Alexander Ovechkin is a Russian professional ice hockey player who is the captain of the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). His playing position is a left-winger. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest goal scorers of all time and holds the record for the most power-play goals in NHL history. With the team, Dynamo Moscow of the Russian Superleague, he started his professional career where he played for four seasons from 2001 until 2005. Next, he was selected by the Capitals first overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft and remained in Russia until 2005 due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout. He also has nine Maurice Richard Trophies to his name, which are awarded each year to the NHL’s top scorer. Other honors include the Hart Memorial Trophy, the Lester B. Pearson Award, and First All-Star Team selections. He was the cover athlete of the 2K Sports hockey simulation video game NHL 2K10, as well as the cover athlete of EA Sports’ NHL 07 and NHL 21. In late 2009, he was named GQ’s 48th most powerful person in Washington, D.C. He has appeared in three films: Zaytsev, zhgi! Istoriya shoumena (2010) as an actor, NHL: Just Like Me (2008), and Boys to the Bigs (2008). On 25th February 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Ovechkin called for peace without mentioning Russia or Ukraine directly. He is nicknamed ‘Ovi’ or ‘Ovie’.
What is Alexander Ovechkin Famous For?
- Being a professional ice hockey player.
- For his deadly one-timer, which he typically fires from the left faceoff circle, an area known as his “office”.
Where is Alexander Ovechkin From?
Alexander Ovechkin took birth on 17th September 1985 with the born name of Alexander Mikhailovich Ovechkin. He is from Moscow. He is the son of Soviet athletes. His father’s name is Mikhail and his mother’s name is Tatyana Ovechkina. His dad was a football player and his mom was a two-time Olympic gold medalist and World Championships (1975) in basketball (1976, 1980). 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 grew up with his two siblings namely Sergei and Mikhail. He was only two when he first picked up a hockey stick. Whenever a hockey game came on TV, he would drop whatever he was doing, refusing to allow his parents to change the channel. When Ovechkin was 10, his brother Sergei died from a blood clot following a car accident. He credits his elder brother Sergei for introducing him to and encouraging him to pursue hockey. He holds Russian nationality and his ethnicity is Russian-White. He follows the Christianity religion and his zodiac sign is Virgo.
Source: @instagram.com/aleksandrovechkinofficial
About his education, he attended public school #596, infamous for military discipline and a “tyrannical” principal, completing eight and a half grades before starting at Dynamo Moscow’s sports school. While he saw his friends “getting high and getting dead,” Ovechkin was attending daily training sessions morning and night. “You dive into sport with your head and arms and legs, and there’s no time for anything else,” he said of this early training. 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. His field of study is Pedagogical Sciences.
Alexander Ovechkin Career Timeline
- Alexander initially played in the Russian Super League (RSL) in Dynamo Moscow when he was 16.
- He made his professional debut in the 2001-2002 season where he recorded four points in 21 games.
- There, he spent three seasons before being drafted by the NHL where he rack up 36 goals and 32 assists in 152 career games.
- Then, he was selected first overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals.
- Due to the 2004-05 NHL lockout, he remained with Dynamo for one more season and recorded 27 points in 37 games in 2004–05.
- He next signed a contract with rival Russian team Avangard Omsk. Later, 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.
- He played his first game with the Capitals on 5th October 2005 against Columbus Blue Jackets.
- Next, he scored his first career hat trick against Jean-Sébastien Giguère of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim to help Washington win the game on 13th January 2006.
- He finished the 2005-2006 season leading all NHL rookies in goals, points, power-play goals, and shots.
- He completed his second NHL season with 46 goals and 92 points.
- Playing in the final season of his rookie contract, 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.
- He scored the game-winning goal in his NHL playoff debut with less than five minutes left in game 1 against the Philadelphia Flyers.
- In late October of the 2008–09 season, he returned home to Moscow to visit his ailing grandfather, missing only the second game of his career up to that point, snapping a consecutive streak of 203 games played.
- He finished the 2009 playoffs with a post-season career-high 21 points in 14 games.
- He suffered an upper-body injury during a game against the Columbus Blue Jackets on 1st November 2009.
