Yeah Tony but…. Ovie is not a Penguin so he is not scrutinized like they are… Ovie is a real hockey player who never whines and plays with ‘passion’.... Ovie gives an interview flair with his awesome witticisms and tremendous insight and most importantly doesnt give boring answers…Ovie is the great 8 who shall always be applauded for whatever he does because he is not Crosby… in this era that we live in now it seems being an *#$%@& should go hand in hand with being a star because, ya know, that will help grow hockey because it brings some character to the sport… and because he is Ovie, one of the top stars in this league anything he does will be attempted to be swept under the carpet ala the ‘beating up on women and journalists at the Olympics’... and if anything shall come about people will say how come Crosby doesnt get suspended or Malkin for his slewfoot…and dammit its all Crosby’s and the Penguins fault that Ovie gets suspended because you know Gary Bettmen is in love with them…

Posted by samsaidhey on 03/14/10 at 08:17 PM ET

Gosh dangit, you’re right…..

Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 03/14/10 at 08:19 PM ET

Short and sweet. Cooke definitely should have been suspended, but Ovechkin is ABSOLUTELY no “cleaner” of a player. Playing at a “high level” doesn’t mean you’re allowed to play reckless, and reckless he is. Sadly, the NHL has dropped the ball too many times, so another dirty play by another dirty player will receive a free pass.

Posted by topshelf from Florida on 03/14/10 at 08:20 PM ET

Nice job Tony.

I wanna add that there’s no video anywhere of the 4 or 5 blatant runs and attempts to injure that Ovechkin took at Malkin back in October or November last season at the Igloo. It’s a shame. Someone should look this up and upload it to YouTube. A couple of those runs were away from the puck. It was really embarrassing stuff that doesn’t belong in the game.

Thankfully, Malkin saw OV coming each time, otherwise it’d be up on YouTube for sure.

- Here’s the famous run OV took at Malkin from that game on Versus 2 years ago - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZkPn9kjRFE
- Here’s OV taking another blatant run at Malkin again, this time in Game 7 with his team down 5-0, and instead he takes out Nicklas Backstrom - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XK8N1AZu1Qw

That stuff is just garbage. It’s one thing hitting guys open ice cleanly, and it’s another thing taking 10 strides and looking to take guys out at full speed.

Of course, Ovechkin still hasn’t fought since his rookie season, when he had a fluky fight with Mike Richards after Richards got in his head.

OV today said “it was only a push”. But anyone who’s been watching the NHL for more than a couple years (so about 2% of all Caps fans) knows that play is dangerous as hell. Maxim Lapierre got 4 games a couple weeks ago for a hit that was pretty much just like that one, the only exception being that Scott Nichol of the Sharks didn’t have the puck.

Apparently Campbell is out for the season and nutjobs like ESPN’s Scott Burnside who is perhaps the worst hockey columnist in the world is saying OV doesn’t deserve a suspension at all. He says he deserves a free pass THIS TIME. Ha! As if he hasn’t gotten enough free passes.

I’m with you 100% on Cooke, he should have been suspended. But 2 wrongs don’t make a right. Ovechkin doesn’t know how to clean guys cleanly. He hits players that are in vulnerable positions. He constantly takes 10 strides to hit guys at full speed. It doesn’t matter what his intent is - when you make irresponsible plays you should pay the price. Cooke should have been suspended, and OV should be as well.

But the NHL won’t do anything about it this time because suspending Ovechkin twice in one season is probably too much to ask from them.

By the way, Crosby crushed Meszaros today with a great shoulder to shoulder hit. There’s a guy who knows how to pick his spots.

Posted by LGP8771 on 03/14/10 at 08:29 PM ET

While I’ve never though of Ovechkin as dirty, despite the growing list of questionable hits, it’s becoming harder to keep him off that list.

Capitals and Ovechkin fans are going to get their backs up over this one, and I can’t really say I blame them. The biggest defense will be that he plays 110mph all the time, and his aggressive style of play will inevitably lead to some pain. Hits don’t tickle, after all.

But I think everyone, Caps/Ovi fans need to start looking at this RAPIDLY growing list of evidence. Those 9 clips are not fake, and they are not hyperbole. Those are all dangerous/reckless/dirty hits. Dismissing them, like everyone did with the Gonchar hit because he’s Ovi’s pal, is the height of stupidity and laziness.

I personally still have Ovi branded as an exceedingly reckless player, and that’s only because none of his questionable hits have been targeted, predatory headshots. Yet. But knee-on-knee hits, slew foots and shots from behind are what got Bryan Marchment branded as one of the dirtiest guys of all time. So why can’t Ovi be lumped in with him? Admittedly, it IS because he is such an important and spectacular player.

For his sake, and the sake of his opponents, Campbell has GOT to do something. There are now NINE documented cases of stupidity by Ovechkin, and time after time, he escaped consequence. He is not made to answer for his actions on the ice, and he is not disciplined by the league in a suffiicient way. The league needs to do something NOW, especially in the wake of the Savard/Cooke incident.

