Nathan MacKinnon is a Stanley Cup champion and one of the best forwards of his generation. He’s also played against both Alex Ovechkin and Jaromir Jagr.
So he’s as good as any to adjudge who’s a better player between the two Slavic legends. (Which is obviously Ovechkin.)
MacKinnon revealed his pick while playing a game called Who’s better? for NHL social media. After selecting Jagr over Mark Messier, MacKinnon had to choose between “The Great 8” and “The Mullet’d One.”
The transcript goes like this:
Producer: Jagr or Alex Ovechkin?
MacKinnon: [4 seconds go by as he stares into the abyss]
Uhhhhhh. That’s really hard….
I’ll go Jagr.
The rest of the video goes as follows:
MacKinnon picks his BFF, Sidney Crosby, over Jagr, Gordie Howe, Mario Lemieux, and Bobby Orr.
“Loyal,” MacKinnon said of his admiration for his brother from another Nova Scotian mother.
Crosby’s reign then finally ended when he was matched up against Wayne Gretzky.
“I’ll go Gretzky,” MacKinnon said. “That’s the only guy.”
While the Crosby love was predictable, the pick of Jagr over Ovechkin was an eyebrow raiser, at least for crazy ol’ me who has watched both players in their primes and in Capitals jerseys.
Though, upon research, the two players are much closer than I thought. In fact, they’re like two delicious flavors of ice cream that are incredible in their own right.
Head-to-head statistically, Jagr was a better playmaker and had more longevity, but Ovechkin is obviously the more dynamic goal-scorer. The highlighted cells in yellow denote where Ovechkin leads Jagr.
Ovechkin vs. Jagr stats
| Career totals | Ovechkin | Jagr |
|---|---|---|
| Games | 1,491 | 1,733 |
| Goals | 897 | 766 |
| Assists | 726 | 1,155 |
| Points | 1,623 | 1,921 |
| Era-adjusted goals | 998 | 841 |
| Power-play goals | 326 | 217 |
| Shorthanded goals | 5 | 11 |
| Even strength goals | 566 | 538 |
| Game-winning goals | 136 | 135 |
| Playoff goals | 77 | 78 |
| Playoff points | 147 | 201 |
| Shots | 6,864 | 5,637 |
| Hat tricks | 32 | 15 |
When we consider NHL awards, Jagr took home 12 in his career, including back-to-back Stanley Cups with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1991 and 1992. Jagr won 5 Art Ross Trophies as the league’s leading point-scorer. Ovechkin has won 20 NHL Trophies overall, including a league-record 9 Rocket Richard Trophies.
Ovechkin vs. Jagr awards
| Trophies | Ovechkin | Jagr |
|---|---|---|
| Stanley Cups | 1 | 2 |
| Art Ross Trophy | 1 | 5 |
| Calder Trophy | 1 | 0 |
| Conn Smythe Trophy | 1 | 0 |
| Hart Trophy | 3 | 1 |
| Masterton Trophy | 0 | 1 |
| Messier Award | 1 | 0 |
| Rocket Richard Trophy | 9 | 0 |
| Ted Lindsay Award | 3 | 3 |
Perhaps what gives Jagr the edge over Ovechkin is MacKinnon’s personal success against the Capitals when the two play each other. In 20 head-to-head matchups against Ovechkin, MacKinnon has notched 28 points, including 11 goals. Ovechkin has scored 10 times and tallied 18 points. (Editor’s note: Both players have posted 78 shots. Ovechkin, however, has scored 3 game-winning goals to MacKinnon’s 1.)
Or maybe it’s that MacKinnon enjoys Jagr’s overall game more. Or he’s funnier online. Whatever the reason, his choice is wrong, and Alex Ovechkin is a better player than Jaromir Jagr.
