December 6, 2011, HockeyPrimeTime.com column on journalistic responsibility

Don't jump to conclusions about Ovechkin

Columns

Written by Denis Gorman

Monday, December 05, 2011 16:02

Without hard evidence, It is journalistically irresponsible to speculate that Alex Ovechkin – or any other athlete – is using performance-enhancing drugs. Although columnist John Steigerwald admits to not having proof, he contends Ovechkin's offensive slide is due to the absence of PEDs. One of the best aspects of working for HPT.com is the very strong editorial direction laid out by our bosses. They have asked that our reporters report and that we provide our readers with hard evidence in our stories. All responsible outlets employ a similar directive. Evidently it is a standard that The Observer-Reporter of Washington and Greene Counties, Pennsylvania, does not feel compelled to uphold. The Observer-Reporter outrageously allowed columnist John Steigerwald to suggest in Sunday’s edition of the newspaper that the reason for Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin’s offensive deterioration is due to Ovechkin not using performance-enhancing drugs. Steigerwald offered circumstantial evidence: Ovechkin’s doctor, Dr. Anthony Galea, pled guilty in July to smuggling performance-enhancing drugs, including Human Growth Hormone, across the Canada-U.S. border. Steigerwald noted that Richard Thomas, whose Polk County, Fla. house was raided by police, boasted that he provided PEDs to the Capitals and Major League Baseball’s Washington Nationals. Finally, Steigerwald argued Ovechkin has dropped in shots taken per game. Steigerwald’s "column" – a descriptor used loosely, with a great deal of scorn – was full of gossip and innuendo. It was written to be water cooler talk and message board fodder. Too bad there is no hard proof in the piece of Ovechkin ever using performance-enhancers. In fact, Steigerwald admits as much. He wrote, “Is any of this proof that Ovechkin's performance was enhanced before, and now it's not? No. But, you combine it with the fact that his doctor was charged with bringing PEDs over the border from Canada, and it gives you the right to be suspicious. “Add to that the fact a Washington D.C. chiropractor was investigated after he bragged about supplying steroids to members of the Capitals and Washington Nationals. “After all the tearful, indignant denials by athletes who were later found to be juicers, I've taken the position that if you're performing at a near super-human level and your doctor is arrested for selling steroids, you are guilty until proven innocent. “Not guilty in a court of law, just in my mind. Sorry. “Interestingly enough, the same doctor who had Ovechkin as a patient also treated Tiger Woods.” Except Steigerwald did not factor in facts. Galea’s patients have also included Alex Rodriguez, Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, Takeo Spikes and Jamal Lewis, along with Woods, according to an Associated Press report when the doctor pled guilty July 6. One plus one does not equal three, no matter how much Steigerwald and “his mind” want to believe otherwise. Moreover, 16 months prior, The New York Daily News reported in a March 2010 story that Capitals players Matt Bradley, Eric Fehr and Shaone Morrisonn, and trainer Greg Smith, spoke with “authorities” about Thomas. Nowhere in the two stories is Ovechkin’s name mentioned. Neither his name nor his initials were mentioned in a June 2010 Washington Post timeline that detailed Galea’s trips to treat athletes. The Post went to great lengths to protect the athletes’ identities as the newspaper referred to them as “professional athlete B,” and “professional athlete H.” You may wonder how long it took to research the Daily News, Post and AP stories. (The answer: Not long, thanks to high speed internet and Google.) Additional exploration revealed the following statistical information regarding Ovechkin and his shots on goal. Ovechkin's 85 shots leads the Capitals this season. Ovechkin, who has played in every game for Washington this season, is averaging 3.4 shots per game. He should finish with 279 shots on goal if he continues at that pace. Ovechkin has led the Caps in shots on goal every season of his career and has taken 2,611 shots in 500 regular-season games. That works out to an average of 5.222 shots per game. So, you may be asking yourself, why is his shots per game average this season lower than his career average? Glad you asked. One learns that Ovechkin is seventh on the Caps in ice time this season with an average of 18:48 per game. In his first six years, he averaged more than 20 minutes per game. How much of that is due to the personal additions made by GM George McPhee, and the philosophical changes implemented by new coach Dale Hunter, is to be determined. But that is irrelevant to the greater point: One plus one does not equal three, no matter how much Steigerwald and “his mind” want to believe otherwise. Suspicion does not equal guilt. The only guilt belongs to Steigerwald for writing the column and the editors of The Observer-Reporter for being so incredibly irresponsible to allow it to be published. On Twitter: @HockeyPrimeTime and @DenisGorman Photo by Getty Images

Last Updated on Monday, December 05, 2011 21:33

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