If consistency is the name of Colin Campbell’s game now, then he has no choice but to suspend Ovechkin if he suspended Maxim Lapierre for the exact same thing. And since Ovechkin is now a repeat offender, should the penalty not be MORE than the 4 games Lapierre received? I’d be absolutely shocked if Campbell even matched the 4 games, much less exceed it, but we have to hope that he eventually does the right thing.

Posted by kyleroussel from Montreal on 03/14/10 at 08:30 PM ET

Cooke is a dirty player. Always has been. Was for Vancouver. Was for Washington. Is for Pittsburgh. Drills unsuspecting guys, then hides behind linesmen (too numerous to count), goes to the bench (Lecavalier) or turtles (Lecavalier next year).

Previously, I would have said Ovechkin was dirty, but less so, however, that Brown play is news to me. I was unaware that Ovechkin ever cold-cocked a guy from behind then pretended to be injured from a phantom retaliation so Brown or his teammates wouldn’t give him a beating. That’s as bad or worse than anything I’ve ever seen from Cooke, and even more cowardly.

I was also unaware that he did basically the same thing to some guy from Europe (play #5 in video #8) that Cooke did to Savard.

Maybe he’s just as bad, then.

Posted by steve on 03/14/10 at 08:35 PM ET

Yeah but at the end of the day the object of the game is to score goals.  Ovechkin does that and would have a place in the league even if he cleaned up his act.  He has that much talent.  On the flip side, if Cooke removed this element from his game there’s no chance he’d even be in the league.  The NHL has too many players who don’t actually have the talent to play professional hockey at the highest level, guys who hang on strictly because of the liberties they take in the name of “agitating” the opponent.  As much as I blame the individuals involved in all the recent dirty plays the league and teams themselves need to take some responsibility for carving out roles for guys who can’t actually play.  When I see Ovechkin make a play like that it bothers me that a player so good would stoop so low, but when I see a guy like Cooke do it, it makes me sick that he’s even in the league.  Thanks for all the expansion Gary.

Posted by Aaron from Boston on 03/14/10 at 08:37 PM ET

If consistency is the name of Colin Campbell’s game now, then he has no choice but to suspend Ovechkin if he suspended Maxim Lapierre for the exact same thing. And since Ovechkin is now a repeat offender, should the penalty not be MORE than the 4 games Lapierre received? I’d be absolutely shocked if Campbell even matched the 4 games, much less exceed it, but we have to hope that he eventually does the right thing.

well you know, since Campbell actually used the consistency thing in NOT giving Cooke a suspension he deserved, he might actually suspend Ovechkin on this one… and you know he may actually suspend him for 4 games or so… you know, just for consistency sake….but everyone will know the real reason is to take Ovie off the ice for some games so that Bettmans favorite shining boy Crosby can try and take the lead in the points race!!

Posted by samsaidhey on 03/14/10 at 08:38 PM ET

don’t forget the hit on Jagr during the olympics

Posted by NYRfan from new jersey on 03/14/10 at 08:38 PM ET

Maybe Craig Adams should be mentioned in that breath also:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkQKBGAQExQ&feature=youtube_gdata

Posted by MinorTthreat from V.B. VA on 03/14/10 at 08:39 PM ET

Oh yeah.

Ovechkin knees Downie. Gets cold-cocked. Drops gloves, Matt bradley jumps Downie.

Though I can’t so much say I have any sympathy for a guy like Downie.

Posted by steve on 03/14/10 at 08:39 PM ET

but everyone will know the real reason is to take Ovie off the ice for some games so that Bettmans favorite shining boy Crosby can try and take the lead in the points race!!

If you’re not being sarcastic, please shut up asap. View the numerous clips above. Ovechkin is a dirty, reckless, gutless, classless punk who has no respect for his opponents. He knows what he’s doing. That why he fakes injury after these plays.

Please stop with the conspiracy talk. It’s extremely lame and tiresome. Perhaps AO is Campbell’s boy. You know, AO has only been suspended once despite so many dangerous hits.

Lastly, the Cooke hit has nothing to do with this hit. Cooke’s hit was dangerous, but not against the rules. Ovechkin’s cheap shot here is the definition of boarding, which is illegal. The two hits have no effect on each other. Until the league grows a pair and suspends AO long term, this will continue to happen. Campbell reportedly has a grade 2 concussion (same as Savard), but also a broken collarbone and a broken rib.

Tony is right. You can call Cooke dirty all you want, but you HAVE to also mention Ovechkin.

Posted by cs6687 on 03/14/10 at 08:47 PM ET

Ovechkin does that and would have a place in the league even if he cleaned up his act.  He has that much talent.  On the flip side, if Cooke removed this element from his game there’s no chance he’d even be in the league.

Cooke is an agitator and a cheap shot artist, but he can play.  He’s a third line caliber forward and a counted-on penalty killer on pretty much any team in the league.  He’s been invisible physically since the hit on Savard but he’s still been effective.

Cooke’s hit was dirty, this Ovechkin hit is dirty, a lot of hits are dirty.

The question isn’t one guy vs. another, or this team vs. that team.  It’s about how much violence do we (owners/coaches/players/fans) want taken out of the game?  Is the goal to make the game as safe and skillful as possible (outlaw most kinds of hitting) or is the goal to keep the game as close to tradition as possible?

Trying to split the difference the way they’re trying to do right now simply isn’t working.

