Todays NHL
Monday, November 02, 2009

Posted by 11Peter11

Who is the best player in the NHL? Today we marvel at the pure skill of a player such as Alexander Ovechkin and stare in awe at the playmaking abilities of one Sidney Crosby. Although these two players are great athletes and phenomenal hockey players, we are too soon to forget the legends that played the game. Wayne Gretzky has a record of 215 points in one season, last year Evgani Malkin led the league with 113 points. The greatest players in today’s game have a hard time getting to Gretzky’s half way marker. Comparing today’s players with the likes of The Great One is a joke, so who is the NHL’s top guy today?

Alexander Ovechkin is a goal scoring machine. He is one of the most skilled players in league and also one of the most entertaining. Dangling the puck around desperate defensemen is when he is in his glory. He uses his quick feet and bursts of speed to get to the net and when there he makes it count. One deadly weapon in his arsenal is his quick snap shot that catches even the best goalies off guard. Not to mention his ability to score goals from his back. While talented Ovechkin is not modest. He loves to put on a show jumping into the glass or ridiculous cellys that gets the opposing team fired up.

Evgani Malkin is not to be left out of the equation. This Art Ross Trophy winner can play with the best of them. At 6’3 and 195 pounds Malkin is not your typical top point getter. Receiving the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s top rookie, Malkin certainly has a resume of a great hockey player.

Sidney Crosby has been followed by media since the young age of 14. This prodigy could be seen racking up 6 goals a game at 14 with the Dartmouth subways, a major midget hockey team full of 17 and 18 yr olds. Since finally making his way into the NHL he has created ripples everywhere he plays in the hockey world. Winning the Art Ross Trophy in his second year, he was the first teenager to ever win a scoring title in any sport. Now he has won the Stanley Cup, being the youngest captain ever to do so.

While these three players have qualities that will put their names in the record books, it isn’t easy to choose “the best” so I’m not going to try. This being the biggest, dirtiest hockey community on the web throw a name in the comments whoever you think is the best hockey player in today’s game.