Gretzky, playing a whole season like he did at 18, likely loses a Calder race against the twenty-year-old Ovechkin too, even when eligible. That was my point. But not in itself.
While Gretzky was automatically out of the Calder race having played in the pros the year before and Crosby did at least got his chance, even Sid's Calder circumstance was very, very unfavorable, which has not been really pointed out.
Yeah, he lost the Calder, but he lost it to someone who should have won the year before, or, as
@Canadiens1958 reminded us, two years before Sid even got the chance. Not necessarily only because Ovi was almost eligible to be drafted in 2003 but also because Sid barely made it to be drafted in 2005.
Players in their late teens evolve and mature rather rapidly, so yeah, every month makes a difference, let alone a couple of years.
EDIT: Sid should have grabbed his Calder the way Malkin did, while Malkin and Ovechkin should have battled for theirs against one another like Ovi and Sid did -- had everything gone like it was seemingly supposed to.