.
“I think our careers are not over yet … I think when we’re going to be done I’m sure we’re going to have, maybe dinner, maybe lunch, you know open a beer, and talk about everything,” said Ovechkin.
You can watch the Penguins take on the Capitals on Sportsnet beginning at 7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT.
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