Last night, Alexander Semin chipped in two goals and three assists to blow out the Carolina Hurricanes at Raleigh and help the Capitals take sole posession of first place in the Southeast. With 15 games played, Semin leads the NHL in points (27), goals (13), and game winning goals (3). Often misconstrued as a “shoot-first” player, Semin is fourth in the NHL with 14 assists. Just as often considered a defensive liability, Semin currently leads the NHL in plus/minus with a +17.

This is certainly Semin’s breakout year, the year he will start to be noticed around the league. The question is, what constitutes a breakout year for a player who remained obscure after he put up 73 points two years ago, in spite of missing five games? Will Semin successfully step out of Alex Ovechkin’s shadow if he wins his own scoring title? Will it take an MVP trophy of his own? Or will he have to achieve something Ovechkin hasn’t done yet? Not to put on too much pressure, but we’d suggest that scoring 50 goals in this season’s first 50 games would be a great way for the “other Alex” to distinguish himself.

Fifty goals in 50 games has long been the NHL’s highest benchmark for goal-scoring greatness – a number achieved by only a handful of players ever. Of course, according to a local hockey fan writing two weeks ago, Ovechkin is the NHL’s only hope for such a feat right now. The way Semin cuts around and through opposing defenses this year, moving in on goalies as though drawn by a secret magnetic force that pushes all opposition aside and demands he shoot the puck, we’ll be interested to see how long that perception lasts.

Photo by Eli Resnick