What would peak Ovechkin look like in the 80's?

[Stephen]

I think he'd be Mario Lemieux in 1989. Pretty much every year.

 

[drganon]

Maybe score as many or slightly more goals than Gretzky, but have less points.

 

[velodim]

He would look something like this

 

[drganon]

He would look something like this

Does he get to play on a line with Mike Gartner?

 

[Bieber fever]

he would score as many goals as he wants.

130G-95A

 

[penguins2946*]

Ovechkin would demolish the league of the 80s, even more than Crosby would. Ovi's talent alone would make him do great in the 80s, adding on his size makes him even better. I wouldn't be surprised if 07-08 Ovi would have broken Gretzky's goal scoring record if you would have put him in the 80s.

 

[The Cheat]

Prime Ovechkin with modern day training transported into the 80's? Like 300+ points...

People assume the skill of the teammates to get him the puck, and to not be on the PK all game from fighting and stupid penalties. Bonus: 2 line passing?

I'd say he would be right about the Mark Messier level of points but he would be fighting a lot from clowns like Probert, Grimson, etc.

Think Hartford would have let him set up that onetimer over and over? Grimson would have gone over the 2nd time and cross checked him in the teeth. Or Rob Ray, Tony Twist, Marty McSorley, Dave Smenko

Bob: "Oh, hey Alex, how's the weather over there? That's nice, I'm gonna punch you right in the meat hole the next time you touch the puck."

 

[AD1066]

Comparable goal scoring to Gretzky, fewer assists obviously.

The idea of increased physicality is a two-way street. He'd have more liberty to dish it out than he does today, and he's larger than the majority of players from that era.

 

[FRUSTRATEDPENFAN*]

What would peak Ovechkin look like in the 80's stats wise in the height of the oilers days (without Gretzky)?

Keep in mind he would be playing close to 30mintues a game with double the amount of powerplays. Interested in hearing stats and reasoning behind it please - Thank You!

He'd look and be the same as he now a failure that cant win when it matters and counts most.

 

[sr edler]

This is so hypothetical. The game was much more rougher and dirtier back then. Ovechkin liked to hit a lot when he first came into the league. If he did that in the 80s, or even in the DPE, I think there's a big risk he would have run into much more injuries. See Cam Neely or Lindros.

Another thing with the 80s is that the star game was more focused on individual creativity. Ovechkin's good at rushing the puck, but he's never been the most creative or unpredictable guy with the puck.

He would have scored a lot of goals, and he probably would have been near the top of the scoring charts, but some of the suggestions in this thread is a bit off, I think.

 

[topshelf15]

With that size and shot,how wouldn't he be a monster?

We had an ovie in the late 80,s and early 90,s his name was Cam Neely

 

[underdog]

If Ovie was in the 80s without a Semenko type to protect him, he'd get killed. He just looks like the type to not back down from physical play and that would be his downfall.

 

[ShootIt]

Better than Wayne stats wise.

 

[duffy9748]

Ovechkin-Lindros-Kane

 

[topshelf15]

Better than Wayne stats wise.

yeah no....

 

[underdog]

His knees would be destroyed if he played his style in the 80s. Knee surgeries were practically in dark ages back then with much longer recovery times.

 

[topshelf15]

His knees would be destroyed if he played his style in the 80s. Knee surgeries were practically in dark ages back then with much longer recovery times.

Defensemen where killers back then ,Ovie trying to bull rush Scott stevens .... yeah that wouldnt work out so well

 

[underdog]

Defensemen where killers back then ,Ovie trying to bull rush Scott stevens .... yeah that wouldnt work out so well

Or an Ulf Samuelson knee on knee hit.

 

[Perfect_Drug]

You guys realise there was a red-line back then?

Head shots were also legal.

He would also have to skate with the old skates, and use a heavy full wooden stick (his shot would top out at 80-85mph).


I'm inclined to believe it would follow era adjusted totals.
His best season league scoring was around 5.9gpg, and 1984 was around 7.9gpg

His best season:
82GP 65G 47A 112Pts.

Adjusted Season
80GP 84G 64A 148Pts.



Pretty close to what I expected. He would be comparable to Mario Lemieux / Steve Yzerman.

 

[Faax]

A sick mullet and a cream colored suit

 

[end]

Honestly, I think playing in the 80s would diminish Ovie's greatest asset, which is that he skates with the momentum and force of a middle linebacker. He has size, speed, strength and a rocket shot which fit perfectly in this era of hockey. It's almost impossible to legally defend against Ovechkin today, but the 80s 'physical hockey' was far less about next-level athleticism and more about the ability to withstand cheap shots and stickwork, especially in the playoffs. I don't think Ovechkin's combination of size and speed would be as necessary and wouldn't benefit him anymore in the 80s than today.

I imagine if he had trained in that era, he'd be playing more like Kharlamov and less like Esposito.

 

[Plural]

People are really overrating the physical demands of the 80's. I know Ovechkin would have to answer the bell few times if he ran around hitting like he did few years back. But that's it.

Jari Kurri, Mike Bossy and many more were much smaller and weaker than Ovechkin. Yet these guys fared just fine.

 

[Bupi]

If any of today's first year physics students would be taken to 14th century then nobody would ever have heard of Newton or Gauss.

 

[Jeti]

With that size and shot,how wouldn't he be a monster?

His shot wouldn't be remotely the same with a wooden stick. Not that he couldn't be a good shooter with one, but it's likely he hasn't used one since he was a kid and the technique is different. Size also isn't as important in wide open neutral zone 80's-style play as it is now.

He's an elite goalscorer. If you want to explore hypotheticals, he'd be an elite goalscorer in any era, but you can't say if he'd outscore someone else from that era.

 

[tfong]

Since we have stat adjustments to see how prior era scorers translate to now, couldn't we just do a reverse stat adjustment to project his numbers?

some people though are missing the point, this wouldn't be about him growing up in that area or anything. I think OP is saying if we magically transport current Ovechkin to that era and all else remains status quo (his health and fitness and equipment etc...) Then how would he do?