Just eight months ago, the paths of Capitals star left wing Alex Ovechkin and Pittsburgh Penguins star center Sidney Crosby diverged.
Ovechkin’s team shook off an early-season slump and finished atop the Eastern Conference again, poised this time for a deep run in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Crosby, meanwhile, was still fighting the debilitating concussion symptoms that began after a collision with Caps forward David Steckel in the Winter Classic on Jan. 1 and were exacerbated in his next game Jan. 5 against Tampa Bay. With fellow star center Evgeni Malkin also out with ACL and MCL tears in his right knee, the Penguins were a playoff long shot.
But Washington never seems to get the upper hand in this rivalry. Instead, the Caps were unceremoniously bounced from the postseason in the second round by Tampa Bay. And after a fast start to the 2011-12 campaign, the team has struggled — a 5-9-1 stretch cost former coach Bruce Boudreau his job Monday. It hasn’t helped that Ovechkin has eight goals and 10 assists in 23 games — decent numbers for mere mortals but not good enough for a player with the league’s highest salary-cap hit.
| Up next |
| Penguins at Capitals |
| When » Thursday, 7 p.m. |
| Where » Verizon Center |
| TV » CSN |
And while the Penguins, too, were beaten by Tampa Bay last spring, things have taken a decided turn in Pittsburgh’s favor again. Crosby returned to much fanfare Nov. 21 and has two goals and nine assists in just four games — 61 percent of Ovechkin’s point total in 19 fewer games. Now, as the two teams prepare to play Thursday night at Verizon Center, the Penguins (14-7-4, 32 points) have the most points in the NHL entering Wednesday night’s games. Washington (12-10-1, 25 points) is mired in 10th in the conference, its 7-0 start to the season a distant memory.
“It’s going to be good battle. [Crosby’s] come back, I think everybody excited,” Ovechkin said. “And it’s good that he’s healthy and that he can play hockey. It’s pretty tough. Like I remember when I missed my games [because of an injury in March] and I got suspended for couple games. Like I just sit there and I want to play so hard and so bad. And he missed almost a year.”
About the only thing in Washington’s favor is its record against the Penguins in recent years. The Caps are 11-0-2 against Pittsburgh in the last 13 regular-season contests. Crosby missed three of those games, including Washington’s 3-2 overtime win at CONSOL Energy Center on Oct. 13. Malkin missed four and the Penguins’ other top center, Jordan Staal, sat out just one. It is the Caps’ first bout with Crosby since the Winter Classic. But even under new coach Dale Hunter, the plan does not change: Be physical with him while not crowding too much.
“[Crosby] has got a strong core and lower body, so if you go too hard he’ll spin on you and be gone,” Hunter said. “You’ve got to be smart and contain him and get help.”
