Alex Ovechkin is a Russian professional ice hockey player. He currently plays as a captain of the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). His playing position is a left-winger. He began his professional career with Dynamo Moscow of the Russian Superleague in 2001 where he played for four seasons and returned briefly during the 2012–13 NHL lockout. He was selected by the Capitals first overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. In the 2005–06 season, his first with the Capitals, he scored 52 goals and 54 assists to lead all rookies in points. In 2017, he was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players of all time.
Internationally, he has represented Russia in multiple tournaments. His first IIHF tournament was the 2002 World U18 Championship. He made his debut at the World Junior Championship and played two more years at the World Juniors, as well as one more at the World U18 Championships. His first senior tournament was the 2004 World Championship, and he also played in the World Cup in the same year. Additionally, he also played for Russia at the Winter Olympics in 2006, 2010, and 2014. He is nicknamed “Ovi” (alternatively spelled “Ovie”) and “the Great Eight” in reference to his jersey number
What is Alex Ovechkin Known For?
- Alex Ovechkin is a professional ice hockey player.
- He is known as one of the greatest goal-scorers of all time.
- He holds the records for the most power-play goals, most goals scored in away games, and most goals with the same team in NHL history.
- He is the third NHL player, behind Gordie Howe and Wayne Gretzky, to score 800 goals in the regular season.
What is Alex Ovechkin’s Nationality?
Alex Ovechkin was born with the full name of Alexander Mikhailovich Ovechkin on September 17, 1985, in Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union. He holds Russian nationality and his ethnicity is Russian-White. His zodiac sign is Virgo as per his birthdate and his religion is Christian. He is the son of his father, Mikhail Ovechkin, and his mother, Tatyana Ovechkin. His mum is a basketball player who won Olympic gold medals two times. Currently, she is running the women’s national basketball program in Russia. Whereas his dad was a football player back in the day.
Alex has two older brothers, Sergei and Mikhail. His mother sensed her youngest son was destined for “sporting greatness”. “From birth, it was obvious,” she said. “In a child, it’s clear immediately. He was very active and walking and curious.” He was two years old when he first picked up a hockey stick. Whenever a hockey game came on television he would drop whatever he was doing, refusing to allow his parents to change the channel. When he was 10, his brother Sergei died of a blood clot following a car accident. He credits his elder brother Sergei for introducing him to and encouraging him to pursue hockey. His present age is 37 as of 2022.
As of June 2021, he is currently studying for and is close to obtaining a Doctor of Sciences, the Russian equivalent of a Ph.D. or higher doctorate. Ovechkin’s field of study is Pedagogical Sciences.
Alex Ovechkin Ice Hockey Career
- Alex Ovechkin at age 16, played Russian Super League (RSL) at Dynamo Moscow. He made his professional debut in the 2001–02 season scoring four points in 21 games.
- Alex was selected first overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals. However, he remained with Dynamo for one more season due to the 2004-2005 NHL lockout. He recorded 27 points in 37 games in his 2004–2005 season.
- Next, he signed a contract with rival Russian team Avangard Omsk. Then, he decided to opt out and signed with the Capitals on 5 August 2005. The deal was a three-year, entry-level contract worth the rookie maximum of $984,200 per season with performance-based bonuses to inflate his annual salary to as much as $3.9 million.
Washington Capitals
- Alex played his first game with the Capitals on 5 October 2005 against Columbus Blue Jackets where he scored two goals. He scored his first career hat trick against Jean-Sébastien Giguère on 13th January 2006.
- He finished the 2005–06 season leading all NHL rookies in goals, power-play goals, and shots.
- He appeared in his first NHL All-Star Game in Dallas on 24 January 2007. He completed his second NHL season with 46 goals and 92 points.
- In 2007–08, he signed a 13-year contract extension worth $124 million with the Capitals on 10 January 2008. The contract, which averages $9.5 million per year, was the richest in NHL history.
- Alex became the first NHL player to score at least 40 even-strength goals in one season since Pavel Bure in 1999–2000. On 5th February 2009, he scored his 200th goal, against the Los Angeles Kings. He finished the 2009 playoffs with a postseason career-high 21 points in 14 games.
