Comments on: Columnist accuses Ovechkin of performance-enhancing drugs with stunningly little proof

By: drillsetc

drillsetc — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:09:27 +0000

Very irresponsible journalism!

By: pens919209

pens919209 — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 20:18:03 +0000

Aside from Mike Lange, I’ve always enjoyed listening to Mike Emrick do play-by-play – he’s very knowledgeable about the game and just has a great announcer’s voice.

And I couldn’t agree more on Edwards… I have a harder time listening to him than I do Steigerwald.

By: ballsohardu

ballsohardu — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 19:05:09 +0000

Coming from the brother of the worst play by play guy in hockey…. Cool..

By: matthewmacisaac

matthewmacisaac — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:19:34 +0000

I’m a Flyer fan from NY, so I have to follow them on Center Ice and that means I usually get the other teams feed. I’m glad to see the Penguins fans rip their broadcast crew. Steigerwald/Errey are neck and neck with Edwards/Brickley as the worst in the league. The homerism of these two teams broadcast crews is sickening. With both teams being very talented, there is plenty to cheer and their fans should not be subjected to these whiney pieces of sh*#. Most teams have decent crews but these guys should be shot for ruining games with their innaccurate, biased commentary. The fans are smarter than the broadcast teams.

By: blastfurnaceknows

blastfurnaceknows — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 14:01:07 +0000

Steigerwald ONCE covered major sporting events. Steigerwald ONCE was a semi-connected Pittsbrugh sports broadcaster. Steigerwald NOW writes for a two-bit local newspaper. Steigerwald NOW has ostracized both local and national sports personalities and media alike. The difference between Steigerwald THEN and Steigerwald NOW is that his mask fell off a number of years ago and exposed him for what he is – a colossal douchbag of a fraud whose only emotional gauge is systematic hate and who should not be at all surprised that is what he NOW receives in return. To imply that he is currently somehow connected, because he once “sort of, kind of” had a source or two (he never was known for “exceptional” sources), is to show you don’t know a thing about Steigerwald or his rep NOW.

By: babykaby

babykaby — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 00:27:29 +0000

Not sure but is this the same guy that got caught having sex with his 14-year-old babysitter and supplying her with drugs while his wife was in the hospital having their third child? No proof, but I thought I heard something.

By: garys79

garys79 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 23:40:15 +0000

Steigerwald has exceptional sources. If he writes it then someone that knows has told him it is true.

He has covered sports for 40+ years. He has covered every major sporting event for national organizations from Super Bowls, Stanley Cup Finals to the Oylmpics, multiple times.

By: danphipps01

danphipps01 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 22:26:06 +0000

If he’s loaded with performance-enhancing drugs… why is his performance not enhanced?

Come on, somebody had to say it.

By: odj810

odj810 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 21:59:34 +0000

exactly. Limit his time and space and don’t let him get a head of steam going and he’s very much containable which every good defensive team has now done.

By: drewsylvania

drewsylvania — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 21:04:38 +0000

Ovechkin had a huge dropoff in production from 09-10 to 10-11, and it seems that the same is happening this year. That can’t be all, or even mostly, on his teammates, since they’ve been mostly the same during that time period.

Notable exception is Mike Green, but still…

By: watermelon1

watermelon1 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 20:25:43 +0000

One trick pony? Defenders have figured him out?

Please, people.

I’ve seen Ovechkin score just about every single way you can. And defenders haven’t “figured him out” so much as they just know that they can pretty much focus their entire defense on him because none of the other Capitals pose a threat!

His problem is his team isn’t that good! The goalies have played horrible this season. Still don’t understand the Volkoun signing when Neuvirth and Holtby looked so promising last year. The defense has always been bad. I never thought Mike Green was good on defense, but at least he could help with the scoring a bit when Ovechkin was focused on.

What I find funny is, I don’t see opposing teams focus on Sidney Crosby nearly as much. Two seasons ago, it seemed like the NHL had an unwritten rule that Crosby must be left unattended around the goal. He was always banging in rebounds with no defender near him. Yes, he’s a great player… but I’ve never seen a team’s best player be left unguarded so often. It certainly doesn’t happen to Ovechkin.

Anyway, that’s Ovechkin’s biggest problem. His team is not very good. With that said, they’re bound to start playing better. They can’t really play any worse than they have been. If they traded Mike Green and Alex Semin 2 years ago when they were “hot” for some real defense, this team would probably be much better off. Hindsight is lovely.

By: blastfurnaceknows

blastfurnaceknows — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 20:11:51 +0000

There have been whispers and certainly some out-loud conversations in the Pittsburgh area that John Steigerwald became a sportswriter for the primary purpose of being able to gaze at athletes’ junk in the showers without anyone casting apsersions. I also heard the younger the better for John. Then there was that hobo-decapitation spree someone once said he participated in . . .

Seriously, I hate Ovechkin, but John Steigerwald is as inauthentic a tool as there ever will be and his rep in Pgh is just below that of a sewer rat, which, incidentally, I heard he likes having over a bed of lettuce for lunch.

By: drewsylvania

drewsylvania — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:45:43 +0000

He might be on roids or whatever. But this guy sure doesn’t know.

By: jpelle82

jpelle82 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:20:00 +0000

why? so he can make even more money for doing nothing?

