11/05/24
January 11, 2008
Alexander the Rich: Alexander the Great has a contract worthy of his nickname--the first $100 million U.S. deal in NHL history. Alex Ovechkin signed a $124 million. 13 year contract extension yesterday with the Washington Capitals, a handsome reward for the 22-year-old charasmatic Russian who has been a nonstop goal-scorer since coming to the NHL in 2005.
posted by tommytrump to hockey at 09:18 AM - 11 comments
The thing is, if Ted Leonsis markets the shit out of him for the run of the contract (and you know a million clauses to that effect are built in), and the Caps have a renaissance that raises the level of the league in the American consciousness, even a little bit, then this will be a bargain. And from everything I've seen, Ovechkin is all about this. Aside from the fact that English isn't his first language, everything else about him -- his looks, his demeanor, his big-goof persona, and of course his mad skills -- makes him an easy sell to the sporting world. There's no shortage of good young marketable players in the NHL these days, but he & Sidney Whassisface are the vanguard. $124m is a lot of money, but if the Capitals win a championship and he continues to improve both on the ice and off, then this is a bargain for all parties involved.
posted by chicobangs at 10:52 AM on January 11, 2008
if the Capitals win a championship O, be still, my beating heart!
posted by Hugh Janus at 11:13 AM on January 11, 2008
I have had a sneaky suspicion for years that one of the only negative fall-outs from the Gretzky era is the belief that one guy can propel a sport like hockey into the consciousness of every city like he did. Gretzky could do this not simply because he was the player he was - but because of the situation that hockey found itself in. His was an era of offense. Goalies hadn't caught up yet. I'm not sure that Crosby or Ovechkin can do this. Firstly because while they're both great players - they are not "head-and-shoulders-above-everyone-else" great players. Gretzky was winning scoring titles by 50-60 points! And the number 2 guy was his left wing!. He scored 92 goals in his third year! Those are hard records (not most-points-scored-by-a-guy-before-his-19th-birthday, records). That's tangible and special. People who don't know hockey can at least relate to dominance. They've seen it in other sports. The game really isn't about that kind of dominance anymore unless you're talking about a goalie. Crosby and Ovechkin are exciting players - but neither one of them is currently leading the league in goals or points. I expect Crosby to be there at the end - but there are other good young players out there that could threaten the implied dominance of these two - Heatley, Iginla, Lecavalier, Zetterberg, Kovalchuk - would you put those guys far behind Ovechkin and Crosby? Probably - but their numbers are too close. (And will they need Ovechkin money if their numbers are better?) And I recall Washington thinking they had already accomplished such a move with Jagr back when hockey was actually popular and the Caps were actually making the playoffs. And remember that Pittsburgh had Mario and almost tanked anyway. No they'll try to sell the game that way - but I think we need an American born superstar - Something we haven't seen before. Sadly Patrick Kane is good - but he probably isn't that player.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 11:15 AM on January 11, 2008
Weedy's right. This deal totally reminded me of Washington and Jagr. Or the Islanders and Yashin. Or DiPietro. Or whatever. I just can't get over it. The owners lock out the players and sacrifice a season, begging to be saved from themselves. But the minute they force a deal through, they start systematically hosing themselves again. Maybe next time, they should lock themselves out.
posted by fabulon7 at 02:15 PM on January 11, 2008
Mock me at your peril. DiPietro may be US-born, but he's just not as high-profile or outgoing a personality as Ovechkin is. (Shit, Ryan Miller is the goalie in all the league ads now. Yay for him and all, but I'm saying.) Ted Leonsis may be a big ole dork, but he's got a better sense of PR than Charles Wang ever did. This isn't as crazy as many deals of this kind that have come down the pipe lately. I am choosing to be optimistic, even if only because something has to stick to the wall, and the NHL's run of continuous self-immolation has been interrupted lately by the occasional spasm of positive news. Optimism is free. Good on everyone concerned. Now, I hope they get out there and sell this fucking sport already.
posted by chicobangs at 03:20 PM on January 11, 2008
I guess my point is that it's just not necessary. What's wrong with signing Ovechkin to a 5 year deal? Or a 6 year deal? Why does it have to be so long? This isn't a Dipietro deal where you get a cheap all-star early and a overpaid benchwarmer late. Ovechkin is making 9.5MM per. It's a horrible, horrible precedent.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 03:32 PM on January 11, 2008
Ted Leonsis may be a big ole dork, but he's got a better sense of PR than Charles Wang ever did. You mean because of the last name thing?
posted by yerfatma at 03:34 PM on January 11, 2008
I'm with weedy on this one. Ovechkin is very, very talented but he is not head and shoulders above the rest of the league. Thirteen years and $124 million seems like an obscene amount to pay one player, especially when one considers all the things that could go wrong in those thirteen years.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 05:16 PM on January 11, 2008
Ovechkin who? Not to many URO'S Can play at that level for that long. For that kind of money shouln't he speak english? Brush his hair, teeth shower, replace his front teeth? I like this guy but come on that is a lot of $$ and not needed.. I hope I eat crow. What is needed in my opinion is the original teams to be successfull. BlackHawks, MapleLeafs, Redwings, Hab's, Bruins, Rangers, all in very good markets. Then we wouldn't have to sign very good players to Super status contracts Have a great weekend. ,
posted by rstack2 at 08:12 PM on January 11, 2008
And remember that Pittsburgh had Mario and almost tanked anyway. Actually, Pittsburgh almost tanked before and after having Mario on the team. When he was actually on the ice playing the game (before his first retirement), they did quite well (on the scoreboard and in the stands).
posted by grum@work at 09:03 PM on January 11, 2008
The NHL has turned into a Three Stooges sketch ad infinitum. Ovechkin now takes up about 18% of all available cap space on that team. And no TV deal. And failing teams everywhere. With fake free-ticket-giveaway boosted attendance numbers. Of possibly I'm just bitter because my Leafs can make the Kings look like an all-star team. (With apparently no repercussions to anyone involved.)