How's Ovechkin looking this season? (esp. his -14 so far)

[The Panther]

I've only seen the Caps play once or twice this year, so I have no grasp on Ovechkin's current level of play. He's getting pretty old by hockey standards (37), and I notice he's an unattractive -14 already, early in the season.

Now, the Caps are struggling a bit and have some regulars out, etc., and I think the club is something like -6 at even strength, so you expect regulars to be fighting it a bit. But only one other forward (Strome, who's new) is worse than -5. I presume Ovechkin has been on the ice for all empty-net goals against, but then I suppose so have other Caps.

Anyway, the good news is he (again!) leads the club in scoring and has a healthy 8 goals. We know he can break out in a hot streak at any time.

But how does he look, in comparison to a year or two ago? Does he appear to be losing speed / endurance? Or, is he the same as ever and it's just a matter of the Caps' early season struggles?

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[Sky04]

He looks fine? Production is just cold right now and the Caps have had injuries, he still leads the team in points & goals, his main role is purely production right now at his age.

 

[95snipes]

Seems slower from what I've seen. Farily fast when he gets going but that isn't too often these days. He's just a nonfactor much of the time. Been trending this way for a long time, but seems another step in that direction this year.

Still always a threat though of course.

 

[Rengorlex]

Prioritizes individual scoring over winning as he has for a long time.

 

[tabness]

Maybe that amazing start last year was the last time Ovechkin flexed his will on the league?

I think this is the year he's finally gonna only score like 20-30 and not rebound with a 50 goal year, but then again, Capitals have so many injuries and maybe playing with some of the players he's used to gets him higher, let's see.

 

[Roshi]

Slow"ish" he is, and his dangle is terrible today, but thats nothing new. Overall he is fine. Maybe pushing a bit too much and trying to do some things hisself where he should just let the other guys jump in.

Some bad luck too, he has like 5 or 6 posts already and bunch missed opportunities besides that. Could easily have double digits on scoreboard by now. Some of that starts going in at some point.

As far for the -14, he has had couple bad games to boost it up but most of that has just been combination of EN-against and unfortunate timing. That should level up some aswell with the long run, though Caps might not be in the position to get the EN-for going their way too often.

 

[saffronleaf]

that hit on ruuttaa was a thing of beauty

had a beautiful between the legs pass too

 

[Demandedace]

His play has been one of the few positive things this season so far for the most part. He’s had some spectacular playmaking as well as shooting, the problem right now is the Caps as a whole are just not good.

From coaching on down we are not a very good hockey team, and with the multitude of injuries we have (you mention “some” guys being out, but we’ve had literally ~50% of our cap out injured for a good portion of the young season so far) it’s hard to overcome. Kuznetsov has also not been great so far (barely even good a lot of nights) so when Ovi is playing with a sub par center and various non-lethal off wings he is going to suffer as a result. Couple that with our power play continuing to be lousy because we refuse to fire Forsythe and change things up, and it’s a recipe for where we are at now.

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

I've only seen the Caps play once or twice this year, so I have no grasp on Ovechkin's current level of play. He's getting pretty old by hockey standards (37), and I notice he's an unattractive -14 already, early in the season.

Now, the Caps are struggling a bit and have some regulars out, etc., and I think the club is something like -6 at even strength, so you expect regulars to be fighting it a bit. But only one other forward (Strome, who's new) is worse than -5. I presume Ovechkin has been on the ice for all empty-net goals against, but then I suppose so have other Caps.

Anyway, the good news is he (again!) leads the club in scoring and has a healthy 8 goals. We know he can break out in a hot streak at any time.

But how does he look, in comparison to a year or two ago? Does he appear to be losing speed / endurance? Or, is he the same as ever and it's just a matter of the Caps' early season struggles?

His +/- looks worse than it usually would mainly for 3 reasons.

