The few minutes of media access after a hard-fought game isnt usually the best time to get a young NHL player talking about something other than the contest he just played. You save those conversations for practice days or morning skates.But even coming off the heat of battle, Connor McDavid and Patrik Laine happily paused to talk about playing against their idols in the NHL for the first time.In the case of Laine, it has already happened. The Winnipeg Jets rookie grew up an avid?Alex Ovechkin fan and got to face Ovechkin for the first time in the NHL last Tuesday. Laine had played against Ovechkin internationally, the first time coming during the World Championships in May.Still, their first NHL meeting was quite the thrill for the 18-year-old right winger.It was exciting to play against my childhood idol, Laine said. It was a great moment.Next, its McDavids turn.McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers face Sidney Crosbys Pittsburgh Penguins on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET. It will be the first time McDavid, 19, plays against Crosby, 29. McDavid was still sweating from a win over the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday when he was asked about the opportunity to play the guy he grew up revering.Even as reserved as McDavid is, you could sense his admiration.Its exciting. [Crosby is] someone I grew up idolizing, McDavid said. I didnt get a chance to play him last year. I didnt get a chance to play him in the World Cup. For me, its going to be pretty cool.Crosby and Ovechkin are still at the top of their games. Their teams are well-built and poised to make runs in the Stanley Cup playoffs.Were not putting them out to pasture.But in McDavid and Laine, we have two young players who are just about ready to take the baton. If youre sick of Crosby and Ovechkin comparisons, well, youre in luck. Get ready for a decades worth of comparisons between McDavid and Laine, because they might be the two players best poised to fill the vacancy when Crosby and Ovechkin move closer to the Hall of Fame.With eight goals so far this season, Laine is at the top of that leaderboard, where Ovechkin has finished six times in his career.Sounds pretty good, Laine said, when told of his spot in the goals standings. Cool. Its nice to hear.He also has more goals than any other rookie in the league, even after?Auston Matthews jumped out to an early lead with his historic four-goal NHL debut on Oct. 12.The general manager who drafted Ovechkin was in the building when Laine scored his seventh NHL goal. Former Capitals and current Las Vegas GM George McPhee saw shades of Mario Lemieux in Laines game when he first watched him during the World Junior Championships in Finland.The Ovechkin comparison works for McPhee too, mostly because both are threats to score every time they shoot.Some guys can shoot it all night and its not going to go in, McPhee said. These guys need one chance and theyre a threat to score. They both have the ability, a little bit of a curl and drag -- while theyre doing it, it changes the angle for the goalie. [Laine] is really accurate. He can really place pucks.As for McDavid, he has been getting Crosby comparisons all his life. Now the hockey world will get to see how their matchup plays out on the same sheet of ice on Tuesday night.Crosby has two Art Ross trophies, a collection that would be bigger if it werent for his multiple concussions. In six games this season, Crosby is averaging 1.67 points per game -- the highest ratio of his career. Hes making a charge up the leaderboard despite missing the Penguins first six games while recovering from his latest concussion.Waiting for him near the top of the points race is McDavid.McDavid has 14 points in 13 games, a total topped only by three players (Artem Anisimov, Patrick Kane and Nikita Kucherov) through Monday.It sure looks like McDavid will give his idol just as much competition in the points race as Kane, Claude Giroux and Steven Stamkos?will.Oilers winger Jordan Eberle has played on a line with Crosby during the 2015 World Championships and now skates on McDavids wing with Edmonton.The one thing that sticks out with Connor is his speed, Eberle said in comparing the two. Hes faster than any player Ive ever played with.McDavid and Laine both joined the NHL via different drafts, like Ovechkin (2004) and Crosby (2005). They play different positions like Ovechkin (left wing) and Crosby (center). They play in the same conference, like Ovechkin and Crosby do.The way the Jets and Oilers are trending, theyre going to see a lot of each other in the coming years -- with a lot on the line. You know, like Crosby and Ovechkin.If it ends up playing out the way that rivalry has, McDavid would be thrilled.If you can have half [Crosbys] success or even a quarter of his success, I think thats a pretty amazing career, McDavid said. Hes won basically everything there is to win. Hes a pretty good guy to try and follow.So is Ovechkin. http://www.authenticshoptitans.com/tajae-sharpe-jersey/ . Thats not a comment on the suspension that banished the Portland Winterhawks general manager and coach from his Western Hockey League teams bench for most of the 2012-13 season. http://www.authenticshoptitans.com/austin-johnson-jersey/ .com) - The Calgary Flames aim to bounce back from their first regulation home loss of the campaign on Friday night when they host a Detroit Red Wings club that they swept in three meetings a season ago. http://www.authenticshoptitans.com/brice-mccain-jersey/ . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. http://www.authenticshoptitans.com/kevin-byard-jersey/ . - The Washington Redskins have cut defensive lineman Adam Carriker and punter Sav Rocca. http://www.authenticshoptitans.com/harry-douglas-jersey/ . The 17-year-old native of Marystown, N.L., pulled out of Skate Canada International last month in Saint John, N.B., with the same problem. NEW YORK -- No Manning. No Brady, for the first four games. No clear-cut favorite in the AFC.With the regular season about to kick off, its anybodys guess wholl be the conferences representative at the Super Bowl in Houston in February.The defending champion Denver Broncos will try to become the first team to repeat since New England in 2004-05. But they wont have the retired Peyton Manning leading the way. Or even Brock Osweiler, who bolted from the Broncos and headed to Houston.Instead, Gary Kubiak and the Broncos have been trying to sort out a quarterback mix that includes veteran Mark Sanchez, 2015 seventh-rounder Trevor Siemian and rookie Paxton Lynch, the teams first-rounder this year.You want to see the other guy succeed, you want to see the team succeed, Sanchez said. So, whatever it takes to win, thats what well try to do.While their quarterback situation might be a big question mark, the Broncos know theyve got one of the leagues best defenses back, especially with the return of Super Bowl MVP Von Miller.If were like last year, our team didnt worry about the other side of the ball, defensive coordinator Wade Phillips said. They worried about how well they played. Thats what we want to do. We have to outplay the other teams defense. If they hold our team to not much, then we hold them to less. Thats the way we play the game.New England knows who its quarterback will be at the start of the season. Jimmy Garoppolo steps in for the suspended Tom Brady, wholl have to sit four games as a result of his role in the Deflategate scandal.That might make the Patriots stranglehold on the AFC East appear looser after winning the division the last seven years. Well, not so fast on writing off Bill Belichicks bunch.Belichick is Belichick, Buffalo safety Corey Graham said. Hes one of the best, so when its all said and done, you know hes going to get those guys prepared and make sure theyre ready to go.Pittsburgh might have as good a chance to win the AFC crown as anyone, especially if Ben Roethlisberger remains healthy. The Steelers went 10-6 and won a playoff game last season despite a down year for their playmaking quarterback because of injuries.Wide receiver Antonio Brown, among the most dynamic offensive player in the league, broke his own franchise records by catching 136 passes for 1,834 yards. Running back LeeVeon Bell is back from torn knee ligaments and should provide a boost, but will be suspended the first three games of the regular season for missing multiple drug tests.ddddddddddddThe Steelers will also have to contend with AFC North rivals Cincinnati, which has made the postseason five straight years.Quarterback Andy Dalton is recovered from a broken thumb that kept him out of the Bengals first-round playoff loss to the Steelers. He was having a breakout season when he got hurt last December, setting a team record with a passer rating of 106.3. But Marvin Lewis offense will have a different look this season with coordinator Hue Jackson leaving to become Clevelands head coach and wide receivers Marvin Jones (Lions) and Mohamed Sanu (Falcons) signing elsewhere as free agents.The AFC South could be a toss-up, with Andrew Luck back from an inconsistent and injury-plagued season for Indianapolis. Houston has a new quarterback in Osweiler and running back in Lamar Miller, but star defensive end J.J. Watt is still recovering from back surgery. Jacksonville is coming off a 5-11 year, but showed promise with quarterback Blake Bortles breakthrough season with receivers Allen Robinson and Allen Hurns, who combined for 24 touchdown catches.Any stumbles by Denver might create an opening in the AFC West for Kansas City, which was a win away from the AFC title game despite not having running back Jamaal Charles for most of the season because of a torn knee ligament.Oakland also appears to be a team on the rise, led by quarterback Derek Carr. The Raiders could get off to a good start because they face just one playoff team from last season (Kansas City) in their first eight games.I believe we have a chance to be better, Broncos general manager John Elway said. Theres no question that the Raiders are better, the Chargers and Kansas City are going to be better, so that what makes it tough. Our division is one of the top divisions in the league now. Its going to be a battle within and thats why every game is going to count.(Corrects to Jacksonville going 5-11 last season)---AP Sports Writer John Wawrow contributed.---AP NFL website: www.pro32.ap.org and AP NFL Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/AP-NFL Wholesale Hoodies NFL Shirts Outlet Jerseys NFL Wholesale Cheap NFL Jerseys Free Shipping Wholesale Jerseys Cheap Cheap NFL Jerseys China Wholesale Jerseys Wholesale NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '