On the night Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin met in the NHL playoffs for just the second time in their careers, it was ping pong balls and an air vent that captivated hockey fans.
Crosby and Ovechkin, the NHL’s preeminent superstars for a decade, were out-shadowed by a trio of yet-to-be-drafted teenagers from the United States and Finland.
Without a Canadian team in the playoffs for the first time since 1970, NHL Draft interest peaked, months ahead of its scheduled June 24 date in Buffalo.
While Canada’s golden goal-scoring generational talent took to the ice, 14 hockey markets watched with baited breath for a chance at their next superstar.