Posted by HNBCTB on 03/14/10 at 08:49 PM ET

What about Crosby hitting Boris Valabik in the nuts?
Oops, that ‘s not in the list, isn’t it?

Posted by LadyCindyFromPorsburgh on 03/14/10 at 08:54 PM ET

@cs6687

Yes man Im being sarcastic…see my first comment too…  but you do know if that were to happen…Ovie getting any kind of suspension especially one that may be 3+ games, that some of these yahoos that hate anything to do with the Pens will be saying stuff like this… its almost predictible…like a pattern that they follow…I tend to be sarcastic at times…especially when it actually comes to people that will post that type of stuff seriously… because, how in the world could you ever take seriously someone that would actually post that and believe it (they’re out there though and thats scary!!)

Posted by samsaidhey on 03/14/10 at 08:56 PM ET

On the flip side, if Cooke removed this element from his game there’s no chance he’d even be in the league.

BS. The reason that guys like Cooke, Downie, Neil, Kaleta, Buttercup, etc. are so dangerous is that they ARE good enough to be there whether they were looking to hurt guys or not. It might be that Raitis Ivanens wants to be out there doing the same thing as them, but you’d never know it because he doesn’t skate well enough to get within five feet of anyone but another knuckle-dragger.

Posted by steve on 03/14/10 at 08:56 PM ET

You’re right, Tony.  Ovechkin is an opportunistic player who hits players to hurt them when he is able to do so.  That’s the definition of dirty.  Delivering the kinds of big hits that occasionally result in injuries is one thing; delivering hits that regularly injure opponents in vulnerable positions is quite another.

Posted by George Malik from South Lyon, MI on 03/14/10 at 08:58 PM ET

Ovechkin’s dirt doesn’t make Cooke clean. If anything, it shows that Ovechkin has multiple aspects to his game whereas Cooke is a simple goon. Ovechkin should be subject to the same discipline as the rest of the league and he was punished for some of those hits as hard as Cooke was.

Posted by redxblack from Akron Ohio on 03/14/10 at 09:01 PM ET

The reason that guys like Cooke, Downie, Neil, Kaleta, Buttercup, etc. are so dangerous is that they ARE good enough to be there whether they were looking to hurt guys or not.

Just wanted to add that that’s also why when guys like Ovechkin, Tootoo and Cooke do things like they’ve done, they have defenders (up until this point for Cooke, that is—he was universally thrown under the bus this time, with good reason). All of the guys listed have contributions other than dirty play that the home fanbase doesn’t want to lose.

David Koce, by contrast, could get a fifty-game suspension for baldness and nobody in Colorado (or wherever he is now) would even read the article.

Posted by steve on 03/14/10 at 09:06 PM ET

Cooke is an agitator and a cheap shot artist, but he can play.  He’s a third line caliber forward and a counted-on penalty killer on pretty much any team in the league.  He’s been invisible physically since the hit on Savard but he’s still been effective.

You’re kind of proving my point.  You’re describing what constitutes a solid third line forward in today’s NHL, and I’m saying part of the problem is that very definition.  A guy who chips in 26 pts to go with his 88 PIM is considered valuable.  Now take into account that in his 4 fighting majors he’s taken on notable pugilists like Rob Niedermeyer, Chris Drury, and Ilya Kovalchuk, so that PIM number isn’t inflated by him being a tough guy.  Even if you take away 20 PIM for those fights, he’s still racked up 68 PIM compared to only 26 pts.  The only reason you would want a guy who puts his team shorthanded more than he scores is because he’s also able to draw penalties by being an agitator.  If Cooke wasn’t getting under people’s skin and drawing penalties he would not be an NHL player based on his talent level.  Same can be said of guys like Downie, Tootoo, etc.  Off the top of my head I can think of only 2 agitators with enough talent to stick in league even if they didn’t have that element in their game, Corey Perry and Steve Ott (there are probably others that are escaping me at the moment).

Posted by Aaron from Boston on 03/14/10 at 09:12 PM ET

What about the elbow on Gonchar during the lockout when they both played in Russia?  Just as awful….

Posted by greg on 03/14/10 at 09:17 PM ET

if u want to talk about consistency, you need to remember about Malkins hit on Willie Mitchell.  The precedence has already been set IMO.  Malkins boarding hit was just as bad on Mitchelll.  Mitchell has had a grade 2 concusssion and has been out since the hit, and is questionable for this year and playoffs.  If Malkin didn’t get a suspension, does that warrant Ovie getting one?

Posted by Luongo-is-my-hero on 03/14/10 at 09:25 PM ET

What about Crosby hitting Boris Valabik in the nuts?
Oops, that ‘s not in the list, isn’t it?

Please tell me you’re not comparing ONE mistake by Sid to SEVERAL cheap shots by Ovechkin within the last two years. Mostly everybody who isn’t a Crosby hater has forgotten about that because he hasn’t built a rap sheet like Ovechkin has. Ovechkin is a classless punk. Crosby is not.

Posted by cs6687 on 03/14/10 at 09:27 PM ET

I can think of only 2 agitators with enough talent to stick in league even if they didn’t have that element in their game, Corey Perry and Steve Ott (there are probably others that are escaping me at the moment).

