TORONTO — Everyone remembers Raymond Bourque with Colorado in 2001 and Lanny McDonald with the Flames in 1989, but there haven’t been all that many marquee, late-in-life, first-time Cup winners. Certainly there haven’t been many narrative-changers.
But Alex Ovechkin’s 2018 championship, following years of coming up short in the tournament — and for at least a decade in essentially every high-end competition that included Sidney Crosby — not only changed the narrative for him and his franchise, he is playing as if the spring elevated him into an exclusive club of Cup-winners where only members know the secret.
The chips on his and the Capitals’ shoulders are earned. It is for the first time possible to envision Ovechkin, who entered Saturday with 636 career goals, zooming by Gordie Howe’s second-best 801 to challenge the all-time record of 894 held by unreachable star Wayne Gretzky.
And it is Ovechkin’s step up in class that has altered the historical ranking of the top two draft picks as a tandem as selected by Slap Shots, ranked here from 10 to 1:
10. 1970 (1. Gilbert Perreault, Sabres; 2. Dale Tallon, Canucks) Perreault recorded 1,326 points in 1,191 games and was the magic centerpiece to Buffalo’s French Connection of the ’70s in skating between Rick Martin and Rene Robert. Tallon had a strong NHL career of 642 games that only paled in comparison to the No. 1 selection.
9. 1997 (1. Joe Thornton, Bruins; 2. Patrick Marleau, Sharks) Teammates for more than a decade in San Jose, sure shots to become the second one-two punch to gain induction into the Hall of Fame. Just under 950 goals and 1650 assists — and no Cups at this late juncture — between them.
8. 1988 (1. Mike Modano, North Stars, 2. Trevor Linden, Canucks) Modano is in the short sentence conversation with Pat LaFontaine as the greatest U.S.-born forward in history, recording a career 1,374 points. Linden was a dominant force in Vancouver before joining witness protection with a dysfunctional franchise on the Island.
7. 1973 (1. Denis Potvin, Islanders; 2. Tom Lysiak, Flames) Potvin is one of the six or eight greatest defensemen in NHL history, as mean and physically intimidating as he was skilled. Nobody was better at the first pass or operating from the point on the power play. Lysiak played in over 900 NHL games while recording 843 points as a quintessential two-way center.
6. 2008 (1. Steven Stamkos, Lightning; 2. Drew Doughty, Kings) Stamkos has scored 40 or more goals in all four seasons in which he has played at least 80 games and is the last NHL player to score 60 goals in a season (2011-12). Doughty has won a Norris, has been a first-team All-Star twice and was a linchpin on a pair of Cup winners before his 24th birthday.
5. 2015 (1. Conor McDavid, Oilers; 2. Jack Eichel, Sabres) There is a fair amount of projection here, but barring misfortune, we are likely witnessing two of the NHL’s top five-to-seven players over the next 15 years. (A year or so from now, and the Auston Matthews-Patrik Laine 2016 top of the draft could merit inclusion on this list.)
4. 1987 (1. Pierre Turgeon, Sabres; 2. Brendan Shanahan, Devils) Turgeon has the most career points (1.327) of any eligible player not to be voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame and is probably a hair behind LaFontaine and John Tavares as the greatest non-dynasty Islander. But if not for the dastardly Dale Hunter in 1993, Turgeon would likely walk with the franchise legends. Shanahan was the preeminent power forward of his time whose acquisition by the Red Wings turned that team from chronic underachievers to all-time status.
3. 1984 (1. Mario Lemieux, Penguins; 2. Kirk Muller, Devils) The most shameless tank job of them all kept Lemieux from New Jersey. Instead, No. 66 became one of the top-five players of all time in Pittsburgh while Muller had an excellent 959-point career capped by his tenure as captain of the Islanders … well, no, please delete that … capped by his 1993 Cup victory with Montreal.
2. 1971 (1. Guy Lafleur, Canadiens; 2. Marcel Dionne, Red Wings) The only one-two HHOF class extant. Lafleur was a charismatic, dominant goal-scorer who gained six first All-Star selections at right wing and won a pair of Hart Trophies in Montreal before his later life with the Rangers and Nordiques. Centered the explosive Triple Crown Line in Los Angeles with Charlie Simmer on the left and Dave Taylor on the right and is the fifth-leading goal-scorer in NHL history (731), but won just three playoff series across his 17-year career.
1. 2004 (1. Ovechkin, Capitals; 2. Evgeni Malkin, Penguins) It is Ovechkin’s ascension that has done the previously believed impossible and knocked Lafleur-Dionne out of the top spot. Malkin’s omission from the NHL’s Greatest 100 represents one of the most striking misses (with Pierre Pilote, Dale Hawerchuk and Rod Gilbert) from the list.
Honorable Mention: 2009 (1. Tavares, Islanders; 2. Victor Hedman, Lightning).
Dishonorable Mention: 1975 (1. Mel Bridgman, Flyers; 2. Barry Dean, Scouts).
So it was a week ago, four decades after the fact, a fellow from the Rangers’ past happened to mention the Ken Hodge-Rick Middleton exchange between Blueshirts GM Phil Esposito — oh, sorry, not yet in title; it was GM John Ferguson — and Boston’s Harry Sinden that did not work out so well on Broadway.
“You know that when Fergy went after Hodge, they didn’t ask for Middleton,” the voice said with authority. “They wanted [Steve] Vickers, but the Rangers refused to do that. That’s how Middleton wound up in Boston.”It wasn’t a crazy call. Lusting after a past prime time-Hodge (at Esposito’s urging) might have been nuts, but ruling Vickers off-limits wasn’t. Indeed, Vickers recorded 105 goals and 200 points his first four seasons as opposed to Middleton’s 91 goals and 192 points. And Vickers brought a physical element to the game while Middleton was, well, he was nifty.
Vickers retired with 246 goals and 586 points in 698 games (all with the Rangers) while Middleton finished with 448 goals and 988 points in 1,005 matches and his number 16 up with the other spoked-B legends.
Holiday Snapshot. Elite Eight: 1. Tampa Bay; 2. Winnipeg; 3. Toronto; 4. Nashville; 5. Washington; 6. Colorado; 7. Calgary; 8. Buffalo.
It probably isn’t Ryan O’Reilly.
Biggest Disappointments: 1. Carolina; 2. Los Angeles; 3. St. Louis; 4. Florida; 5. Devils; 6. Philadelphia; 7. Chicago; 8. Arizona.
If you don’t have Tavares in your top five for the Hart Trophy, you probably haven’t been paying quite enough attention.
The Hart Trophy, Philadelphia-style: 1. Gene (announcer); 2. Lauren (singer); 3. Carter (goalie).
And finally, as to the Flyers, when Mr. Snider owned and operated the team, everyone knew the man behind the curtain. Everyone knew who spoke for the franchise. Now, not so much at all.