Players

How Great Was That Ovi Goal?

(Caps Outsider)

We’ve seen so many goals scored by Alex Ovechkin over the years, but only a handful truly stand out as out-of-this world.

No, I’m not talking about the routine Ovi-from-the-Ovi-spot on the power play. As great as those goals are, he does it so often and they’re rarely memorable. I mean, okay Ovi, we know you can do that. We get it. Entertain us some other way, would you?

Ovechkin’s first goal of the game against Montreal on Saturday was one of those memorable ones. A left wing, he went to right boards (to my befuddlement at the time), drifts to the middle of the ice, gets the puck nudged to him, spins around, whacks the hell out of it, straight into the top corner.

Most players don’t spin. They nudge it back to an open Brooks Orpik on the point. Or, they cut back and battle for possession. And if they did spin, most wouldn’t shoot, but whack it deep to avoid the turnover. If they did shoot, it would likely go way wide. If they did get the shot on net, the goalie would save it. And if the goalie didn’t save it, it’s because Alex Ovechkin did it.

This goal wasn’t better than, say, the Phoenix, The Montreal, or many others where the combination of his speed, strength, dekes and shot put him back in the Number One spot on SportsCenter’s highlights. But what this goal Saturday showed was that Ovi still has the ability to simply make a goal happen when there shouldn’t be one, even when the opposing players are in position and not allowing him to power through. Now those are entertaining.

Check out the 10 Best Goals from Alex Ovechkin from the Hockey News.

Here’s a video of Ovi’s best goals, made in 2008.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNTCSWvyglA

 

Ben Sumner

Ben Sumner is the editor of Capitals Outsider. He also works for The Washington Post and contributes there when he gets a scoop.

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