Top 50 after 2 seasons?

ESPN seems to be pushing Alexander Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby to an almost absurd amount as they promote their top 50 NHL forwards ever shtick. Look, Ovechkin and Crosby are without question the future of this league and it's nice to see that there is at least some level of committment by the league to put their two young saviors into the public consciousness (in as much as American sports fans are the public), but c'mon, they're just in their second season. How can anyone measure true greatness in a career after so little time played?

When LaDainian Tomlinson retires from the NFL, he'll likely be included in the same conversation as Jim Brown, Barry Sanders, and Walter Payton. To suggest he belonged in that debate after two years, however, would be absurd. Ovechkin and Crosby may (will) have a legit claim to being amongst the top 50 forwards of all time in a few seasons when they've sustained their success. For now, though, it seems a bit overzealous on the part of both ESPN and the NHL. There isn't a doubt in my mind, though, that we're witnessing the rise of the next Gretzky/Lemieux

So the question then becomes: who do you put on this list ahead of the two premature selections? One, certainly, must be Joe Sakic, who I was stunned to see omitted from the list, given his ranking as one of the all-time leading scorers (greatest in franchise history) and his two Stanley Cups. Swapping out Sakic for Crosby would be a change at center, so it reasons that Ovechkin should be swapped out for a winger. Teemu Selanne's name springs quickly to mind, he of the 74-goal rookie season and continued dynamisn from then on. If Mike Gartner's on the list, Selanne should be, too. Cam Neely's another suggestion.

As far as the list goes, if you have anything other than a 1st line of Gretzky/Howe/Rocket Richard with Super Mario as your #2 center, you're dreaming.