- Next, he was suspended by the NHL on 1st December for two games (one for the action, and one for a second game misconduct penalty during the season) for a knee-on-knee hit to Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Tim Gleason during a game the previous day. The suspension was Ovechkin’s first of his career, causing him to forfeit $98,844.16 in salary.
- He was named captain of the Washington Capitals on 5th January 2010. He became the first European, second-youngest, and 14th overall captain in team history.
- During the NHL lockout in the first half of the shortened 2012–13 season, he went to play in the KHL and re-joined Dynamo Moscow. He led the NHL in goal-scoring with 32, earning him his third Rocket Richard Trophy in the remainder of lockout-shortened 2012-2013 NHL season.
- During the 2015–16 season, in the second period of a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ovechkin scored his eighth goal of the season to tie Sergei Fedorov’s tally for the most goals among Russian born players, with 483.
- On 11th January 2017, he scored his 1,000th career point, becoming the 37th player in NHL history to reach 1,000 points with only one team.
- He had “the most dominant postseason of his career,” recording 15 goals and 27 points over 24 games and averaging 20:44 of ice time per game in 2018.
- He won his first Stanley Cup, leading his team to victory over the Vegas Golden Knights 4–3 in game 5 of the finals on 7th June 2018.
- On 27th July 2021, Ovechkin signed a five-year, $47.5 million contract extension with the Capitals.
- On 12th November, he scored his 742nd NHL goal, passing Brett Hull for 4th on the all-time goal-scoring list.
- On 26th November, he scored his 28th career hat trick, tying Marcel Dionne and Bobby Hull for sixth-most in NHL history.
- On 31st December, he scored his 275th power-play goal, breaking Dave Andreychuk’s all-time record.
Source: @chamegu
Alexander Ovechkin International Career
- Regarding his international hockey career, he played at the 2002 World U-17 Hockey Challenge at 16.
- He was selected by Russian coach Viktor Tikhonov to play in the Česká Pojišťovna Cup EuroTour tournament when he was 17. He became the youngest skater ever to play for the Russian national team.
- He also became the youngest player ever to score for the national team.
- He also was selected to play at the 2002 IIHF World U18 Championships. There, he amassed 14 goals and four assists in eight games, leading Russia to a silver medal.
- He was named captain of the junior Russian national team at the age of 18.
- He was named to the Russian national team for the 2004 World Cup of Hockey at the age of 19.
- He was named captain of the junior team in the 2005 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships at 19.
- In 2005, he played in his first IIHF men’s World Championships.
- He played in his first Winter Olympic Games in the year 2006.
- He scored six goals and three assists (nine points) in seven games before Russia lost 4–3 to the Czech Republic in the quarter-finals at the 2006 IIHF World Championships.
- At the 2008 IIHF World Championships, he helped lead Russia to the gold medal by finishing with 12 points (six goals, six assists) in nine games.
- In the 2010 Winter Olympics, he finished with two goals and two assists in Russia’s four games.
- He then played in Russia’s last three games of the 2012 IIHF World Championships where he recorded two goals and two assists as Russia won the tournament.
- In addition, he represented Russia in the 2013 IIHF World Championships.
- In the 2014 Winter Olympics, Ovechkin represented Russia but later lost to arch-rivals Finland 3–1 in the quarter-final round.
- Furthermore, he participated in the 2014 IIHF World Championships where Russia won gold.
- He also joined the Russian team late in the 2015 IIHF World Championships, where Russia won the silver medal.
Source: @instagram.com/aleksandrovechkinofficial
Alexander Ovechkin Awards and Achievements
- Calder Memorial Trophy in 2006
- NHL All-Rookie Team in 2006
- NHL First All-Star Team in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2015, 2019
- EA Sports NHL cover athlete in 2007, 2021
- NHL All-Star Game in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022
- NHL All-Star Game SuperSkills Competition Breakaway Challenge Winner in 2008, 2009, 2011
- Art Ross Trophy in 2008
- Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy in 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020
- Hart Memorial Trophy in 2008, 2009, 2013
- Lester B. Pearson Award/Ted Lindsay Award in 2008, 2009, 2010
- NHL 2K cover athlete in 2010
- NHL Second All-Star Team in 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016
- NHL All-Star Game SuperSkills Competition Hardest Shot Winner in 2018
- Stanley Cup champion in 2018
- Conn Smythe Trophy in 2018
- World Junior Championships gold medal in 2003
- World Junior Championships All-Star Team in 2005
- Winter Olympics All-Star Team in 2006
- World Championships All-Star Team in 2006, 2008
- Kharlamov Trophy in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2018
- World Championships gold medal in 2008, 2012, 2014
- Wayne Gretzky International Award in 2019
Source: @novacapsfans
Who is Alexander Ovechkin Wife?
Alexander Ovechkin is a married man. He tied a knot to his beautiful wife, Nastya Shubskaya on 28th August 2016. On 11th September 2015, he announced the engagement via Instagram. Nastya is the daughter of Vera Glagoleva. On 7th June 2018, in an interview after winning the Stanley Cup, it was made public that Ovechkin and his wife were expecting their first child. On 18th August 2018, the couple had a son, whom they named Sergei after Ovechkin’s late brother. On 24th February 2020, his wife announced via Instagram that they were expecting their second child. On 27th May 2020, their second son, Ilya, was born. Today, the couple is leading a happy life without any disturbances. His sexual orientation is straight and he is not gay.
Source: @instagram.com/aleksandrovechkinofficial
Initially, he was engaged to 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.
Source: @playersbio
Back in 2017, Ovechkin said: “I have a good relationship with Russians and with Americans. So, I’m neutral.” In November 2017 Ovechkin started a movement called PutinTeam in support of Russian President Vladimir Putin during the 2018 Russian presidential election. Asked whether it was political, Ovechkin described his actions as a show of support for Russia, “I just support my country, you know? That’s where I’m from, my parents live there, all my friends. Like every human from different countries, they support their president. It’s not about political stuff.” Of his participation in PutinTeam, Ovechkin also said: I’m not a politic. I don’t know what’s happening out there. I know it’s a hard situation, but it is what it is. You know, I play here, and this is my second home. I don’t want to fight between two countries, because it’s going to be a mess. PutinTeam was first announced in a 2 November 2017 post on Ovechkin’s Instagram account, which has over one million followers. According to The Washington Post, Ovechkin has a personal relationship with Putin. He has a personal phone number for Putin, who is a big hockey fan, and received Putin’s present at his 2016 wedding. He said that he and Putin don’t have much in common: “We talk about hockey and all that stuff. That’s it.”
Everything To Know About Vladimir Putin
How much is Alexander Ovechkin Net Worth?
Alexander Ovechkin is a professional ice hockey player who began his career at the age of 16. Today, he is considered one of the greatest ice hockey players of all time. As of 2022, the net worth of Alexander is estimated to have $80 Million. In the year 2008, after an impressive first few years in the league, he signed a historic 13-year contract with the team that drafted him. The contract, worth $124 million, averaged $9.5 million years and was the richest in NHL history. He hasn’t looked back since then. In July 2021, he signed another contract extension with his longtime team, this time for five years and $47.5 million. He is making an annual salary of around $9 Million at present. He is living a lavish life today and he is satisfied with his earnings. His main source of wealth is from his ice hockey career. He is also a dedicated car enthusiast, owning many fine automobiles, such as a Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series and a custom Mercedes S63 AMG. At the 2015 NHL All-Star Game, Ovechkin lobbied Honda for a new car and brought an element of fun silliness to the “draft” where he was chosen third to last. On 11th June 2008, Ovechkin launched his own line of designer streetwear with CCM. On 6th July 2009, he was named an ambassador for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. He is also an investor in the Washington Spirit, a professional team in the National Women’s Soccer League.
After using and endorsing CCM equipment for most of his career, Ovechkin made the move to Bauer Hockey in August 2011 following a decline in his point production in the 2010–11 season. He continued to use Bauer equipment until the 2017 season when he switched back to CCM. He currently uses the Ribcor Trigger stick and Super Tacks AS1 skates.
How tall is Alexander Ovechkin?
Alexander Ovechkin is a handsome man with a perfect and tall height of 6 ft 3 in (191 cm). His balanced bodyweight consists of around 239 lb (108 kg; 17 st 1 lb). His body type is athletic. He frequently does exercise to keep his body fit and fine. His other body measurements are still to get revealed yet. Overall, he has got a healthy body with a charming smile. His hair color is dark brown and his eye color is blue.
Leave a Reply