Alex Ovechkin
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Alex Ovechkin, in full Aleksandr Mikhaylovich Ovechkin, (born September 17, 1985, Moscow, Russia, U.S.S.R.), Russian ice hockey player who won the Hart Memorial Trophy three times (2008, 2009, and 2013) as the most valuable player in the National Hockey League (NHL). He led the Washington Capitals to their first Stanley Cup championship (2018).
Ovechkin’s mother was a two-time Olympic gold medalist (1976, 1980) as a member of the Soviet women’s national basketball team, and his father was a professional football (soccer) player. Ovechkin’s impressive athletic lineage was evident early in his life, as he played at the highest level of Russian professional hockey at age 16 and was the standout forward for the national junior hockey team by age 17. Ovechkin was selected by the Washington Capitals with the first overall pick of the 2004 NHL draft, but his rookie season was delayed a year by the labour lockout that led to the cancellation of the 2004–05 NHL season. He made his NHL debut in 2005 alongside an even more highly touted rookie, Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins, but Ovechkin’s 106 points in the 2005–06 season earned him the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year.
During the 2006–07 season Ovechkin made his first NHL All-Star Game appearance, but his continued high level of play did not prevent the Capitals from finishing last in their division for the second time in his two years with the team. The following season, however, he led Washington to a surprising division title while scoring 65 goals, which was the first time since 1996 that an NHL player topped the lofty benchmark of 60 goals in one season. The Capitals lost their first-round playoff series, but Ovechkin (who also led the league with 112 points) still won his first Hart Memorial Trophy at season’s end. The Capitals won another division crown in the 2008–09 season, as well as their first postseason series, before being eliminated by Crosby and the Penguins in a dramatic seven-game conference semifinal that featured three overtime contests. Ovechkin again led the NHL in goals scored that season (with 56) and won his second straight Hart Memorial Trophy. Ovechkin led the Capitals to two additional appearances in the conference semifinal round, in 2010–11 and 2011–12 (both losing efforts), but his own level of play fell off substantially, as he netted just 32 and 38 goals, respectively, in those seasons. After a similarly disappointing beginning to the 2012–13 season, he caught fire during the final half of the lockout-shortened 48-game campaign and ultimately led the NHL with 32 goals, which resulted in his third career Hart Trophy win.
Ovechkin again led the NHL in goals scored (51) during the 2013–14 season, but the Capitals’ playoff streak ended at six seasons during that campaign. In 2014–15 he scored a league-high 53 goals and led the Capitals to the postseason, where Washington lost a thrilling second-round series (despite having held a three-games-to-one lead) that saw each of the seven games decided by one goal. In November 2015 Ovechkin registered his 484th career goal to become the NHL’s top-scoring Russian-born player. He finished the 2015–16 season with 50 goals (once again most in the NHL) while leading the Capitals to a franchise-record 56 wins. However, Washington could not capitalize on its top seed in the playoffs and was again eliminated in the second round. Ovechkin posted career-worst numbers in 2016–17 with just 69 points (33 goals, 36 assists), the fewest he had ever tallied in a full NHL season. Despite his mediocre play, the Capitals again put up the best regular-season record in the league, only to once more lose to a lower-seeded team in the second round of the postseason.
In 2017–18 he again led the NHL in goals scored (49) as the Capitals won another division title. In the postseason, Washington finally broke through after years of playoff frustration, capturing the franchise’s first conference title in 20 years to give Ovechkin his first appearance in the Stanley Cup finals. Ovechkin shined in the finals, scoring his 15th goal of the playoffs in a game-five victory over the Vegas Golden Knights that won the Capitals their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Ovechkin thus became the first Russian player to captain a team to the NHL championship. His outstanding postseason performance earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy for most valuable player in the playoffs. Ovechkin had a league-leading 51 goals during the 2018–19 season, during which the Capitals won a fourth straight division title. However, in the following postseason the team again lost in the opening round.
Alex Ovechkin
Who Is Alex Ovechkin?
The son of famous Soviet era-athletes, Alex Ovechkin was widely considered one of the world’s top young hockey players by age 17. Ovechkin was selected No. 1 overall by the Washington Capitals in the 2004 NHL Draft and went on to become one of the league’s most explosive scorers.
Early Years
Alexander Mikhaylovich Ovechkin was born on September 17, 1985, in Moscow, Russia. He’s the son of well-known Soviet-era athletes. His mother, Tatyana, excelled at basketball and was a two-time Olympic gold medalist. His father, Mikhail, was a serious soccer player.
Ovechkin’s childhood was shaped by modesty. Not long after his birth, he moved with his family to the outskirts of Moscow, making a home in a tall high-rise building that was surrounded by a crumbling neighborhood. To escape his surroundings and strict public school, Ovechkin turned to hockey, pouring everything he had into the sport.
By the age of 16, Ovechkin had begun playing with the Moscow Dynamo, a pro Russian team. A year later, he became the youngest member of Russia’s national team.
Spurred to escape a Russian life that had already claimed his older brother, who died in a car crash, and was consuming his friends—many having become addicted to drugs—Ovechkin dreamed of playing in the NHL. In his bedroom, he carefully stashed away the cards of many players, including his idol, Mario Lemieux.
Considered a hockey phenom in his native country, Ovechkin soon earned the praise of NHL scouts. As his game took off, his confidence soared. At the 2002 Under-18 World Championships in Slovakia, the young forward led the tournament with 14 goals in just eight games.
«It’s the best hockey there is,» Ovechkin said of the NHL. «And I think I’m ready to play there, wherever I’m drafted.»
NHL Success
In the end, the highly prized and touted Ovechkin went No. 1 overall to the Washington Capitals in the 2004 NHL Draft.
Forced to miss a year due to the league’s season-long lockout, Ovechkin made his NHL debut with a bang in October 2005, potting two goals in just four minutes and checking an opponent so hard that he broke the glass partition. He went on to net 52 goals and register 54 assists that season (2005-06), winning the Calder Memorial Trophy as the league’s Rookie of the Year.
In the years since, the Russian superstar has only stepped up his dominance to become one of the NHL’s most explosive and feared scorers. During the 2007-08 season, Ovechkin scored 65 times and dished out 47 assists to capture his first Hart Trophy as the league’s MVP.
The following season, Ovechkin won the Hart for the second (consecutive) time. He earned a third MVP honor following the 2012-13 season.
Olympic Career
In addition to his NHL career, Ovechkin was a key member of two Russian Olympic squads, in 2006 and 2010. Scheduled to play in the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia, Ovechkin was tapped as the official ambassador for his home country. As the country’s most famous winter athlete, he kicked off the running of the 2014 Olympic torch in Olympia, Greece.
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