If Ott’s the bare minimum for “good enough to play” without cheapness and Perry’s an example of an agitator, there are a LOT of agitators in that category

For starters:
1. Burrows (31 g)
2. Kesler (63 pts)
3. Tucker (before he got old, that is. Best season saw 24 goals in 56 games)
4. Brown (45 pts)
5. Clutterbuck (same goal total as Ott)
6. Clarkson (17 goals last year)
7. Downie (17 g)
8. Hartnell (high 30 goals, 4 time 20 goal man)
9. Richards (ppg player, 1st line center on many teams, predatory hitter)
10. Cooke (better numbers than Ott)
11. Crosby (1st line center on any team in the NHL, likely HOFer, slashes people/talks trash incessantly)
12. Ovechkin (most dominating forward in the game, boards/knees people)
13. Malkin (first line center on all but 2 or 3 teams, throws an unnecessary elbow in most games, most minors in NHL)

Heck even Jarkko Ruutu has better numbers than Ott this year, and I’d distinctly place him in the “not good enough to contribute absent borderline or irritating play” category. Carcillo doesn’t have the numbers to back his inclusion in the “good enough” category, but I’m of the opinion he would be better if he cut out all the crap, not worse.

As I said before, what makes guys like Cooke, Downie, Clutterbuck (etc.) dangerous is that they CAN play. I mean, even if they clean up the act, you don’t really think they’d lose their jobs to someone like John Sim or Chris Bourque, fourth-line non-agitators who STILL produce less offense than all the guys you’ve listed as not being in the NHL on merit?

Your argument would stand if you were talking about Peter Worrell, but you’re not.

Posted by steve on 03/14/10 at 09:46 PM ET

Ovechkin’s cheap shot here is the definition of boarding, which is illegal.

I’m not saying Ovechkin’s clean, but this argument is RETARDED.

By your definition then, Cooke’s hit is less dirty than Dan Cleary’s hooking penalty last night was.  After all, what Cooke did wasn’t illegal whereas what Cleary did was.

Ass.

Posted by Garth on 03/14/10 at 09:50 PM ET

Garth, if you stretch that lame rebuttal any further, the elastic will snap. Next.

Posted by cs6687 on 03/14/10 at 09:57 PM ET

Nowhere do I compare Cooke’s hit on Savard to Ovechkin’s hit on Campbell, for those are are doing so….

As the title of the post says, it says that if you are going to call Cooke a dirty PLAYER, then Ovechkin has just as many justifications (the 9 links) to call HIM one as well….

Also, the “multiple aspects” argument is really irrelevant in this discussion…. Of course Ovechkin is a fabulous offensive player, but that has nothing to do with his being called a dirty player or not….

Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 03/14/10 at 10:14 PM ET

” ... Campbell has a broken rib, broken collarbone and a 2nd degree concussion suffered when Washington’s Alexander Ovechkin hit him from behind in Sunday’s first period.”

http://www.hendrickshockey.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2321:committedindians&catid=1:latest-news&Itemid=136

Posted by Hendricks Hockey says on 03/14/10 at 10:15 PM ET

I’m so tired of Pens fans going out of their way to criticize Ovy and his style of play.  Ovy plays the game harder than any other player in the NHL.  You only could wish that Crosby was as passionate as Ovy when playing the game.

If Cooke wasn’t suspended then Ovy shouldn’t be suspended. 

Ovy CLEARLY hit Campbell with his shoulder on the side.  It shouldn’t have even been called a boarding penalty.

Posted by Bruce from DC on 03/14/10 at 10:45 PM ET

I like how everyone changes the reality of todays event with Ovechkin and Campbell. Everyone’s headline reads Ovechkins HIT on Campbell. WHAT HIT? It was a push for starters. Maybe it was a bit to much in that play but add the fact that Campbells right foot hits a rut and buckles sending him into the boards. If he did not hit that rut he would have gone in upright with AO and they both would have hit the boards upright. Then AO would have just been finishing his check. This play happens all the time. The same thing happened in the second period on Mike Green by the Hawks goal. However he managed to stay on his feet. So nothing comes of it.

That play was hardly a headliner of A DIRTY HIT! It was a push at an unfortunate time that caused an injury in hockey. Maybe a penalty but all this crap about suspensions and dirty players. come on..

Same thing happened with AVERY in the Rangers game. What did he get 2mins. So she he be ejected too? Lets get real this is hockey

Posted by Rick on 03/14/10 at 10:45 PM ET

Okay… I know most of you are going to disagree with me here b/c everyone wants to jump on the Ovie vs Cindy crap or any of the million reasons to hate Ovechkin or w/e…

Now yes, I 100% agree (It’s just the facts) that Ovechkin has taken the liberty of delivering some pretty messed up and dirty hits. However if you honestly look (without ANY bias) at those videos… there are some in that list, that if they were given by another player (let’s just say someone like Shane Doan for example) there would be no huge outcry for his head.

Now there is no refuting #1 on that list… He knew what he was doing when he pushed him from behind… and I think he was trying to put him through the open bench door to tell you the truth… which I could only imagine how bad it would’ve been if Briere caught the open door.

