I used to take a lot of flak on here for questioning Ovi's leadership. We all saw the Fat Ovi picture, and the Controller Disconnected episode. Right or wrong, accurate or false, there were questions about Ovi's commitment and therefore his leadership by example. Regardless of how it happened, it seems pretty clear that Ovi has completely rededicated himself to being the very best player he can be, starting last summer (2017), maybe triggered by Trotz visit to Moscow. His newfound commitment to fitness and arriving in the best shape of his life two years in a row, is awesome to see. Its a huge part of what helped him lead us to a Cup, and it will be what keeps him playing at a high level for much longer, extending his great career.
Ovi has truly become the leader both on and off the ice that he always needed to be, and the results show. Kudo's to Ovi, its great to see him finally achieving everything he was always capable of.
Eh, this kind of reads like a backdoor "I told you so, Ovie did suck as a leader but he changed his lazy, irresponsible ways so I was still right"post-facto non-admission of misjudgment. It wasn't that you were wrong about him, it's that he fixed himself! Is that you, Mad Mike?
Whoever pushed the issue, we don't know that Ovie's preseason fitness had anything at all to do with "the results" of last season, and all indications his entire career (other than your one episode of hearsay) pointed to a respected leader in the locker room who busted his ass for the team when it mattered most. He ALWAYS led by example and put the team on his back.
Last season's change was undoubtedly, and per player comments, affected by a different attitude toward their process and their goals. "We're not going to be f***ing suck this year" followed by a calm confidence and lack of panic or fear is one of the most powerful messages a leader can send to subordinates. And here is his longtime linemate saying as much.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/spor...e-isnt-reining-it-yet/?utm_term=.f8158566557c
“It looks like he’s in the best mode ever,” Backstrom said. “He’s just laughing all the time, which is great. He’s going to carry this over, I think. The way he was playing last year and the way he was relaxed, too, I think it’s just unbelievable for us in the locker room to see -- how he carries himself.”
According to the article he came in last year 4 lbs lighter. That's basically insignificant. You can fluctuate that much during the course of a single day. I think they're pushing the fitness narrative because it's the easiest and doesn't get reporters started on questions about the more complex elements. It's also the narrative/explanation that former Caps/Ovechkin-haters prefer because it pins the blame for a decade of failure on the "lazy Russian".
“The most important thing is I want to be healthy,” Ovechkin said. “I want to play with him when he’s going to be 10 or 12. And I want to see how he grow; that’s the most important thing for me. Of course, it’s not going to be only one kid.”
As a new father I can completely understand. I care much, MUCH more about my health these days because I want to be around for my child as long as possible. It's likely that Ovechkin, knowing he was going to have a baby and possibly a boy he would name after his late brother, found a maturity and clarity regarding his personal and professional life and goals that carried over. And from that came a vision. Last year I think they all really, finally believed there was no "curse" and that their destinies were in their own hands.
There were dozens of factors that contributed last season, and Ovechkin was already a HOF player with no peers. I doubt a decade's worth of teams were doomed because the greatest goalscorer of a generation was 4lbs heavy coming into camp.