Alexander the Great Ready to Roll
NHL Star A Rare Bird
By David Droschak (Posted 9-25-08)
The Washington Capitals opened the preseason Wednesday night without MVP Alexander Ovechkin on the ice. Nothing unusual about that since most NHL veterans don’t make road trips for hockey exhibition games, and certainly not players the stature of Ovechkin.
But then again, “AO” is no ordinary bird. The $124 million man knows just one speed and one speed only – pedal to the metal.
Apparently, Caps GM George McPhee had to advise his superstar to “back off” before the start of the regular season.
“He told our coaching staff he wanted to play every preseason game,” McPhee told SportsUnlimited. “I said, ‘Well, we’ll get you in enough.’”
Can you imagine Man-Ram wanting to play every inning of every Spring Training game, or Iverson logging 48 minutes in mid October in Oklahoma City?
Ovechkin has picked the deadbeat hockey town of Washington up by its proverbal bootstraps, creating real interest in a city where the Redskins are first, second and third fiddle.
The Caps averaged 13,900 fans in the two previous seasons before Ovechkin started his scoring binge last year, getting an eye-opening 65 goals while taking Washington to the playoffs. Attendance rose to 15,472 and will likely get higher as word spreads about hockey’s greatest show on earth.
“People should come and watch him -- and it doesn’t matter what sport you are a fan of because when you watch a guy play like he does it’s entertaining,” McPhee said. “It’s not only the ability that he brings but it’s the exuberance, the passion and the commitment.”
With all due respect to Pittsburgh’s Sydney Crosby, who broke into the league the same season as Ovechkin, Washington’s 23-year-old scoring machine is by far the most exciting player in the sport. Just watch the guy skate (and hit people) for five minutes and I’ll bet you a Bojangles biscuit you’ll be hooked.
“Like a lot of markets you’ve got to win to generate interest and we started to win last year,” McPhee said. “The good news is we’ve had someone for our fans to watch for a few years now that gave us a glimmer of hope of what the future might bring. So, it all seemed to come together last year. It felt great then and it feels good now, but we have to continue to win if we want to sustain anything with our fan base.”
The first step was for owner Ted Leonsis to lock up Ovechkin long-term, which is what he did last season with hockey’s richest contract – a 13-year, $124 million extension. It seems like a bargain now.
“He works hard all the time, every practice, every shift,” McPhee said of Ovechkin. “It means a ton to our franchise when your best player is setting the right example like a Ron Francis did in Carolina a few years ago and a Brind’Amour does there now. It certainly helps the young guys learn to do the right thing.”
McPhee chuckled when I pressed him on why Ovechkin would even consider asking to play in all of Washington’s preseason games.
“That’s just him, he just wants to play,” McPhee said. “He’s an absolute dream. He’s everything you want when you draft a player. He scores goals, he plays an exciting style, he plays physical and he’s a great teammate and a great leader.
“It’s hard to be great if you don’t love it,” McPhee added. “Some guys are good because they are good, but to be great you have to be good and love it -- and he certainly does.”
Ovechkin’s broken English hasn’t hindered Washington’s ability to market a guy who has almost overnight become the NHL’s “rock star.”
“His language and where he’s from, it just transcends everything,” McPhee said of the Russian. “People like hard-working athletes and what guys like him bring to the rink. You can communicate that without having to speak. People can see his body language and see he has passion and he cares so much.”
The Caps open the regular season Oct. 10 in Atlanta. The hockey fanatics know the entertainment value of Ovechkin. Stats don’t lie. Washington played to 103.2 percent of road capacity last season. But if you’re a casual NHL viewer or just a sports junkie who enjoys greatness, check out the Caps’ schedule and make a point to take in hockey’s great show on earth at least once this season.
I guarantee you’ll know when No. 8 hits the ice.