Again #2… Dirty… Not horrible, but dirty… he gets the hands up a little, but we’ve all seen interference calls before.

After watching the Peverley hit a thousand times in slow-mo… He gets his shoulder in-front of Peverley’s body and the leg doesn’t make contact with Peverley until after he’s lost his balance and is falling down… Again while I agree it’s walking a fine line… I’ve seen hits like it before and no outcry…

The Kaleta hit… He looked up… saw Ovechkin coming… started to turn… BUT Ovechkin catches him as he’s turning not square on the back… Kaleta spins into the boars and because of this hits his head… Fine line, yes… Did he cross it, maybe… But again not the worst hit I’ve seen…

The Jamie Heward hit was not hard… He actually spins to avoid drilling him even harder… If Heward doesn’t get hurt there nobody has an issue.

The Gonchar knee-to-knee (try… to keep an open mind Pens fans)... He doesn’t open up his knee to reach out for contact… I know he does indeed make contact with the knee… but so does the shoulder and the knee stays under the shoulder the whole time. He has him lined up and Gonchar jumps to avoid him… but exposes his knee in doing so. I hate to see this happen but I don’t see it as dirty.

Now I said the Gonchar hit wasn’t dirty, just unfortunate… but the Gleason hit was stupid. It wasn’t the worst knee-to-knee I’ve seen, but nevertheless it WAS a knee and it’s stupid (as are all knees) b/c you know you’re just going to hurt yourself as well as the other guy. Now I say it’s not the worst I’ve seen b/c again, he does not open up the knee to catch Gleason… rather he just leads with it. It also wouldn’t be half as bad if Gleason hadn’t moved either. So that’s why I say… still dirty, but not as bad as most are saying.

And I’m sorry but knee-to-knee on Wideman? What knee? It was a hip check… I’m not sure if you noticed but you’re legs are attached to you’re body… Of course his knee, skate, leg…ect are there but he’s throwing the hip there. Sorry I wouldn’t give you that one.

Now the Campbell hit… One hand on his back one on the shoulder… gives him a hard push… what makes the hit bad is the location… I think he tries to shove him to the boards… but what I think is important is how… after looking at over and over… his arms start low and push up… This is the kind of motion you make when you ride someone to the boards… If he was to try and put Campbell’s head down, he would have put his hands high, and crosschecked down… If Campbell doesn’t lose his balance there, he catches himself with his hands, no concussion, no penalty, and we don’t have this whole discussion.

Now that you all want me to jump off a cliff for defending Ovechkin (especially all the Pens fans) I again want to stress that nowhere here am I saying Ovechkin is a kind hearted player, nor am I trying to say that isn’t not a dirty player. No, I am only saying that videos above are not as bad as everyone is saying. I personally am a HOCKEY fan… I think both Ovechkin and Crosby (and of course many others) are generally good for the game. When I see these borderline hits, whether they’re delivered by Ovechkin, Crosby, Cooke, Carcillo ect… it hurts b/c they end up in debates like this and take away from the game itself.

Posted by nobody from nowhere on 03/14/10 at 11:12 PM ET

It was an unnecessary play that apparently cost Campbell a broken rib, collarbone and concussion. That is *not* hockey.

So Campbell tripped and caused the problem, right? Well, there’s a reason the boarding penalty exists. It’s to avoid situations like this where people will rocket into the boards with no time to protect themselves.

If this had happened at center ice, no problem and no penalty. It happened near the board, big problem, big penalty.

Posted by Shane from Saskatoon on 03/14/10 at 11:14 PM ET

I don’t have a dog in this fight but your comarison screams that the emperor has no clothes. Cooke’s transgressions are specifically directed at knocking someone out of the game where as many of the Ovy hits may tend to be more just part of the general action. Specifically, several of the results are due to size differential. To list so many comparative examples gives pause, be let’s face it, Cooke’s head shots are nt defensible. Many of Ovy’s are questionable as well.

Posted by Bluto on 03/14/10 at 11:31 PM ET

Bluto, knee on knee hits are not part of the general action.

Neither are charging after you take 10 strides to hit a player or taking runs at players like Malkin in order to injure them.

Ovechkin leads the league in game misconducts with 3… I’m not 100% on this but apparently no other player has more than 1! Obviously he’s leading the league for a reason. The guy is wreckless and he doesn’t care for other players’ well being.

You can’t excuse irresponsible hits on his passion or his speed or his style. That’s horses***.

Several of the results are due to size differential? What? Even if that was the case, which it’s not, that’s not in the rulebook. You’re responsible for not injuring players and hitting within the rules. The same rules that apply to Martin St. Louis apply to Zdeno Chara - you must be responsible for what you do on the ice and to play within the rules.

Stop excusing this guy’s actions just because it just so happens that he scores a ton of goals every year. He must pay the price like any other player would. Matt Cooke should have been suspended as well.