- During his 2009-2010 season, he suffered an upper-body injury during a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on 1 November 2009, after a collision with opposing forward Raffi Torres.
- Alex was named captain of the Washington Capitals on 5 January 2010 becoming the first European, second-youngest, and 14th overall captain in team history. He led the NHL in goals per game and points per game for three straight seasons, from 2008 to 2010.
- On 5 April 2011, he scored his 300th career goal, becoming the sixth-youngest and seventh-fastest player to do so.
- He scored his 400th career goal on 20 December 2013, in a game against the Carolina Hurricanes. On 10 January 2016, he scored his 500th and 501st goals in a 7–1 victory over the Ottawa Senators. He then scored his 1,000th career point on 11th January 2017.
- Alex scored his 600th career goal on 12th March 2018. On 22nd February 2020, he scored his 700th career goal against New Jersey Devils.
- Alex signed a five-year, $47.5 million contract extension with the Capitals on 27 July 2021. On 16th March 2022, he scored his 767th career NHL goal.
- Scoring a hat trick against the Chicago Blackhawks on 13 December 2022, Alex became the third player in NHL history to score 800 regular season goals, behind Howe and Gretzky.
Alex Ovechkin International Career
- Alex played at the 2002 World U-17 Hockey Challenge at age 16. He scored two hat tricks, one against Switzerland and one against the United States.
- He was selected by Russian coach Viktor Tikhonov to play in the Česká Pojišťovna Cup EuroTour tournament at age 17. He became the youngest skater ever to play for the Russian national team.
- He was selected to play at the 2002 IIHF World U18 Championships. At age 18, he was named captain of the junior Russian national team. After a year, he was named to the Russian national team for the 2004 World Cup of Hockey, making him the youngest player to play in the tournament.
- At age 19, he was named captain of the junior team in the 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships. In 2005, he played in his first IIHF men’s World Championships. He scored six goals at the 2006 IIHF World Championships. He helped lead Russia to the gold medal by finishing with 12 points at the 2008 IIHF World Championships. He joined the Russian team for the 2011 IIHF World Championships.
- In addition, he played in Russia’s last three games of the 2012 IIHF World Championships. He represented Russia in the 2013 IIHF World Championships. He participated in the 2014 IIHF World Championships where Russia won gold. He joined the Russian team late in the 2015 IIHF World Championships, where Russia won the silver medal.
Alex Ovechkin Awards and Achievements
- Calder Memorial Trophy and NHL All-Rookie Team in 2006
- NHL first All-Star team in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2015, and 2019
- EA Sports NHL covered athletes in 2007 and 2021
- NHL All-Star Game in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2022
- NHL All-Star Game SuperSkills Competition Breakaway Challenge Winner in 2008, 2009, and 2011
- Art Ross Trophy in 2008
- Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy in 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2020
- Hart Memorial Trophy in 2008, 2009, and 2013
- Lester B. Pearson Award/Ted Lindsay Award in 2008, 2009, and 2010
- NHL second All-Star team in 2011, 2013, 2014, and 2016
- NHL All-Star Game SuperSkills Competition Hardest Shot Winner in 2018
- Stanley Cup champion in 2018
- Conn Smythe Trophy in 2018
- Russian Superleague champion in 2005
- Gagarin Cup champion in 2013
- World Junior Championships gold medal in 2003
- World Junior Championships All-Star team in 2005
- Winter Olympics All-Star team in 2006
- Kharlamov Trophy in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2018
- Wayne Gretzky International Award in 2019
NHL records
- The first player to win the Art Ross Trophy, Maurice Richard Trophy, Lester B. Pearson Award, and Hart Memorial Trophy in a single season.