By: stevefromsacto

stevefromsacto — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:15:39 +0000

It’s a pity Alex can’t file a lawsuit charging this clown with libel.

By: 1943mrmojorisin1971

1943mrmojorisin1971 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 19:10:12 +0000

“Look at the monkey. Look at the silly monkey”

By: jpelle82

jpelle82 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:36:12 +0000

defenders are closing their legs to block his shots…he’s been figured out, its not that he isnt trying them still. the old dog needs a new trick

By: pens919209

pens919209 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:14:08 +0000

The whole “Root Sports” presentation is blatant homer-ism, which is probably perfect for the Pittsburgh market – it supports all of the conspiracy theorist morons who think that no matter what, everyone is out to get the Pittsburgh sports teams.

Find WFRB-AM online and turn it on when the Penguin starts – pause the stream for about 3 seconds – and enjoy a hockey night in Pittsburgh the way it should be.

By: govtminion

govtminion — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:11:43 +0000

The problem isn’t that he’s been on ‘roids. It’s that he became predictable and disgruntled. He wasn’t enjoying the game anymore- whether that’s because of getting the captain role, Boudreau, just burned out, whatever, he obviously hasn’t been enjoying the game the way he used to. But… a part of THAT even is that he’s a one-trick pony. Every time he enters the opposing zone with the puck, it’s the same play every time- cut up the middle, turn left to shoot. And guess what? When it’s all you do, eventually teams figure that out- so now he always has a defenseman guarding his favorite move. He hasn’t adapted.

So is that because he’s unmotivated? Is he unmotivated because his trick isn’t working anymore? What’s the problem? We don’t know. At the end of the day though, I would be very shocked to hear that it had anything to do with steroids or anything of the sort.

By: pens919209

pens919209 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 18:10:24 +0000

One has to wonder… if Ovechkin were on steroids before the 2010 Olympics and stopped taking them then, why wouldn’t he have gotten back on them after the Olympics were over to regain his competitive edge?

Maybe he’s hit the wall mentally and physically; maybe he’s injured; maybe teams have stepped up their tactics in defending him, but steroids just don’t make any sense in this equation.

By: stakex

stakex — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:52:57 +0000

This is clearly a bias “sports writer” (hah), writing an article based on nothing. Most of the “talk” he refers to is just random internet BS, and the rest of the the “out loud wispers” are likely coming from his idiot brother (whos one of the worst play by play annoncers in history btw).

Look, there is no doubt Ovechkin is having a whole lot of trouble right now. However there is nothing even close to proof that points to steriods as the reason. If idiots want to speculate about it on internet forums… go ahead. Put such talk in the same section as Roswell and the 9/11 Conspiracies. However people who call themselves reporters and sports writers shouldn’t dip into such rumors with zero proof.

And why would Ovechkin taking half as many shots (hes taking half as many shots as his career high, but not his career average) have anything to do with steroids? They don’t make you shoot more, and Ovechkins shot seems as hard as ever…. hes just missing the target with it. On that note, steriods don’t make your shot more accurate either. Hence another issue in the roids argument for Ovechkins: Most people over state exactlly what roids can do for a hockey player.

By: michiganhockey11

michiganhockey11 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:49:11 +0000

Yes he did, as a result of a cartoon sketch that Mr. Chester Lampwick created prior to Robert Myers Sr. creation of Itchy and Scratchy.

By: stakex

stakex — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:40:42 +0000

Ovechkin is certainly not the only top player in history to hit a snag for a year or so in their career. So to say that “Well… it could be PEDs” is ignorant. Its far more likely its a confidence problem.

By: Mike Halford

Mike Halford — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:37:36 +0000

I know he won (representing Chester Lampwick). The famous line — for me, anyhow — was this:

Judge: Mr. Hutz, we’ve been in here for four hours. Do you have any evidence at all?

Hutz: Well, your Honor, we’ve got plenty of hearsay and conjecture, those are KINDS of evidence.

By: abrienza428

abrienza428 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:32:02 +0000

I doubt it. My guess is defensemen have figured out Ovechkin too much, and he hasn’t really changed his game accordingly. That’s all, and I think he dealt with some nagging injuries last year.

By: gregman98

gregman98 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:27:30 +0000

Mr. Halford: Check that episode of The Simpsons:

Lionel Hutz WON the case against the creators of Itchy & Scratchy.

By: jpelle82

jpelle82 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:24:36 +0000

i said the same thing a couple weeks ago, without any hard evidence its just speculation but still makes for an interesting conversation.

By: Stiller43

Stiller43 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:24:18 +0000

I dont know if thats an accusation as much as passing along rumblings and grumblings he’s heard.

And one does have to wonder what has changed in the guy going from a terror 60+ goal scorer to less than a point a game player. He’s only 26 so it shouldnt be age. The same talent (backstrom, semin, johansson, etc.) Is still in place…wasnt the result of a coaching change (although it did result IN a coaching change)…

One has to wonder, and hell, maybe it is PEDs…

By: abrienza428

abrienza428 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:22:20 +0000

Yeah, seriously. What a stupid article. I heard this on the radio last week (just speculating), and this guy probably grabbed it to write an article and cause a stir.

Also, Paul Steigerwald taking over play-by-play from Mike Lange was the worst decision ever made.

By: michiganhockey11

michiganhockey11 — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 17:19:42 +0000

I love the Chewbacca defense!!!!!!