2024 Matthews vs 2008 Ovi: Who's better player?

[The Grim Reaper]

Ovechkin with almost 80% of the vote, but it's everyone other than Leafs fans that are crazy and just don't understand.

 

[GlitchMarner]

Yeah, but Matthews isn't getting powerplay time like them relative to the rest of the league. Ovechkin and Kovalchuk were always at the very top, Matthews is routinely around 50th in the league in powerplay time. That's a massive difference.

Well, that's something you have to wonder about then. Why doesn't Keefe give him more PP ice time? Why didn't Babcock? Maybe a different coach will and then we'll see how he does with it.

The bottom line is we'll have to agree to disagree. Despite being elite goal scorers they had very different styles. Each one made a massive positive impact on team goal differential at ES (there's all kinds of data to support this); they did so in different ways.

I would say Ovechkin's 2008 season is objectively better than Matthews' current season and his Hart season when everything is considered. He did get more PP time, but he had less to work with on the PP and a much worse team in general. He had no one close to him in point production. There will always be some factors in one player's favor and different ones in another's.

One thing I remember is that the Caps were complete trash for the first two seasons of Ovechkin's career and then he basically carried them into the playoffs in his third season. Down the stretch I think he scored in every single game. You take him off that roster and you're looking at a team with zero shot at making the playoffs. Matthews is really f***ing good, but for me he isn't quite peak Ovie good.. at least yet.

 

[nbwingsfan]

yeah and that total of 112 points would still be 24 points behind this year. if there was a McDavid/MacKinnon/Kuch back then Ovechkin likely wouldnt have won that Art Ross

In a vastly higher scoring era.

Are you saying Kucherov and Mackinnon are way better players than Ovi was at his absolute peak.

His 2008 season was widely regarded as the best non McDavid season of the cap era. And you think there’s “10-12” players today who would do better?
Sheesh.

 

[Hockey Outsider]

well it shows Matthews is the more efficient goal scorer. even if u look at his 60 goal season in 73 games. he still has 98 shots left for 5 goals to match him.

I guess none of this matters though.

It's obvious that Matthews shoots more efficiently, and Ovechkin generates more scoring chances. I don't think anybody can seriously dispute these points.

Ultimately what matters is the number of goals scored. You win the game by outscoring your opponent - not by shooting more efficiently, and not by taking more shots on goal (or having more shot attempts).

They got to the same output using different approaches. But neither style is inherently better. That's why the "Matthews is more efficient" argument doesn't gain much traction. (Nor would the "Ovechkin generates more opportunities" argument, for the same reason).

 

[Maplebeasts]

I swear to god half of you guys don't understand hockey past being able to read point totals.

 

[HolyHagelin]

Relative stats aren’t that great imo. Team quality needs to be accounted for, but Ovechkin had better xGF% numbers on a worse team. And just visually, that’s true he was more of a rush creator so there was some one shot and out stuff, whereas Matthews is better at keeping it in zone and cycling, but I think Ovechkin was so dangerous on the rush that the focus on stopping him meant that his defense wasn’t all that important. I think possession and tilting the ice are a bit different.

That was stated perfectly. Yes. When he was on the ice, the other team couldn’t play offense because they were terrified of Ovechkin’s counterstrike ability, not because he was backchecking and turning them over at the defensive dots.

 

[Maplebeasts]

Ovechkin with almost 80% of the vote, but it's everyone other than Leafs fans that are crazy and just don't understand.

This same website has voted for Stutzle, Barzal, Laine, Tkachuk, and Hintz over Matthews. This website's users know about as much about hockey as they do about rocket science.

 

[spiny norman]

Lopsided result.