love the puck

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

Well Sidney is going to Pittsburgh, and it's been reported that in the first hour after the draft lottery there was a significant increase in season ticket sales and that the phones are ringing off the hooks down in Steeltown. Some folk are disappointed that Crosby didn't hit a major hockey market, but truthfully, I don't think Pittsburgh is a bad place for Crosby at all. We don't have to worry about him not being on a national market, because he would have ended up in the national market no matter where he played. The NHL will market the hell out of him, as they should.

Now, in an ideal world would I have picked the Penguins for Crosby? Of course not, I'm a hockey philosopher, but I'm not an idiot. I think the cities that needed him the most were Chicago and the Rangers in that order. Both teams are original 6 teams that are faltering, but Chicago would have been perfect because there is no way the NHL would have let Chicago ownership get away with another year of no television deal in their city. Plus Chicago has a Sutter behind the bench, an emerging young star in Tuomo Ruutu, great young defense prospects like Seabrook, Barker and Anton Babchuk. So Sidney would have been sweet icing on a big cake in Chicago.

New York might have been good for Sidney from a financial marketing standpoint, but I don't think it would have been the best thing for his career. Think about it. Sidney Crosby might save the NHL. But if you put him in a position where he has to do everything and be everything right away, then you're setting him up for disaster. Pittsburgh is a good fit because he is a part of the spotlight, and things are expected of him, but he is still not THE GUY. The buck doesn't fall squarely on his shoulders. Now Scotty is sitting there, reading this saying, the Rangers have Jagr, and maybe Messier. And I agree if the Rangers resign Messier, New York may have been suitable, but under no circumstance do I ever want any young player learning about leadership and professionalism from Jaromir 'I'm too good to practice/win' Jagr. New York has a history of asking too much, too soon from it's young players.

There is an added benefit to Crosby landing in Pittsburgh. He will restore the struggling franchise that only a year ago was close to re-locating, and I know my buddy Scotty loves to talk about karma. Well this is Mario Lemieux getting his due. He was owed a lot of money by a team that had seemingly no future. Mario could've demanded his money and folded the team, but instead took ownership and stuck it out. Persistance pays off. I'm happy for him and even happier that I don't have to see Crosby in a Mighty Ducks uniform.

As for the struggling markets, Atlanta will be fine, they've got a boatload of young talent all ready on the team, as well as young guys coming up like Braydon Cobourn and goalie Kari Lehtonen. Tampa Bay is fine, they'll sell out every game. Florida desperately needs to have a good free agent season, as well as at least an improvement from last seasons record. They don't need to make the playoffs right away, but they do need to show everyone that their young players will be a force to be reckoned with before they lose Luongo. They made the right move by getting Keenan and Martin down there. Carolina is a scary market, and I think they'll be first to fold.

This season will hold the emergence of many talented young up and comers. Alexander Ovechkin, who was and is overshadowed by Sidney Crosby is coming over for sure. Good on him. He's turning down a nice living in Russia to make a little under a million in North America. I still am uncertain on all the hype about him. He is extremely, extremely, excessively gifted with skill and size, but I have yet to see all this evidence of him being gritty and physical. In the World Junior tournament this past Christmas, Ovechkin played well in a weak pool, but didn't physically dominate any of the competition, and these were teenagers. In fact, in the Gold Medal game against Canada, it was Ovechkin who was physically intimidated and dominated, forced to sit out the second half of the game after being knocked around a little bit.

Ovechkin has all the tools, but his success will hinge on whether or not he can display the heart and determination that is required to have the respect of his peers. I can see the comparisons to Kovalchuk in the area of offensive agressiveness, but I think Ilya demonstrates a much, much more advanced two way game, and he has also grown up a lot in his two years in the NHL. Alexander, put your big boy pants on, because you've got a lot to prove this year. Take advantage of all the pressure on Sidney and show us what you can do. Unfortunately for Alex, there is not much to work with in Washington.

Posted by Jon at 6:56 AM | | e-mail me