Posted by LGP8771 on 03/15/10 at 12:39 AM ET

these stupid arguments make me hate hockey.  just because ovechkin scores doesnt mean he’s not dirty. 

also to the guy who put both crosby and malkin in the list of agitators;  its ok that you don’t like the pens, but get off that limb, you’re gonna hurt yourself. 

you are all truly idiots.  most of you should try taking a college level course in arguing.  this used to be a pretty useful site until all these worthless blogs started taking over.  especially a pens one, not because the pens shouldnt have one, but because any article written about them will automatically be flooded with hate.  its like people sleep with one eye open trying to get one up on crosby.  i’d go as far to say that people bitching about crosby is in the top 3 most annoying things in all of sports along with nfl instant replay taking 25 minutes and manny ramirez performing any task other than hitting.

Posted by dear from help on 03/15/10 at 12:42 AM ET

What about Crosby hitting Boris Valabik in the nuts?
Oops, that ‘s not in the list, isn’t it?

Please tell me you’re not comparing ONE mistake by Sid to SEVERAL cheap shots by Ovechkin within the last two years. Mostly everybody who isn’t a Crosby hater has forgotten about that because he hasn’t built a rap sheet like Ovechkin has. Ovechkin is a classless punk. Crosby is not.

Crosby is somewhat of a punk too, cross checking Lunqvist in the chest a few weeks. Who cares if Ovie is dirty anyways? When the NHL doesnt hand out suspensions on the Cooke hit, they essentially are sending the message thats its okay to be dirty. I dont even think Cooke was remorseful after his hit, at least Ovie was. Every player in this league has done something dirty. Ive seen Mr Lady Byng Datysuk throw some cheap shots.

Posted by EpicFail88 on 03/15/10 at 03:16 AM ET

@dear - So should I just quit ?

But seriously, it’s a valid point, it does get very frustrating at times writing posts, especially when it deals with Crosby….

Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 03/15/10 at 07:05 AM ET

Tony, I’ve always found you to be more of a Pens apologist than a serious blogger. Now there is no doubt in my mind.

Posted by Ferk from Maine on 03/15/10 at 07:07 AM ET

Aaah, glad we cleared that up Ferk….

Posted by Tony from Virginia Beach, VA on 03/15/10 at 07:09 AM ET

Up next on the Caps blogsphere:  “Call Cammi Granato soft if you must, but then include Cindy Crosby in that same estrogen fest.”

Posted by Caps Fan1 on 03/15/10 at 07:18 AM ET

Ovechkin gave him a little push and Campbell couldn’t stay on his feet, big deal. 

If people want to talk about dirty then we should be seeing something about Downie on Crosby yesterday.

Posted by Catalyst on 03/15/10 at 07:31 AM ET

I’m so tired of Pens fans going out of their way to criticize Ovy and his style of play.  Ovy plays the game harder than any other player in the NHL.  You only could wish that Crosby was as passionate as Ovy when playing the game.

If Cooke wasn’t suspended then Ovy shouldn’t be suspended.

Ovy CLEARLY hit Campbell with his shoulder on the side.  It shouldn’t have even been called a boarding penalty.

OV/GYN doesn’t backcheck or play anything close to defense aside from trying to separate opposing players from their body parts.  How many playoff series has “passion” won for OV/GYN?  One?

Cooke’s hit was legal.  OV/GYN’s was not. 

Do you need further explanation than that?

Posted by HNBCTB on 03/15/10 at 07:59 AM ET

I’m looking forward to the pens playing to the middle of the pack again and the yinzers will drift back to Heinz Field. There are some hockey fans in Pittsburgh, but there are so many more local sport fans that will support any winning team.

It must be hard to be in the lEastern conference and fighting over who has the biggest superstar.

Posted by redxblack from Akron Ohio on 03/15/10 at 08:18 AM ET

If Cooke wasn’t suspended then Ovy shouldn’t be suspended.

That’s just sloppy thinking, because the circumstances are clearly different. Cooke wasn’t penalized in the game, and his hit was deemed legal by Campbell. You and I may disagree on that assessment by the league, but that was the final decision. In Ovechkin’s case we have a major penalty, game misconduct, and an injured player. Not to mention a repeat offender like Cooke.

What you probably really meant was “If someone like Cooke can escape suspension, so should Ovechkin”. That’s not how the suspension system should work, though it sometimes looks that way thanks to the “consistency” of Campbell. The deciding factors should be the incident on the ice and perpetrator history, not the hockey qualities of the player involved as either victim or offender. Unfortunately, we seem far removed from that kind of justice.

I really like Ovechkin as a hockey player, but if he insists on playing his style of passionate hockey, he has to take the consequences once in a while when someone gets hurt. That isn’t rocket science. Though it’s irrelevant given the subject of this piece, I feel the same way about any Penguin involved in dangerous plays. Accountability is the word I’m looking for as a guiding principle.

Posted by Moq from Denmark on 03/15/10 at 08:33 AM ET

I’m looking forward to the pens playing to the middle of the pack again and the yinzers will drift back to Heinz Field.

Well, Crosby will be 35 in 2022, so you don’t have long to wait.

Question is, will the city of Detroit still exist by that point?

Posted by HNBCTB on 03/15/10 at 08:43 AM ET

The hit was questionable but CLEARLY had no intent to injure and was not predatory.  Cmpbell is small, and he toe picked which caused him to fall akwardly into the boards.  I wish OV had not hit him…and while I admit that the knee on Gleason deserved a suspension, Ovechkin is not a dirty plyer.

