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CHICAGO - One will have Olympic gold and a silver trophy.
One will have gold and be left wanting.
Winnipeg’s Jonathan Toews and Kenora’s Mike Richards skated on the same line for Team Canada in Vancouver at the Olympics, working for the common cause.
Now one is the captain of the Chicago Blackhawks and the other the captain of the Philadelphia Flyers and they can expect to clash starting with Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final Saturday night at United Center.
It is expected Toews, who was Canada’s best forward from start to finish in Vancouver, and Richards, who took some time, but finally found a niche alongside him, will go head-to-head for significant portions of this Stanley Cup final.
One is going to have remarkable year, standing on the ice with Olympic gold in Vancouver and then hefting the Stanley Cup over his head four months later in either Chicago or Philadelphia.
Which carries more weight? The 37-pound silver Cup or a 1.2-pound gold medal?
“That’s a tough question,” said Richards, “but when you were growing up and playing in your driveway, it wasn’t for Olympic gold.”
They will each try and stand in the other’s way for the remarkable double.
“He’s a guy who doesn’t take anything for granted,” said Toews of Richards. “He works for everything. That’s what we kind of had going as a line (at the Olympics). We had a pretty good player in Rick Nash, I guess. Not like the two of us, who are just kind of scraping around out there.
“You get the sense he’s one of those players that’s competitive and doesn’t matter whether he’s playing defence or offence. He’s going to make you work for everything you get against him.”
“He’s easy to play with,” said Richards. “He makes his linemates better, he makes his teammates better and I learned a lot from him at the Olympics.
“He’s so tenacious on the puck. He works hard. He’s a great offensive player and I think his competitive level on the ice is what makes him a great player.”
They are 1-2 in the playoff scoring race, Toews with seven goals and 19 assists and Richards with six goals and 15 assists.
Toews is the more cerebral player of the two, his smarts with the puck - knowing when to move it and where and when to hang onto it - were a revelation to those watching in Vancouver when he played against high-end opposition.
Richards has talent, too, and his cruel and merciless hit on Florida’s David Booth earlier this season was the perfect example of the jagged edge to his game.
His performance in the Flyers’ Game 5 series clincher against the Montreal Canadiens is already taking on legendary proportions. He hustled after a loose puck to score a short-handed goal after the Habs had taken the lead a minute into the game and muscled Tomas Plekanec off the puck to set up an empty-netter.
Richards is the older of the two at 25 - Toews is 22 - but it is Richards who volunteers how he learned watching his younger teammate, among the other leaders on Team Canada, at the Olympics.
“I learned a lot from him at the Olympics,” said Richards. “It’s funny how different people handle pressure situations...you obviously grab some things.”
Now he will try and use them against his friend.
“We talk,” said Richards. “He’s from Winnipeg and I’m from Kenora, which is pretty close. So we’re friends now. Obviously, on the ice, it will be a little different. We’ll play hard against each other.”
“It’s all about finding what you really got inside yourself when you are out there against players like Mike Richards,” said Toews, “when it really matters.”