- The Caps have a losing record this year, and they’re getting scored on instantly when they pull the goalie.
- The bulk of Ovechkin’s production is on the PP so far, which doesn’t contribute positively to +/-.
- The Caps (including Ovechkin) defensively are a worse team than last year, due to injuries and natural decline.

By the eye test, he looks 37 most of the time, but he’ll have a game or two (see Oilers game) where he appears to turn the clock back to 32 offensively and physically.

Overall, the Caps have arrived at a situation where he is asked to carry the club on his shoulders for the 18th season, and it’s obvious that he can’t do it for 82 games anymore.

He’s getting very little help from others, and it’s frustrating to watch as a fan. It’s totally possible to build a younger team that can contend for the Cup while allowing him to chase the record in parallel, but the Caps management saddled themselves to some contracts that weigh the franchise down.

 

[AlexModvechkin8]

He’s the last thing I’m worried about on a very long list of things to be worried about when it comes to the Caps this year.

Could have 5-6 more goals, he’s had rotten luck with posts.

 

[Flying Dego]

He’s the last thing I’m worried about on a very long list of things to be worried about when it comes to the Caps this year.

Could have 5-6 more goals, he’s had rotten luck with posts.

As a Pens fan this is a depiction of our teams battling it out over the next couple years...we had fun through the years though right?

 

[hatterson]

He didn't seem significantly different than the past couple years in the game he played against the Leafs. Lots of PP time, always a threat with his shot, getting slower, but not clearly out of place or anything.

 

[Conbon]

Prioritizes individual scoring over winning as he has for a long time.

This is the truth. Watch the games and specifically isolate on him. He coasts. Nobody else in the league would be able to get away with the lack of f***s he's playing with. Especially on the point on PP2, if the puck gets past him he doesn't even bother to skate back and floats in the neutral zone until the dman retreats and gets it back to him.

 

[AlexModvechkin8]

As a Pens fan this is a depiction of our teams battling it out over the next couple years...we had fun through the years though right?

View attachment 608139

Best rivalry in hockey for a decade, winner of the Caps/Pens playoff series won the Cup three years in a row, Ovi and Sid somehow surpassed the insane expectations put on them and rewrote the record books, and pretty much 15 straight years of making the playoffs for both franchises… yeah, it was a good run.

 

[trick9]

He is fine, like the least of the Capitals worries.

Our top-6 is decimated by injuries so he's getting even more attention than he did before.

 

[Flying Dego]

Best rivalry in hockey for a decade, winner of the Caps/Pens playoff series won the Cup three years in a row, Ovi and Sid somehow surpassed the insane expectations put on them and rewrote the record books, and pretty much 15 straight years of making the playoffs for both franchises… yeah, it was a good run.

I feel so old now and though I think we've got some crazy great young players now... What Sid and Ovi did (to a slightly smaller extent Geno) for hockey was unmatched for the last several decades.

Like McDavid is awesome but the impact of Sid and Ovi's rivalry from when they were just 18/19 was bonkers. I think people don't appreciate it enough.

I still have memories being absolutely adrenaline filled for Caps/Pens games. Ovi was an absolute nightmare to watch. It's easy for people to forget the speed and ferocity Sid, Ovi, and Geno went at it over their early years.

I'll always have a ton of respect for Ovechkin, without him the Pens success would feel less complete.

 

[Absolut]

He looks old, slow and still better than anyone else on the Caps. Ain't easy being productive with half the team out.

 

[AlexModvechkin8]

I feel so old now and though I think we've got some crazy great young players now... What Sid and Ovi did (to a slightly smaller extent Geno) for hockey was unmatched for the last several decades.

Like McDavid is awesome but the impact of Sid and Ovi's rivalry from when they were just 18/19 was bonkers. I think people don't appreciate it enough.

I still have memories being absolutely adrenaline filled for Caps/Pens games. Ovi was an absolute nightmare to watch. It's easy for people to forget the speed and ferocity Sid, Ovi, and Geno went at it over their early years.