Even the tv analysts (including Milburry) who are always hard on OV agree! (I don’t understan pens fans who say he is always getting off…makes no sense…analysts LOVE crosby and I never hear anything negative about him whereas they are always diminishing OV in his game)

I think anyone who looks at the play fairly will see that it was a borderline hit with no ill intent that went way more wrong than it should have.  It deserved a 2 minute minor!

Also as someone who watchs ov all the time, he has been much more careful about when he hits since he got the C and the suspension for the knee.  I think if OV were not a superstar no one would take the time to call him dirty.  I feel bad campbell was hurt, but it was simply bad luck and that happens in hockey.

Posted by Rachel from MD on 03/15/10 at 08:58 AM ET

Great. What you probably really meant was “If someone like Cooke can escape suspension, so should Ovechkin”. That’s not how the suspension system should work, though it sometimes looks that way thanks to the “consistency” of Campbell.thanks SCHUYLKILL COUNTY CEMETERY

Posted by Kathy from usa on 03/15/10 at 09:10 AM ET

Craig Adams Dirty hit on Ovechkin. All of you should learn not to throw stones when living in glass houses….FYI no suspension on this play.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkQKBGAQExQ&feature=youtube_gdata

Posted by Rasguedo from DC on 03/15/10 at 09:17 AM ET

Crosby is somewhat of a punk too, cross checking Lunqvist in the chest a few weeks. Who cares if Ovie is dirty anyways?

Haha, yeah, that was a ‘vicious’ cross check…

Posted by Greg on 03/15/10 at 09:30 AM ET

Wow does that Craig Adams hit look even worse than the one on Campbell.

Funny how the masses love to get defensive one day, and up in arms the next.

wishy-washy flip-flop…

Posted by fricknoutstandin on 03/15/10 at 10:01 AM ET

The Adams hit is dirty, and should probably have had post-game repercussions. But it’s irrelevant in the case of current events. A missed hooking call doesn’t abolish the hooking rule, nor does a missed dirty play allow dirty plays for perpetuity. Not every single transgression of the rules will be punished accordingly, that’s the nature of the game and involvement of fallible human beings. That doesn’t mean we should hesitate to issue out punishment, especially when the perpetrator has a known history, and nullify everything after scouring YouTube.

Why is that so difficult to understand?

Posted by Moq from Denmark on 03/15/10 at 10:20 AM ET

also to the guy who put both crosby and malkin in the list of agitators; its ok that you don’t like the pens, but get off that limb, you’re gonna hurt yourself. 

was responding to some other guy who called Cory Perry an agitator. If Perry qualifies (which I don’t think he does), then so do Crosby and Malkin.

Posted by steve on 03/15/10 at 10:38 AM ET

Love the way that Ovechkin has gotten into the heads of other teams and their fans.

Posted by Joe on 03/15/10 at 11:09 AM ET

I only see Pens fans get up in arms about AO. It’s really strange.

Posted by redxblack from Akron Ohio on 03/15/10 at 11:22 AM ET

I only see Pens fans get up in arms about AO. It’s really strange.

There’s no shame in using prescription glasses.

Posted by Moq from Denmark on 03/15/10 at 11:58 AM ET

Title to the article is totally absurd.  Cooke is dirty and doesn’t belong in the League.  Ovechkin can best be described as reckless and could benefit from a tad more discipline.  But to include those two in the same sentence is exceptionally ignorant.

Posted by ProjectMayhem on 03/15/10 at 12:46 PM ET

was responding to some other guy who called Cory Perry an agitator. If Perry qualifies (which I don’t think he does), then so do Crosby and Malkin.

I called Perry an agitator, and if you don’t think he is you’ve clearly never watched him play.  I’m a Sharks fan and have seen more than I care to of Corey Perry.  Guy has first line talent and plays like a third liner.  It pains me to pay him a compliment but he does have talent, unlike Matt Cooke who really is a marginal NHL player.  Just because Perry scores goals doesn’t mean he plays clean.  In the span of about a month last year he slashed Vlasic in the face while Vlasic was down in the corner, cross checked the back of Nabakov’s legs in a scrum (intentionally), and two years ago he took a run at Jonathan Cheechoo and blindsided him with a head shot near center ice in one of the last games of the regular season.  Perry is dirty and cheap and drives me insane but even I have to admit dude does have talent.  I watched Matt Cooke play when he was in Vancouver a lot and he doesn’t have nearly that level of talent.  Maybe the numbers aren’t there with Steve Ott (another agitator I said had actual NHL talent), but having seen both him and Cooke on a number of occasions Ott is clearly the more talented player (another guy I dislike and another guy it pains me to compliment).  If you think Ott is no better than Cooke you’re clearly a. a biased Pens’ fan or b. not watching any west coast hockey, or c. all of the above. 

Players like Matt Cooke wouldn’t have a place in the NHL if the league hadn’t over-expanded and diluted the talent pool.  Do you know why even Cooke’s teammates, like Billy Guerin, spoke out about how bad of a hit that was?  Because they don’t want to see Crosby and their Cup chances lying motionless on the ice as retaliation for Matt Cooke taking liberties and then hiding from the retaliation, which is a distinct possibility.  Cooke is a dirty player whose main contributions are getting the opponents best players off the ice, either by drawing penalties or through other means.  It’s no coincidence that the player he took out just happened to be the Bruin’s best player.  That’s how he contributes and there shouldn’t be a place in the NHL for that type of player.  What I was trying to say in my original comments is that it is sad that someone like Matt Cooke, who really shouldn’t be in the league, is what constitutes a solid third line checking forward in the diluted NHL that Gary Bettman has created. 

