Penguins-Capitals: Washington Wins Battle of Magicians

In the film The Prestige, Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale played competing magicians torn apart by a grudge. They kept trying to outsmart each other, coming up with new and better tricks to wow their respective audiences.

Welcome to Round Two of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between Pittsburgh and Washington, where the parts of Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale will be played by Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin.

Both had hat tricks on Monday night.

The NHL hat trick has no equivalent in sports. It is the NHL's crowning single-game achievement, and something that certainly isn't commonplace in the playoffs. 

Crosby and Ovechkin gave Capitals fans a show Monday night. No one in that arena could have possibly gone home disappointed (maybe the Pens fans in attendance).

At the first intermission, commentator Mike Milbury tried to involve other players on the respective rosters, saying that "lots of other guys are contributing here."

Not Monday night, Mike. Sure, in the midst of what felt like an epic battle of skill between the NHL's two biggest stars, Dave Steckle chipped in a goal, and Washington wouldn't have won without it—but is anyone going to remember that when they look back at this game?

Pittsburgh and Washington are playing each other for the right to go to the conference finals, yes, but all anyone outside of Pittsburgh and Washington really sees is Crosby vs. Ovechkin.

In this era of hockey, to have something as perfect as this happen is basically unheard of. It just doesn't happen. Two hat tricks scored by the biggest stars on their respective teams?

Is the big rivalry here really Pittsburgh and Washington, or Crosby and Ovechkin?

When Ovechkin scored his third goal of the night, red hats littered the ice, as is customary league-wide. The Caps fans paid tribute to their MVP candidate.

Crosby was so aggravated he asked the referee to make an announcement telling the Capital fans to stop throwing hats. Then, being a true competitor, he scored his third goal of the night with 31 seconds to go in the game. A few hats trickled onto the ice; he would get little recognition in the hostile confines of the Verizon Center.

Monday night, two magicians took the ice amongst their teams and displayed their array of tricks. As the series now moves to Pittsburgh, we can only wonder what they'll do for an encore.