Some Praise for Rick Nash

If Rick Nash played for Toronto, Montreal, Boston, or at least a dozen other NHL franchises, we would be talking about him in the same breath as Alexander Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, and the other young superstars that have reinvigorated the post-lockout NHL.

Instead, Nash is a gem of a player who thrills those who see him but is largely unknown to the casual fan. He’s not a nobody, by any stretch of the imagination, but he certainly does not get the respect and acknowledgement of a player of his caliber. That makes him all the more thrilling for those who do know about him.

Nash has a couple of strikes against him. First, obviously, he plays in Columbus, which is a newer franchise, in the Western Conference, playing in a division that has been dominated by the Detroit Red Wings for a decade. He played two seasons in the NHL before the lockout, thereby completely stripping him of that new player smell from those who joined the league in the 2005-06 season or afterwards.

Furthermore, Nash has been a one man show for much of his career in Columbus. Not until Steve Mason asserted himself as a rookie last season has Columbus had another player really worth paying attention to, talent-wise. Since his rookie season Nash had led the Blue Jackets in goals five of six seasons and points in three of six seasons, and has worn the captain’s C since 2008. He’s been their only All-Star representative since the 2003 game and was one of three players from the roster to take part in the 2006 Winter Olympics.

Few players have scored at the consistency of Nash in the past four seasons. He has 202 goals in 453 games (coming into today’s game). Twice he’s been in the top 5 in goal-scoring, sharing the Rocket Richard trophy in 2003-04.

Unlike Ovechkin, however, scoring stats aren’t the only place Nash excels. A much more apt comparison to Nash isn’t Ovechkin, but fellow Russian Pavel Datsyuk. There’s a reason Nash averages over two minutes a game on the penalty kill, and it’s not because Columbus Coach Ken Hitchcock likes having a scoring threat on the PK (though Nash has 11 shorties since 2007-08 including 2! on 3-on-5 situations.

No, Nash kills penalties because he’s a damned good penalty killer. He’s not just offensively gifted, he’s defensively responsible and hustles over all 200 feet of the ice (unlike some first line skaters in Washington). That is a learned skill for Nash…in his first three seasons he played 1:02, 3:36, and 7:18 over the course of each season, or just under 11 minutes total through 208 games before demonstrating that his special teams talent extended to both ends of the rink.

When he does score, though, man does Nash score pretty goals. He is very similar to Ovechkin in that both are what commentators love to call “big rigs.” Nash is listed at 6’4” and 218 pounds, and if you’ve ever seen his promos for the NHL Network you know he’s carrying at least 230 on that frame.

If you watch any of his highlight-reel goals (and what is it about Phoenix and giving up impressive goals? They're on that list three times), though, it’s clear Nash skates more like a Mike Green than a Matt Bradley. I’ve never seen a player of his size as quick on his feet and pull such nasty moves. His slap shot and wrist shot velocity isn’t up to Ovechkin’s level, but then again whose is? He’s more of an analog to Brett Hull, using a quick release and pinpoint accuracy rather than brute force to beat the goalie.

Team captain, leading scorer, primary weapon on the power play, solid penalty killer, floats like a butterfly and hits like a freight train…Nash might be the closest thing to the mythical ‘complete player’ in the NHL today. A lot of that is out of necessity: as his team’s best player he had to fill in every role.

That, of course, doesn’t detract at all from the talent and poise of Nash, who is still just 25 years old. He had the option, as an impending UFA after last season season, to jump to a bigger market (like Toronto) or better team (unlike Toronto) but chose to remain in Columbus, recognizing the talent finally accumulating there (he’s one of only six players to have spent more than two seasons in a Columbus uniform) and the fact that he has not yet reached his pinnacle as an NHL player.

So while as a Capitals fan and reporter covering the team, I’ll never tire of watching Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Backstrom and Green in action, this afternoon if given the choice my eyes will be on one 61 for Columbus, to see the magic he can work.