WASHINGTON, D.C. – Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky never met in the playoffs. Neither did Bobby Orr and Gordie Howe.
To find any sort of historical precedent for the Sidney Crosby/Alex Ovechkin super series, which begins Thursday night when the Penguins visit the Capitals at Verizon Center, you basically have to reach back to the Original Six era. Back to a time when everyone played everyone.
Of course, many have and will dust off memories of Pittsburgh-Washington from 2009, a spellbinding seven-gamer that left an impression.
But even those 12 days in May are of limited use when trying to place this matchup now. Crosby and Ovechkin have grown considerably, and so too has our understanding of them as generational talents, all but eliminating the circular “who is better?” discussion that was once stuck on repeat.
That chatter provided a strong undercurrent to the first series between the two superstars and won’t even be part of the conversation during the second.
Today they are Coke and Pepsi. A goal-scoring dynamo and an elite centreman. A passionate, happy-go-lucky Russian and the emotional, focused leader of Canada’s golden generation.
“I definitely don’t have his shot, I don’t score the way he does, so I’m not going to pretend that I do,” Crosby told reporters this week. “It’s pretty amazing what he’s been able to do over the years. And the way he scores and the rate he scores at.”
As you get older, there is less and less to prove. You are who you are.
What this opportunity represents to both players is rather clear-cut: The Penguins and Capitals each have legitimate designs on the Stanley Cup. One will have to go through the other to get there.
There was once a more real tension to any Crosby/Ovechkin matchup – “there used to be some history,” one former NHL player said this week – but you no longer get that sense.
They are different people, who had breakthrough hockey careers at the same time, and occasionally saw their paths intersect.
Part of the burden of being a special talent is that there are always two simultaneous conversations going on about your life. Let’s call one reality and the other legacy. When the Capitals and Penguins met in the second round seven years ago – a series that produced the mythology of the duelling hat tricks and 27 combined points between the two – you had a lot of concern about what it meant for the future of both players.
This time around we can focus solely on today. Live in the moment. The legacies of Crosby and Ovechkin are secured either way, with the next two weeks only offering an opportunity to rearrange the furniture somewhat.
“It’s going to be a great series for everybody,” said Ovechkin. “For players, for fans, for you guys. You know it’s a great rivalry, two good teams playing against each other in the second round. … I’m looking forward to it.”
Everyone is.
In a playoff tournament not only completely void of Canadian teams, but also traditional ones like the Chicago Blackhawks and New York Rangers, this is now the primary storyline.
Sid and Ovi. Ovi and Sid.
As Capitals coach Barry Trotz pointed out, it’s somewhat “disrespectful” to the others taking part, but that’s way it’s bound to be at the beginning. Once the puck drops the character actors can exert themselves a little more.
“You forget they have (Evgeni) Malkin, we have (Nicklas) Backstrom,” said Ovechkin. “They have (Phil) Kessel we have (Evgeny) Kuznetsov. You can match up any names because so much offensive weapons on both teams. But I think the team wins, not like individuals win. All the groups are gonna be out there and put best effort and that’s why you get success.”
It would be easy to interpret the comments from No. 8 and No. 87 as not wanting to breathe life into the narrative they’ve been part of since entering the NHL together in 2005.
But there is a practical side as well.
A centre on one team and a left-winger on the other seldom match up in any meaningful way. It’s more about what these two individuals mean in the larger picture that will add intrigue to this series.
“We’ve heard it since they both came in the league,” said Capitals winger T.J. Oshie. “It’s been Sid vs. Ovi the whole time. I think that just adds to the excitement, especially with the fans who are watching.”
Added Trotz: “If you’re looking for star power or you’re looking for speed and creativity or you’re looking for physicality or you’re looking good goaltending or you’re looking for strong special teams … you’re probably going to see all of those elements in this series.”
At its heart, hockey is a team sport.
It takes a collective to control and corral a bouncing piece of rubber on ice. But over generations we have been blessed with a special few who can carry much more than their share of the load.
Two of them are Crosby and Ovechkin. That they will once again share the ice together in a meaningful moment is something worth celebrating because it doesn’t come around too often.
“What was the past, it’s over,” said Ovechkin. “Right now (it’s a) new challenge and new moment in our life.”
One unlike any other we’ve seen before.
This will be a treat.
