Alexander Ovechkin

The hockey world is not the same.

It seems like ages ago when Sidney Crosby ingrained himself in the hearts and minds of Canadians forever with his climactic Golden Goal against the Americans in the final of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

The Washington Capitals will meet the Colorado Avalanche in the Pepsi Center this Saturday night. The Caps, who are currently even with four wins and four losses under Dale Hunter, look to keep the momentum rolling. On the other hand, the Avs look to establish some momentum after returning home for a four game homestand.

From the moment the puck was dropped, Capitals fans everywhere had to have been wondering if the Caps were able to bring their momentum from the 5-3 win over Ottawa back to the Verizon Center.

Following their 4-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs, it seems that the Caps do, indeed, have a good deal of momentum behind them for the first time in a while.

The good:

Even though November is typically the month where many give thanks for all that they are grateful for in life, the Washington Capitals were thankful to see the month come to an end.

After posting a 7-2 mark in October, including a franchise best 7-0 record to start the season, Washington was 5-8-1 during the second month of the season.

Let’s be honest. At the highest level of professional sports the vast majority of athletes are overpaid.

Then again, if you’re among the best at your sport in the entire world you’re likely an invaluable commodity to your team. In that sense, it’s hard to argue that the very best hockey players are overpaid, especially in a salary cap system.

With that being said, this list is designed to reveal if the highest paid players in the NHL are really the best players and if they are truly worth the money they’re being paid.

First, Sidney Crosby was dubbed the “Next One.” Then, Alex Ovechkin was dubbed “The Great Eight.”

It seems like we are all just waiting for the next greatest hockey player and the fact of the matter is, we are never going to see it.

We’ll see some exceptional hockey players throughout the years, but no one quite like Wayne Gretzky and therefore fitting of sharing his nickname.

Over the course of the last 30 years, the National Hockey League has seen few forwards with the ability to score and put up points at the levels of Mike Bossy or Alexander Ovechkin. Both players are among the most decorated wingers in the post-expansion NHL, but their styles of play could not be any more different, as were the eras in which they terrorized goalies.  

The puck will drop tonight at 7:00PM EST to begin the 2011-2012 regular season for Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals. The Capitals, under Bruce Boudreau as head coach for yet another season, have a promising and exciting season ahead of them.

As the Washington Capitals prepare to take the ice for their 37th NHL season on Saturday night, one thing is abundantly clear; the pressure to win the franchise's first Stanley Cup is as high as it has ever been during the team’s existence.

On Friday, Washington Capitals superstar Alexander Ovechkin announced that he signed a long-term endorsement deal with Nike.