crosby or ovechkin: whos a better goal scorer?

Question

If I was building a team i would choose sidney crosby to start my team. Crosby is a better all around player than ovechkin. Crosby is a better skater than ovehckin. Crosby is a better defensive player than ovehckin. Crosby is a better goal scorer than ovechkin. Crosby who shoots .149 pct career has scored 65 goals on 435 shots. Ovechkin on the other hand shoots a career.119 and has scored only 86 goals on 722 shots. Thats nearly a 300 shot difference and ovechkin has scored only 21 more gaols than crosby!! If crosby took as many shots as ovechkin did he would obviously score more goals every season. But because crosby, unlike ovechkin, is a team player he likes to share the puck and make plays not only with his stick but also with his body, and feet. Id pick crosby over ovechkin to score a goal any day.

Answer 1

If I was making a Team, Crosby is the choice. you can build an entire team around him.

But Ovechkin is (currently) the better goal scorer.

Crosby doesn't just pass the puck so that others can score goals he turns them into goal scorers.

Every player on the Penguins is now a better player just because they've played with Crosby. Guys who had 3 or 4 goals in the seasons before are now scoring 15 and 20 instead directly off Crosby's stick.

You're never going to get that from Ovechkin, but you will have a stick to deliver the puck to.

Ovechkin is going to be more like a Brett Hull or Bobby Hull or Mike Bossy or something, certainly a very strong future Hall of Famer, but Crosby has the potential to be a Lemieux or a Gretzky, just an above and Beyond player who dominates the game.

Crosby has the scoring skill, I assure you of that, but he tends to prefer the pass play, only shooting when its the only clear choice.

Crosby has a disadvantage Ovechkin doesn't, because he carries the puck a lot more, its easier for players to converge on him, while doing the same to Ovechkin who doesn't have it wouldn't make sense. But he uses that disadvantage to draw players off and open up other players to deliver passes to.

Goal scorers also tend to have a shorter lifespan or effective period and tend to have up and down seasons, scoring 50 one season and 30 the next, but high assist players and good hockey sense players remain consistently high and improve the whole team.

EDIT: Crosby is Not on a Good team, Crosby Made the team Good. Before him they were in Last place, that's how they got him in the first place.

Recchi is only good now because Crosby re-energized him, and he's not even on a Line with Stall or Malkin most of the time.
He's got players like Whitney and Christensen who never had anything remarkable going on before they met Sideny.

Answer 2

You can't say that Crosby would OBVIOUSLY score more - shooting percentage would change for him with that many shots. Crosby's style of play doesn't give him that many good shots, Ovechkin's does - thats why he has more goals. Ovechkin makes plays too, not quite as good as Crosby, but some pretty good ones. Also, Ovechkin is always in the right place to score - and doesn't have as many tendencies as to where he goes. Crosby likes to go to the right corner, use his body, and pass to the middle. Ovechkin you see anywhere that leads itself to a good play. Sometimes thats the middle, sometimes at the circle, and sometimes at the point - and he can score from all of those. I would say that just by pure style of play is what gives Ovechkin so many more shots and goals - its what hes good at. Crosby on the other hand, is great at passing, using his body, and finding open guys - therefore, he is better at getting assists, making plays, and not getting as many shots. Crosby's team is overall better too. The Capitals basically have Ovechkin, Zubrus, and Semin to be their offense. The Peguins have Crosby, Malkin, and Recchi. I'd go for that Pens team any day. The Pens have a better goalie too, and better defense.

If I needed an extra attacker to get me a goal to tie the game - I'd send out Ovechkin, if I needed a team player to start the third when we're down by 1, I'd put Crosby out.

Also, what is your basis for Crosby being better on defense? They both make some great defensive plays and are both pretty damned good 2-way forwards.

Finally, I would give the skating title to Ovechkin. Sure, he sucked in the skills competition, but one reason he has more shots is because he out skates almost everyone. He is quicker and has done some much better moves than Crosby has.

Bottom line:
Building a team: Get Crosby
Have a good team but need one more scoring piece: Get Ovechkin

Answer 3

well, lets begin by stating the obvious, theyre both great players. Ovechkin is more of a natural goal scorer than Crosby, but Crosby is a superior asisst man. For those of you who think Croby is so easy to knock off the puck, err, have you even seen Crosby play? he draws contact and pivots away...works his hips and darts off...finds the open man for the goal...over and over again. You are delusional if you think Crosby doesnt have a good game up close, thats where he excels.

On the whole if I had to pick one of them....I'd be happy. At this point give Crosby a slight edge. Even though i did draft Ovechkin just ahead of crosby this year.

Answer 4

Ovechkin is a better scorer and better all around player. Crosby is very good but he is only good at shooting. Ovechkin does not whine like Crosby (learned it from LePuke) Ovechkin hits, passes, scores and did i say Hit?

Crosby will be out of the NHL in 10 years from a severe hang nail injury. He and his team will blame the league for not protecting him and for the players that brushed by him while he was posing. Much like the whiners (Shanahan=I want rules that will help me stay in the game longer) (Keep your head up Shanny, some people still hit) complaining about how poor Jagr is being pushed around. He may have a nervous breakdown soon. The PANZY!

Answer 5

Crosby is definately a better overall player and he makes the players around him better. Even so, Ovechkin is a pure goal scorer, that's just what he does. He doesn't pass nearly as much and shoots more. If you want goal scoring from one player, take Ovechkin. If you want more goals from a line or a team take Crosby for sure.

Answer 6

Seriously, Ovechkin is the best goal scorer in the NHL today. He can score at will, whereas Crosby tries to make the beautiful play to set someone else up. Ovechkin is the pure goal scorer, but Crosby is the better set-up man. Ovechkin also is a better goal scorer for that fact that all he has to support him is Semin and Zubrus, where Crosby has Malkin, Recchi, Staal, Whitney, Gonchar, and Malone, showing that Ovechkin has to work much harder to get his goals than Crosby does.

Answer 7

Ovechkin is the better scorer but because he takes more shots than anyone. If your starting a franchise you have to go with Crosby because he makes everyone on the ice with him better, where as Ovechkin gets and shoots, i'm sure that Ovechkins assist total is distorted too because of rebound goals from all his shooting thats not a bad thing though a goal is a goal.

Answer 8

Goal scorer? They're about the same. The only reason why Crosby's the favourite on this thread is because he gets more air time during the highlight reels than Ovechkin.

Now, if you were to ask who's better to have on a team, I'd take Ovechkin any day. He's actually a man who doesn't cry to momma...but maybe that's because she's in Eastern Europe...

Answer 9

For goal scoring no doubt gotta go with Ovechkin, Crosby is a playmaker, not a sniper he is more likely to pass the puck than to take the shot, Ovechkin however is a sniper and prefers to take the shot rather than pass it off

Answer 10

Ovechkin

He leads in the goal scoring catagory. Crosby is a fantastic play maker, but Ovechkin always drives it home!