Alex Ovechkin is easily one of the greatest hockey players of all time and according to ESPN, he’s also one of the greatest overall athletes of the 21st century.
ESPN polled more than 70,000 of its contributors to come up with the top 100 athletes around the globe in the last 24 years, and their official results were released on Thursday. Ovechkin, the longtime captain of the Washington Capitals and second-ranked goal scorer in NHL history came in at spot 54.
57. Calvin Johnson
60. Candace Parker
63. Allyson Felix
65. Kylian MbappéWe're revealing athletes 51-75 of our top 100 athletes of the 21st century: https://t.co/3sJCRQ2J4j
— ESPN (@espn) July 16, 2024
“There isn’t a player in the NHL who has commanded a slap shot like Ovechkin in his career,” ESPN’s Kristen Shilton writes. “Even if Father Time has begun catching up in some areas, the pure power behind his signature shot remains. Ovechkin’s success scoring 853 goals (to date) has come in large part because of how he uses a big frame (6-foot-2) to add velocity and power behind a shot that can exceed 100 mph.”
The Great Eight is heading into year 20 of being an active NHL player during this century and is just 41 goals from sharing the league’s all-time goals record with Wayne Gretzky. ESPN lists Ovechkin’s “key accomplishments” as follows.
- Part of the NHL 100 Greatest Players list,
- 2018 Stanley Cup champion (Conn Smythe)
- Second all-time with 853 goals
- NHL-record 312 power-play goals
- 9-time Richard Trophy winner
- 3-time Hart Trophy winner
- 3-time Ted Lindsay Award winner
- 2006 Calder Trophy winner
- 2008 Art Ross Trophy winner
Ovechkin is one of just three hockey players to make the list, joining Sidney Crosby (22) and Connor McDavid (98). Ovechkin’s position so “low” in the rankings is a contentious one as players with less impressive overall careers in their sports like Adrian Beltre (MLB), Steve Nash (NBA), Alex Rodriguez (MLB), Giannis Antetokounmpo (NBA), and Dirk Nowitzki (NBA) come in on the rankings just ahead of Ovechkin.
Beltre never won a single MVP award or World Series. Steve Nash was MVP of the NBA fewer times than Ovechkin was MVP of the NHL and never won an NBA championship. Rodriguez is a known steroid abuser. Antetokounmpo debuted in 2013 and didn’t average over 20 points per game until his fourth NBA season. Nowitzki was MVP of the NBA just once.
Barry Bonds, Dwyane Wade, Mike Trout, Nikola Jokic, Randy Moss, and Kevin Garnett are other athletes among several others ranked even higher on the list who Ovechkin certainly has a strong argument to leapfrog. Even when compared straight-up to Crosby who placed 32 spots ahead of him, Ovechkin’s overall resume of accomplishments is at the very least level with the Pittsburgh Penguins star.
ESPN’s Top 10
- Michael Phelps, Swimming
- Serena Williams, Tennis
- Lionel Messi, Soccer
- LeBron James, NBA
- Tom Brady, NFL
- Roger Federer, Tennis
- Simone Biles, Gymnastics
- Tiger Woods, Golf
- Usain Bolt, Track
- Kobe Bryant, NBA
When ESPN conducted this same survey for the 20th century, Wayne Gretzky was ranked fifth and hockey players appeared on the list six times. This time, hockey was completely left out of the top 20 with only three overall representatives.
Outside of Ovechkin, the other athletes on the list with ties to the DMV/Baltimore area include Phelps (1), Katie Ledecky (15), Kevin Durant (39), Max Scherzer (46), Ray Lewis (61), Mia Hamm (64), Bryce Harper (79), Venus Williams (86), and Ed Reed (99).