I'll always have a ton of respect for Ovechkin, without him the Pens success would feel less complete.

To be candid almost all of my animosity towards the Pens and any anxiety around hockey in general disappeared with 2018. Ovi and the Caps winning the Cup instantly erased so much of the bullshit and has allowed me to just enjoy the sport and the rivalries in a way I didn’t or couldn’t before with all of the ways they figured out to lose in the playoffs. It’s been pretty sweet, and now I get to sit back and watch Ovi chase down Gretzky.

Will be wild watching Sid, Ovi, Geno, Backstrom, Carlson, Letang, etc all ride off into the sunset most likely having played for only the Pens and Caps. They all made a huge impact on the sport and on these two franchises.

 

[orby]

Ovi is no spring chicken. His plus-minus sucks, sure...but 14 points in 17 games is nothing to sneeze at for a 37 year old player. He's still pacing for almost 40 goals.

The fact of the matter is the era where Crosby and Ovi were the league's premier dominant players has already been over for a while. Even so, Ovi will likely break Gretzky's goals record if he can simply stay in the league for a few more seasons and find ways to get open on the power play.

 

[Neil Racki]

Ovi looks to pass more than before, good eye and creativity
Shot is always there
Our best, most impactful night in night out player ... at 37
6 empty nets goals against so far dont help his +/- but the team is struggling

The old man is alright

 

[Flying Dego]

To be candid almost all of my animosity towards the Pens and any anxiety around hockey in general disappeared with 2018. Ovi and the Cals winning the Cup instantly erased so much of the bullshit and has allowed me to just enjoy the sport and the rivalries in a way I didn’t or couldn’t before with all of the ways they figured out to lose in the playoffs. It’s been pretty sweet, and now I get to sit back and watch Ovi chase down Gretzky.

Will be wild watching Sid, Ovi, Geno, Backstrom, Carlson, Letang, etc all ride off into the sunset most likely having played for only the Pens and Caps. They all made a huge impact on the sport and on these two franchises.

Agreed. It's funny cause I to hated the Caps for quite some time but now I feel like it's a brothers relationship.

Like we fight a lot but when someone talks shit about the Caps or the era I feel pissed off. Like hey back off if anyone gonna give them problems it's me!

 

[itsjustsurvival]

Agreed. It's funny cause I to hated the Caps for quite some time but now I feel like it's a brothers relationship.

Like we fight a lot but when someone talks shit about the Caps or the era I feel pissed off. Like hey back off if anyone gonna give them problems it's me!

Totally agree. I'm a Caps fan but most of my friends and family are Penguins fans. Over the years, we have all arrived in the same place you describe.

 

[tfwnogf]

I've only seen the Caps play once or twice this year, so I have no grasp on Ovechkin's current level of play. He's getting pretty old by hockey standards (37), and I notice he's an unattractive -14 already, early in the season.

Now, the Caps are struggling a bit and have some regulars out, etc., and I think the club is something like -6 at even strength, so you expect regulars to be fighting it a bit. But only one other forward (Strome, who's new) is worse than -5. I presume Ovechkin has been on the ice for all empty-net goals against, but then I suppose so have other Caps.

Anyway, the good news is he (again!) leads the club in scoring and has a healthy 8 goals. We know he can break out in a hot streak at any time.

But how does he look, in comparison to a year or two ago? Does he appear to be losing speed / endurance? Or, is he the same as ever and it's just a matter of the Caps' early season struggles?

He looks like a beast from the games I watched. Don't worry, he will pot 40+ goals and be that much closer to overtaking Gretz.

 

[ottawa]

Seems like a question better asked on the Caps board no? I imagine most mainboard folks only watch their own teams

 

[Mickey Marner]

He’s mostly transitioned into being a turret. The explosiveness is gone, but the shot is remains elite. Should still score 40ish goals, but he’s aged out of being an offensive force.