Spencer Carbery on whether any younger NHL player compares to Alex Ovechkin and Wayne Gretzky
Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals have had plenty to celebrate over the last calendar year. Ovechkin, now 40, scored his 895th career goal to pass Wayne Gretzky for the all-time NHL record on April 6, reaching a milestone that once seemed untouchable. Almost exactly six months later, Ovechkin became the first player in the league’s history to reach the 900-goal mark, and he played his 1,500th game in October.
Ahead of Wednesday’s pregame ceremony celebrating Ovechkin’s milestones this season, Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery was asked whether any of the sport’s younger players had a comparable mindset to players like Ovechkin and Gretzky. Carbery pointed to the rarity of both of Ovechkin’s recent achievements — highlighting his goalscoring talent as well as his ability to resist aging as vital factors for any player looking to catch up.
“There’s so many great players in the league right now. I’d be hard pressed, though, that company that you’re talking about, the Ovis and Waynes — I mean, you look at Connor (McDavid) and — but I mean, they are in rare, rare company, of what they’ve been able to do for as long (as they have),” Carbery said. “That’s the key, right? Is the consistency and to be able to do it for 17, 18, 19 years.
“There’s some phenomenal players in the league that you look at right now. If they continue to do that for another 10 years — but that’s hard. That’s half the battle, is the attrition of being able to play at such a high level: score, and produce, and be productive, and still be a difference maker on a winning hockey team. And to be able to do that for 20 years, those two guys are one of a kind.”
McDavid has a ways to go to match Ovechkin’s early-career scoring. He’s earned 371 goals in 737 games, compared to Ovechkin’s 459 goals in that span. Auston Matthews, who Carbery coached in Toronto, has a better chance: he’s scored 410 goals in 646 career games, compared to Ovechkin’s 405.
Neither player, however, has matched Ovechkin’s resilience. McDavid has missed 71 career games in 10 seasons, while Matthews has missed 76 over nine seasons. Ovechkin, meanwhile, has missed just 76 total games over his 21-season NHL career. If either player wanted a chance of topping Ovechkin’s record, they’d need to stay healthy — and productive — for at least another decade.
Carbery is no stranger to seeing Ovechkin make history by this point, and he admitted that it’s easy to forget just how impressive his career has been. But even if it doesn’t fully sink in now, Carbery knows he’ll be grateful for these moments long after his coaching career is done.
“I feel like I’ve had a front row seat the last two and a half years of getting to witness greatness firsthand,” Carbery said. “I think I’ll appreciate it so much more looking back and just going like, ‘I was there for that, that, that, that,’ all these different moments of being able to have a front row seat and be along for the ride. Because it is, I’ve said this a bunch through the chase and through the last two years, you almost take it a little bit for granted, that it’s just like, ‘Oh, it’s Alex. Of course, he’s the greatest goal scorer in the history of the game. Of course, he’s going to play 1500 games.’
“To be scoring the way he has at the point in his career and throughout his career is just hard to wrap your head around. I think the appreciation I have and will have — I was actually thinking about this, I ran into him yesterday on the off day at the rink — of just (that) I’ve been able to get to coach the greatest goal scorer in the history of the game for the last two and a half years, and I’m going to be able to look back on that and go, ‘Wow.’ (I’m) very, very fortunate.”
Steelers Are Not In 'Any Hurry' To Give Aaron Rodgers' Old Friend A Chance
The Pittsburgh Steelers may have lost 31-28 on Sunday to the Chicago Bears in Week 12, but the offense was still severely questionable throughout the entirety of the second half. One of those four touchdowns was a defensive score, and the only one they had in the second half was on a 17-play drive where many fans were calling for the team to score at a much quicker pace. Quarterback Mason Rudolph had just 171 yards on 24 completions, as he was throwing checkdowns all game long. His deep ball was not on point, and there seemed to be no backup plan once the short passing game and rush offense got contained.
Obviously, something is very wrong with the offense, and something needs to change. Many feel it goes beyond getting Aaron Rodgers back from injury. Even when he does return to the field, it sounds like one of his all-time favorite targets will not be the subject of this potential change either, according to insider Gerry Dulac of the
"The Steelers do not appear to be in any hurry to sign receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, a former Aaron Rodgers target in Green Bay, to the active roster," Dulac said. "Maybe it will change if Rodgers pleads hard enough with Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith."
It's no secret that Rodgers had a hand in the Steelers bringing in wide receiver Marquez Valdez-Scantling to the practice squad, but he has not been activated ever since he came to Pittsburgh. It's unclear how well he is doing in practice, but with six wide receivers on the active roster, it will be difficult for him to jump into the lineup over any of them at this point.
Of course, Rodgers and Valdez-Scantling had a solid connection during their time together with the Green Bay Packers. In their four years together, the receiver became a reliable big-play threat, which included a league-leading 20.9 yards per reception to go along with six touchdowns in 2020. With the lack of splash plays, maybe the veteran quarterback does try to convince the coaches to elevate him to the active roster for at least one game.
Steelers Have A Big Issue That Valdez-Scantling Could Maybe Fix
The Steelers have had a stunning lack of big plays in the passing game, so it would make sense why Rodgers would want to give his old friend a shot. If they can't get any big plays with the guys on the current roster, maybe he can find some sort of connection with Valdez-Scantling, like he did around the turn of the decade, especially if Arthur Smith can scheme up a few deep balls for him.
No passes over 20 air yards in an entire month is awfully concerning, especially in a passing league. That's also a red flag due to how explosive the passing game was in the first month and a half of the season. What looked like a great strength of the team has fallen into one of its biggest weaknesses. The Steelers won't be a threat in the playoffs if that trend continues in a sport that thrives off of huge plays.
Of course, Valdez-Scantling is a practice squad guy for a reason. He has not been able to stick with one team for a while ever since he won a Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs. Reuniting with Rodgers might be his best chance at reviving his career, but he still needs to show that he has that burst that can get him open down the sideline or the seam like it has in clutch moments in previous years.