I’m not a Bruins, Pens, or Caps fan.  I don’t have a horse in this race, but I know that Ovechkin could play any style in any era whether he tried to push the envelope with his physical play or not.  I can’t say that about Matt Cooke.  The Ovechkin hit was unfortunate but I do not believe there was an intent to injure or that Ovechkin targeted Campbell in any way.  Again, I can’t say that about Matt Cooke and THAT is the difference.

Posted by Aaron from Boston on 03/15/10 at 01:03 PM ET

@cs6687:

Ovechkin is a classless punk. Crosby is not.

- boy, did you get that one all wrong.

Posted by ProjectMayhem on 03/15/10 at 02:29 PM ET

ur an idiot LPG8771. malkin gave him jabs to the ribs that cameras saw. its one of the biggest rivalries in sports. hockey is the most physical game on earth and ur trying to turn into a tea party. go f*ck urself LPG8771. im a penguins fan and ur still an idiot. ovechkin is one of the best players in the game and probably one of the strongest. hockeys a physical game. i wish he was on the pens. if he was on the pens LPG8771 would b defending him like hes his lawyer.

Posted by Michael from Middleville on 03/15/10 at 03:28 PM ET

@Michael from Middleville. Hahahaha… Yeah you’re a Penguins fan. Okaaaay. Sure. You’re not some Caps fan pretending to be a Pens fan. You think Malkin’s an agitator too huh? This proves every team’s fan base has retards.

I wouldn’t defend some Russian punk who never drops the gloves like Ovechkin. I wouldn’t defend a guy with multiple slewfoots and hits from behind and awful hits like Ovechkin dishes out. I would never defend that shit like you do you little weasel Caps fan.

Malkin had 2 dirty hits last year that were borderline against Dallas and LA. I could find them on YouTube but what’s the point? I bring this up because I’m more than willing to admit that our players aren’t perfect and they’ve made mistakes. That’s something OV fanboys like you could never do.

But unlike OV, Malkin hasn’t hurt anyone. Same for Crosby.

@Bruce from DC - you are such a turd. Just because Ovechkin shows his so-called “passion” by jumping around like a retard after every goal doesn’t mean he’s more passionate than Crosby.

No one in the NHL has more passion and drive than Sidney Crosby. That’s how you end up with 102 points as an 18-year old with no professional experience. This is what Ovechkin fanboys do all the time - they mistake exuberance for passion.

And LOL @ “nobody from nowhere” actually trying to defend each and every single one of those cheap shots. Pathetic.

You buffoon. The fact is, all those incidents are ugly and they are dirty plays. He’s guilty as charged of either boarding, hitting from behind, kneeing or slewfooting in each of those plays, and half of those guys were hurt. At least two of them seriously hurt (Heward and Campbell). What other star forward has this many cheap shots in the league? Nobody. The only players you can make a laundry list like this for are guys like Steve Ott, Steve Downie and I hate to say it, Matt Cooke.

So OV is now in the company of goons when we talk about his physical play.

There’s never been a superstar player who was also a cheap shot artist. Lindros and Forsberg both hit hard but they never took cheap shots at players. I respect them so much more than Ovechkin. And considering both of those guys played for the Flyers, that’s saying something.

Posted by LGP8771 on 03/15/10 at 04:53 PM ET

Cooke isa useless little punk, other than those pittsburgh fans i doubt anyone else like him while Ovechkin on the other hand is like by almost anyone who is not a pittsburgh fan. he didnt blindside the guy unlike cooke

Posted by JT on 03/15/10 at 06:27 PM ET

I’m a Sharks fan and have seen more than I care to of Corey Perry.  Guy has first line talent and plays like a third liner.

I know what Perry does, but Crosby, Hartnell, Burrows, Kesler and Richards all play like grinders. You’re casting a really wide net putting players as good as Perry in the agitator column.

For me to agree with the notion that many agitators wouldn’t have a place in the NHL but for their agitative qualities, I’d have to believe that there are other players out there with the skill to score 13 goals per year (or in Downie’s case, 17, in Burrows case 31), while killing penalties, hustling and being defensively responsible, who are not currently playing in the NHL.

I simply don’t.

Is Cooke Mike Bossy reborn? Not by a longshot. But even without a long history of marginal play, he isn’t about to lose his job to guys like Patrick Stefan, Pavel Brendl or Chris Bourque, who are more accurate representations of who is without a regular job than some fictional skill guys who could be more productive than a Steve Downie or a Scott Hartnell.

Oh, and Ott skates really well, but plays, in a word, stupid. His on-ice decision-making is as senseless as anybody in hockey. Excluding marginal play from both parties (Cooke being far and away the dirtier player), Cooke’s hockey decision-making is better, when you ignore his gutlessness, that is.

Posted by steve on 03/15/10 at 06:53 PM ET