- Only player to be named to the NHL’s first All-Star team in each of his first five seasons
- Most NHL goal-scoring titles with 9
- Most goals scored by a left-wing in a career – 780 (as of the 2021–22 season)
- Most goals for a single team – 800 (As of 13 December 2022)
- Most goals scored on the road in a career – 403 (As of 29 November 2022)
- Most goals scored by a left-wing in a season – 65 goals (2007–08)
- Most points scored by a left-wing rookie – 106 (2005–06)
- Most shots on goal by a left-wing in a season – 528 (2008–09)
- Most shots on goal by a rookie in a season – 425 (2005–06)
- Most regular season points by a Russian-born NHL rookie – 106 (2005–06)
- Fastest overtime goal – 6 seconds on 15 December 2006 versus Atlanta Thrashers (tied with Mats Sundin and David Legwand)
- The only player to be named to both the NHL First and Second All-Star teams in the same season (2012–13)
- Most goals by a Russian-born player – 800 (As of 13 December 2022)
- Most points by a Russian-born player – 1,410
- Most shots by a Russian-born player – 6,061
- Most career shots by a forward – 6,061
- Most career overtime goals – 24
- Most career power-play goals – 285
- Most career game-opening goals – 136
- Most consecutive 30-goal seasons – 15 (tied with Mike Gartner and Jaromír Jágr)
- Most career 40-goal seasons – 12 (tied with Wayne Gretzky)
- Most career 45-goal seasons – 12
- Most career 50-goal seasons – 9 (tied with Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky)
Washington Capitals records
- Most seasons with 50 or more goals – 9 (2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2018–19, 2021–22)
- Most shots on goal in a season – 528 (2008–09)
- Most goals in a season – 65 goals (2007–08)
- Most power-play goals – 285 (1 May 2022)
- Most power-play goals in a season – 25 goals (2014–15)
- Most career overtime goals – 25 goals
- Most career penalty shots attempted – 10 shots (most recent on 7 March 2015)
- Most goals in a season by a rookie – 52 goals (2005–06)
- Most points in a season by a rookie – 106 points (2005–06)
- Point streak by a rookie – 11 games (17 points; 5 goals, 12 assists; 18 March–7 April 2006)
- Point streak by a rookie to start the season – 8 games
- Goal streak by a rookie – 7 games (10 February–8 March 2006)
- Most career hat tricks – 29
- Most career goals – 800 (as of 14 December 2022)
- Most career points – 1,444 (as of 14 December 2022)
- Most goals in a single postseason – 15 (2017–18)
Who is Alex Ovechkin’s Wife?
Alex Ovechkin is a married man since 11th August 2016. He tied the knot with his beautiful wife whose name goes by Anastasia Shubskaya. Their wedding was held in Butyrskaya, Moscow, Russia. The couple met each other at Summer Olympic Games in 2008 in Beijing, China for the first time. In 2014, he saw the photo of his Anastasia and since then they started talking again and started dating each other. Within one year, they got engaged and then became husband and wife. On 18th August 2018, the couple had a son, whom they named Sergei after Ovechkin’s late brother. On 24 February 2020, his wife announced via Instagram that they were expecting their second child. On 27 May 2020, their second son, Ilya, was born. Today, the pair is enjoying their life a lot. His sexual orientaiton is striaght.
Previously, Alex was to be engaged to the famous tennis player Maria Kirilenko. On 21 July 2014, Kirilenko announced that the wedding was called off and that the two were no longer seeing each other.
How much is Alex Ovechkin’s Net Worth?
Alex Ovechkin is an ice hockey player who is active in his career for more than 20 years. He currently plays for the Washington Capitals, and he serves as the captain of the team. He is known as one of the best players in the history of the NHL. As per sources, the net worth of Alex is estimated to be $80 Million as of 2022. He is making his annual salary of $9 million at present from his current team.
Alex finalized a three-year contract with the Capitals in 2005 from which he got an annual salary of $3.9 million. In 2008, he signed a 13-year, $124-million contract extension with the Washington Capitals, raising his annual salary to $9 million. His main source of wealth comes from his ice hockey career.
In 2012, it was reported that Alex Ovechkin has purchased a home in McLean, Virginia for $4.2 million. The residence boasts 5 bedrooms and over 11,000 square feet of living space. He lives a lavish lifestyle at present and he is enjoying his life a lot.
How tall is Alex Ovechkin?
Alex Ovechkin stands at the height of 6 feet 2 inches or 1.88 m and his body weight consist of 107 KG or 235 lbs. His body type is athletic. He has a pair of blue eyes and his hair color is dark brown. He has got a healthy body with a charming smile and a glowing face.
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