Alex Ovechkin isn't making any waves in this season's goal-scoring race, but he's putting up assists like never before. Since wingers aren't usually known for their playmaking, I wondered how common it is for a left wing to put up numbers like this. Well, it turns out the all-time single season record for assists by a left wing is 70, set by Joe Juneau as a Boston Bruin back in the freewheeling days of 1992-'93. With 21 assists in 24 games, Ovechkin is on pace to break that record with 71.75 assists over 82 games. Ovechkin already owns the record for most goals in a season by a left wing, with 65. Meanwhile, Luc Robitaille still owns the left wing single season points record, with 126 (Ovechkin's best-ever is 112).

Ovechkin's pace would break this record by the slimmest of margins, and a number of things could derail him. He will need to play at least 81 games, something he hasn't managed for the last two seasons running. Alex Semin's fantastic production would need to continue. And if Ovechkin's goal scoring picks up, it may come at the expense of assists if he isn't looking to pass as frequently.

Finally, if he decided to spend the rest of the season at right wing, that bar is set considerably higher: Jaromir Jagr holds the record with 87. But Ovechkin's five assists in only two games on the right side remind us that nothing's out of reach for the Great 8.

  As I'm reveling in the Caps' new position atop the League's standings, I keep hearing words of warning from friends and family. You may have heard them too: the Curse of the President's Trophy. Apparently, if you have the best record in the league for the regular season, you doom yourself to playoff failure. I thought this misconception was confined to the hockey ignorant, but Peerless last week mentioned that having the best record in the league "is not necessarily a good thing if you consider the number of President’s Trophy winners that traded up to a Stanley Cup (seven in 23 seasons)." Then on Ted's Take yesterday: "...we also know that it is highly unusual for the team that has the best record in the NHL to go on and win the Stanley Cup."

The truth: President's Trophy winners have far and away the best track record of winning Cups.

This myth is so easy to debunk, it's barely worth the trouble, but since it keeps popping up, I'll lay it out.

Here's a breakdown of where in the League standings the last 20 Stanley Cup winners finished.

• 1st (President's Trophy) = 6 teams (DET '08, DET '02, COL '01, DAL '99, NYR '94, CAL '89)
• 2nd = 2 teams (TB '04, COL '96)
• 3rd = 1 team (DET '98)
• 4th = 4 teams (ANA '07, CAR '06, NJ '03, NJ '00)
• 5th = 2 teams (DET '97, EDM '90)
• 6th = 2 teams (MON '93, PIT '92)
• 7th = 1 team (PIT '91)
• 8th = 1 (PIT '09)
• 9th = 1 (NJ '95)

Yes, 6 out of 20 is only 30%, but it's far and away the best place to be if you want to win the Cup.

Kaboom. Myth busted. Now let's all just settle down and enjoy our team's success.