Russian professional hockey player, left wing of the Washington Capitals NHL club.
Biography of Alexander Ovechkin
Alexander Ovechkin was born in 1985 in Moscow. His parents were professional athletes. Father is a football player of the Moscow Dynamo, mother - Tatiana Ovechkina- two-time Olympic basketball champion as part of the USSR national team.
Alexander about his fate as an athlete: “My father was an athlete, my mother was a great athlete. So how could I not become an athlete? "
At the age of 8, Alexander was brought into hockey by his older brother Sergei. He saw in the guy the makings of a future hockey player and provided him with all kinds of help at first. Soon, Alexander was invited to the hockey school " Dynamo”, As part of the team of which he took part in various children's tournaments and was recognized as the best player almost everywhere. He even broke the record Pavel Bure having scored 59 goals in the Moscow championship. In 2000, Alexander was transferred to the adult team. In 2001, at the age of 16, he made his debut in the Russian Super League.
For 5 years of playing at Dynamo, Alexander Ovechkin declared himself as the most talented young hockey player in Russia, became the team captain. And in the 2004-2005 season, Dynamo, for the first time in 5 years, became the champion of Russia. In 2005, Ovechkin with a scandal goes to the NHL team Washington Capitals, where he was offered the maximum possible salary for a beginner at $ 3.85 million.
The hype associated with the transition to the NHL was dubbed in the press "the Ovechkin case", which lasted quite a long time, but in the end all claims of the Moscow "Dynamo" on Alexander were recognized as unfounded.
In the very first game for the new club, Alexander scored two goals, which helped his team win Columbus blue jackets... At the end of his first season, Ovechkin overcame the 100-point milestone and was awarded Calder trophy as the best young NHL hockey player. 124 out of 129 voters supported Alexander's candidacy.
On January 16, 2006, in a match against the Phoenix Coyotes, Ovechkin scored a goal recognized as one of the most beautiful in hockey history. Alexander fell in a fight with a defender, but managed to roll over and, holding the stick with one hand, rolled the puck into the goal from an almost zero angle.
Team owner Ted Leonsis decides to build a team around Alexander, and in 2007 he was offered a record contract for world hockey in the amount of 124 million dollars for 13 years. Thus, Ovechkin becomes the most expensive hockey player in history.
Ted Leonsis on Ovechkin: “Alex - Foundation stone in building our team. I believe he will be the one to help Washington win the Stanley Cup. "
On January 5, 2010, Alexander Ovechkin becomes the team captain, and a month later overcomes the 500-point milestone in the NHL regular season.
In the senior Russian national team, Alexander made his debut in 2002 at the tournament Ceska Poiishtovna, where he became the youngest author of an abandoned puck in the national team. Since 2004, Ovechkin has been regularly called up to the national team for the world championships.
Became an ambassador for the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
Calder Trophy (2006) - NHL Rookie Award. Art Ross Trophy (2008) - the prize for the most productive player in the NHL on the goal + pass system. Alexander is also a two-time winner of the Lester B. Pearson Award (the best player in the regular season), the Hart Memorial Trophy (the most useful player in the League) and the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (the most productive player).
Since the beginning of 2015, Alexander has dramatically increased in performance, in January he scored 12 goals and scored 15 points, scoring in 9 matches out of 13. Ovechkin was recognized as the first star in January and took part in the all-star game. Over the course of the season, Ovechkin made some significant advances in sniper statistics. For the sixth time in his career, breaking the mark of 50 goals in the season, he followed Mike Bossy, Wayne Gretzky, Marcel Dionne, Guy Lafleur and Mario Lemieux became the sixth player in NHL history to score 50 goals in at least six seasons.
In September 2016, Alexander Ovechkin became the captain of the Russian national team at the 2016 World Cup.
In 2018, the Washington team won the Stanley Cup. On June 24, 2018, Alexander said that he did not know exact dates when the cup goes on tour in Russia.
Personal life of Alexander Ovechkin
The personal life of Alexander Ovechkin has always attracted the attention of the media. The hockey player himself said that he would only marry a girl from Russia. Among those whom the press declared Alexander's girls were TV presenter Victoria Lopyreva, singer Zhanna Friske, soloist of Black Eyed Peas Fergie.
Since the end of 2011, there have been reports in the media that Ovechkin is dating a tennis player. Maria Kirilenko... The couple met at one of the US Open matches. In December 2012, Ovechkin and Kirilenko announced their engagement, but the wedding did not take place: in July 2014, the couple broke up at the initiative of Maria.
After parting with Kirilenko, Alexander Ovechkin had a short affair with a gymnast Carolina Sevastyanova... Then the hockey player began dating model Anastasia Shubskaya, the daughter of the actress
*Attention! All achievements of Alexander Ovechkin are indicated as of the time the October issue of MH went to print (24.08.2016)
Alexander Mikhailovich Ovechkin
Born: 09/17/1985
Place of birth: Moscow
Height: 190 cm
Weight: 100KG
Playing career: Dynamo Moscow (2001-2005, 2012-2013), Washington Capitals (2005 - present)
Victories: three-time champion world (2008, 2012, 2014), two-time silver medalist of the world championships (2010, 2015), champion of Russia (2005), winner of the Gagarin Cup (2013)
Ovechkin scores 0.63 goals per game on average. According to this indicator, he is in fifth place among all hockey players who have ever played in the NHL. Moreover, the two players ahead of him on this list were born in the 19th century - and, as you know, they played something very vaguely reminiscent of modern hockey. Alexander has no competitors in terms of performance among his contemporaries. Canadian Sidney Crosby, with whom the Russian striker is often compared, scores an average of 0.48 goals per game.
4228 shots on target were made by Alexander Ovechkin in 839 NHL games.
The only player to make the NHL All-Star Team in each of his first five seasons (2006–2010) is Ovi. He also competed in the 2013 and 2015 All-Star Games.
Ovechkin's 441 pass ended with the capture of the opponent's goal. Distinctive feature forward - a game for the team.
Alexander scored 525 goals overseas. This is the 33rd result in the history of the major hockey league in the world. The snipers are led by Wayne Gretzky (894 goals). But it took the Canadian 20 years to set his record, while Ovechkin has only eleven so far. We believe this is just the beginning.
The first player in NHL history to win the Art Ross Trophy in one season (2007-2008) (awarded to a hockey player who scored the largest number points on the system "goal + pass"), "Maurice Richard Trophy" (prize for the best sniper), "Lester Pearson Eward" (prize for the most valuable player of the season according to the vote of the members of the hockey union) and the Hart Trophy (awarded to the hockey player who contributed the greatest contribution to the success of their team).
88 times the goals scored by Ovechkin brought victory to his team. He - the first who five seasons in a row chalked up ten or more goals that decided the fate of the match.
The most stable
Before Alexander, only two NHL hockey players managed to score 30 or more goals in 11 consecutive seasons. Ovechkin was not prevented even by the fact that due to the lockout in the 2012–2013 season, only 48 matches were played - the striker still managed to score 32 times. Also on account of Ovi eight seasons, in which he obeyed the result of 45 or more goals, and seven, when he scored at least 50.
Golden washer
In July 2016, Forbes magazine recognized Alexander Ovechkin as "The most commercially successful Russian hockey player." Totally agree last year his revenues amounted to $ 12.1 million (the amount is indicated before the payment of all taxes, fees to counterparties, etc.).
The main component of Alexander's income is payments under a record contract with the Washington Capitals club (signed in January 2008 for 13 years, total amount contract - $ 124 million). In addition, the charming and intelligent Ovechkin is the only advertising star in Russian hockey. Forbes mentions Ovi's collaboration with major brands such as Bauer, Nike, Gillette, Coca-Cola. The last piece of luck of this kind: advertising campaign Bank "Otkrytie", held during Euro 2016 (according to experts, it brought the hockey player from $ 500 thousand to $ 1 million). In the videos of Otkrytie, Ovechkin played the trumpet, minted soccer ball and so on, showing the audience the main thing (according to Men’s Health estimates) male quality- self-irony and lightness in relation to your person. Evaluate this work of Ovi yourself, watch the videos on Youtube.
The second best performance for the season in the entire history of the NHL belongs to our hero, who scored 65 goals and 47 assists in the 2007-2008 season.
To be able to compare the records of the players different eras, the statistical portal Hockey Reference has developed a complex algorithm that takes into account not only goals and passes, but also the number of games, the number of hockey players in the teams, the average performance in the League, and so on. It turned out that Ovechkin's achievement was second only to that of Brett Hull in the 1990-1991 season.
2024
This year, according to the calculations of the NHL statisticians, Alexander will score his 800th goal. This is how experts see the curve of its performance in the interval from 20 to 39 years.
It took Ovechkin 6 seconds in overtime against the Atlanta Thrashers on December 16, 2006 to score the fastest goal in NHL overtime history. By the way, for some reason it was the Thrashers Alexander who scored more goals than any other team in the world.
966 points scored on this moment Alexander in the NHL on the "goal + pass" system
Ovechkin played 92 games for the Russian national team by the time of the start of the World Cup. He has 42 goals and 31 assists.
Cup for the birthday boy
Alexander Ovechkin turns 31 on September 17, 2016 - on the day of the start of the Ice Hockey World Cup, and something tells us: we know what gift Ovechkin, who has been chosen by the captain of the Russian national team, dreams of receiving at its end.
At the World Cup, the Russian national team got into group "B", in which they are opposed by the teams of Finland, Sweden and North America... Will it be more difficult than at the World Cup?
All the strongest players on the planet will come to the World Cup, and this is the main difference from the championship, which coincided in time with the NHL playoffs and which many stars did not attend. So in Canada, we will have a tournament of the level of the Olympics. It will be difficult, but also interesting. Do not miss!
Do you remember how you felt when you were first called to the national team?
Still would! You won't forget this, because I was only 16 years old when Viktor Vasilyevich Tikhonov took me to a tournament in the Czech Republic. Upon learning that I was included in the team, I immediately called my main fans - my dad and mom.
If you had the opportunity to play against any hockey team in history, which one would you choose?
It would be interesting to try your hand against the legendary "Red Machine" with Kharlamov and Maltsev.
Has hockey changed a lot since then?
Yes! Changed speed, technique, style of play, inventory ... Every year it becomes more difficult to play. For example, now goalkeepers are much larger than they used to be, which means that there is simply less room in the goal for the puck.
The 2016 World Championship was held in Russia with the support of our stands. In Canada, the stands will be against our team ...
Yes, the support in Moscow was crazy. It was especially pleasant to sing the anthem together with the whole stadium. Thanks to the fans! However, I don’t think it will be more difficult to play in Toronto - I’m already used to playing in any stands.
Bombardier of the Millennium
Despite the fact that Ovechkin made his NHL debut in 2005, it is he who tops the list of League players with the most goals in this millennium. In 2017, Alexander Ovechkin was included in the list of the 100 strongest players in the NHL. Let's remember his most significant goals:
- 1st 05.10.2005
- 100th 12.10.2007
- 200th 05.02.2009
- 300th 05.04.2011
- 400th 20.12.2013
- 500th 10.01.2016
According to NHL statisticians, Ovechkin will score his 800th goal in 2024.
Today, the number 1 Russian hockey player in the world is considered Alexander Ovechkin, who is affectionately nicknamed Ovi by fans across the ocean.The Ovechkin champion family did not even think to impose any kind of sport on little Sasha. Alexander chose him himself - on TV.
Childhood, the family of Alexander Ovechkin
Alexander's parents were far from hockey. Mom, Tatyana Ovechkina, played in the USSR women's basketball team and won Olympic gold twice. Father, Mikhail Ovechkin, defended the colors of football Dynamo. It was he who noticed his son's passion for hockey:
“Once I was sitting in front of the TV. And while the advertisement was running, I switched to hockey - Dynamo was playing a meaningless match with an outsider. I wanted to switch back to the movie, but Sasha got so angry! I had to give in to him. And my son watched the match without closing his mouth and holding his breath, although he didn’t even know the rules of this game before. And that is why the question about other kinds of sports was not raised in the future ”.
In the photo: Alexander Ovechkin in his youth
At the request of his father, his elder brother Sergei took Alexander to the Dynamo hockey section. Only the eight-year-old newcomer did not really fit into the team. As the hockey player himself later recalled, at that time Ovechkin's peers trained for 2-3 years and stood confidently on the ice. He was just learning to skate. It was incredibly difficult, and after three months the boy gave up and stopped going to the section. Perhaps the world would never have known the great Ovi, if not for the children's coach. He called Alexander Ovechkin's father and asked why such a lively guy suddenly disappeared? The very next day, Alexander resumed training.
Ovechkin in Dynamo
With the first coach, Ovechkin was really lucky. Noticing that the guy lacks skating technique, he shortened his club by almost half. Now, to play, Alexander had to ride on bent legs, which improved his glide. Ovechkin's father quit his job and took him to the ice palace twice a day. And for the sake of the first workout, both got up at six in the morning, and only then Sasha went to school.
Sports career of Alexander Ovechkin
The death of his brother Sergei in a car accident was a cruel blow for the guy. And the very next day, his father took Alexander to training. “It was difficult, I cried ... I sat on the bench and sobbed,” the hockey player recalled. - But my coach came up and said: "Oh" kay, go play. Your shift ". I played, and tears ran down my face. A very difficult moment for the whole family, for mom and dad."Later, Alexander Ovechkin realized: this event changed his whole life forever: “If he were alive, maybe I would not have become a hockey player. This is fate ... I realized that my parents were left with only me and brother Misha. We should take more care of them. It doesn't matter what you do - hockey or something else. You have to be successful to provide for your family. "
Alexander filed a serious application for success at the age of 12. In the Moscow Youth Championship, he broke Pavel Bure's record. Once he scored 53 goals, and Ovechkin chalked up 59.
At the age of 16, Alexander was already playing for the senior team of the Moscow Dynamo. And just a year later, legendary coach Viktor Tikhonov invited him to the Russian national team. But Alexander did not get lost in the team of stars - having thrown the puck, Ovechkin became the youngest scorer in the World Cup.
The emergence of a young star in Russian team immediately noticed in the NHL. The Florida Panther club was the first to show interest in the 17-year-old Ovechkin. But Alexander was only two days old. But in 2004 he was already the # 1 goal of the NHL clubs. Ovechkin himself dreamed of an overseas career, but the rights to him belonged to Moscow “Dynamo”, and on the day of the expiration of the contract, he signed a new one, this time with Omsk “Avangard”. Therefore, when Alexander moved to the Washington Capitals, a dispute arose between the Russian clubs: who will get compensation from the Americans? The Ovechkin case was heard in court, but all claims were rejected. But the player's personal contract provided for almost $ 4 million a year - the maximum fee for an NHL rookie.
Alexander Ovechkin in the NHL
Alexander Ovechkin moved to America with his father, who helped him in business. Later, my mother also joined the family. Once in an interview, the athlete admitted: “I live with my parents and in the near future I am not going to move to own apartment because he is too young for that. In this case, my head may turn in the wrong direction. My parents always look after me, and I am grateful to them for that. "
In the first match for the Washington Capitals, Ovechkin scored two goals. Further more. Prizes at the end of the season poured in one after another: "Best Newcomer", "Top Scorer", "Best Player". The team's management was finally convinced: the bet on Ovechkin was correct. And on December 10, 2008, the hockey world was stunned by the news - the Washington Capitals signed a record contract for $ 124 million with Alexander Ovechkin! The agreement meant that Ovi played for the club for 13 years, for which he should receive 9-10 million annually.
Personal life of Alexander Ovechkin
Having become a superstar, Alexander never gave up playing for the Russian national team, he often flew to Moscow to chat with friends. And the girl, to the displeasure of American fans, he only wanted to have from Russia. The press wrote about Ovechkin's novels with Zhanna Friske, Victoria Lopyreva, tennis player Maria Kirilenko. With the latter, the hockey player was on the way to the wedding (in 2012, the couple announced their engagement). But everything collapsed after two years. It was rumored that the reason was the photo on social networks, where Alexander was relaxing on the beach with a young gymnast.Maria herself refused to comment on these photos, but she said about the breakup: “It's no secret to anyone that Alexander has certain habits and behaviors that I did not consider it necessary to endure further. I wish him continued sporting success. Well, I need to focus on my own career. " So Ovechkin again became an enviable bachelor. But not for long.
Looking through social networks, Alexander saw a photo beautiful girl- model, daughter of actress Vera Glagoleva. Ovechkin wrote a message to her and asked for a phone number. They had already met before: when Nastya was 14 years old, she and her father flew to the Olympics. But then Alexander did not consider the teenager as a potential bride. This time it was different. A year later, in 2015, Alexander Ovechkin made a proposal to his beloved. Luxurious wedding, where the guests were stars of sports, show business and politics, the couple celebrated in July 2017 in Barvikha near Moscow.
In America, where Nastya moved after her husband, they settled in a huge house in the elite Washington Potomac area. On the territory of the "American Rublyovka" live mainly successful businessmen, lawyers and politicians. Ovechkin's mansion with an area of 1000 square meters built in English style and includes, in addition to the living room, 5 bedrooms, 6 bathrooms, 3 fireplaces, a swimming pool. The area around the house is half a hectare. The estate cost Alexander Ovechkin $ 4 million and is located in a closed area, which makes him very happy. Earlier, when he lived in the city, any fan could show up at his house for an autograph.
In the photo: Alexander Ovechkin with his wife and son
Unfortunately, already a month after the wedding from cancer Nastya's mother died. Therefore, when it became known about the upcoming replenishment, the couple agreed: if a boy is born, he will be named Sergei (in honor of Ovechkin's deceased brother), and if the girl is named Vera. On August 18, 2018, Nastya gave her husband an heir. However, relatives and friends say that Alexander will not stop there. Indeed, in life, as in sports, he is used to achieving the maximum.
Biography author: Egor Marovsky 2065
Ovechkin, Alexander- Forward of the Russian hockey team and the NHL club Washington Capitals Forward of the Russian hockey team and the NHL club Washington Capitals. Winner of the Russian Championship - 2004/2005, world champion in 2008 and 2012, bronze medalist of the world championships (2005, ... ... Encyclopedia of Newsmakers
Wikipedia has articles about other people with this surname, see Ovechkin. Alexander Ovechkin ... Wikipedia
Position left extreme Height 187 cm ... Wikipedia
Alexander Ovechkin- Below is the biggraphic information. Alexander Ovechkin was born on September 17, 1985 in Moscow into the family of the legendary Soviet basketball player Tatyana Ovechkina. Graduated from Russian State University physical culture,… … Encyclopedia of Newsmakers
Surname. Famous carriers: Ovechkin, Alexander Mikhailovich (born 1985) Russian hockey player. Ovechkin, Artyom Sergeevich (born 1986) Russian cyclist. Ovechkin, Valentin Vladimirovich (1904 1968) Soviet writer, journalist. Ovechkin, Roman (genus ... Wikipedia
Position left extreme Height 187 cm ... Wikipedia
Position left extreme Height 187 cm ... Wikipedia
Ovechkin family the large family from Irkutsk, which captured the Tu 154 (tail number 85413) on March 8, 1988 in order to escape from the USSR. Contents 1 Background 2 The hijacking of the plane 3 The trial ... Wikipedia
- ... Wikipedia
Books
- Snob magazine No. 03. 2012,. Among the heroes: hockey player Alexander Ovechkin, director Valeria Gai Germanika, political activist Vera Kichanova, musician Anton Vosmoy, investor Elena Maslova, pianist Lukas Geniushas, ...
- Sharks made of steel, Ovechkin Eduard Anatolyevich. From the reviews of the book: `` Ovechkin's stories most of all resemble diary entries - and that is why they are valuable. The writer does not invent anything, he writes down what he sees around. Seen around. when…
Hockey in the USA, despite the huge money in the NHL, is not the most favorite sport, behind American football, baseball, basketball. Nevertheless, the most talented and charismatic hockey players are real superstars, whose life is of great interest, and stadiums gather to watch the matches with their participation. One of these players is Alexander Ovechkin, whose biography will be described below. He is a striker whose every move poses a threat to rival goalkeepers, one of the most accurate snipers and scorers in NHL history.
Alexander the Great's Style of Play
The Great Eight, Ovi, Alexander the Great - all these nicknames have been earned by Alexander Ovechkin in ten years in the NHL, having scored an incredible number of goals in his career. It often happens that a technical and talented player gets lost in a different environment with very special conditions. However, Alexander Ovechkin, for whom the NHL was a childhood dream, seemed to have been born for North American hockey, full of struggle and martial arts.
He is a powerful forward with an aggressive demeanor. Despite his impressive dimensions, Alexander has a good speed and is constantly in motion on the site. He is also constantly working on his endurance, helped in this by a former marathon runner.
This gives him the opportunity to spend on the court for two minutes per segment, unlike most modern hockey players, who are replaced after 60 seconds.
Quite technical for his size, Alexander Ovechkin has a real sniper instinct. He is able, having accepted the puck, instantly send it into the goal with incredible force. In addition, he has a well-developed wrist throw, on which he worked hard at the school of the Moscow Dynamo. Many goals were scored by a hockey player in the left throw-in circle, sending the puck into the goal with one touch.
Formation of Ovechkin
The future NHL super sniper was born in 1985 in Moscow. Alexander's family consisted of the most real stars domestic sports... Mom - Tatiana Ovechkina - Dynamo basketball player and Olympic champion. My father was a professional footballer who also plays in the capital "Dynamo". As Ovechkin himself says, being the son of such parents, it was simply impossible not to become a great athlete.
Alexander was brought to hockey by his elder brother Sergey. At first, the boy's parents did not like this, who considered the game too dangerous and traumatic. For some time, he even stopped going to classes, but the coaches of the sports school were able to discern the huge potential in little Sasha and persuaded his parents to return the hockey stick to their son.
When the time came, Ovechkin Alexander began to study at the Dynamo school. From the most early years he was always the best among his peers. Playing against guys two or three years older than him, he scored an incredible number of goals.
Russian career period
Already at the age of 15, Ovechkin Alexander was invited to the main team of Dynamo. The hockey player played his first matches for the club in the Super League in 2001. In total, he spent time on the court in 22 matches, scoring several goals and distributing a couple of assists.
For the national team, the left forward of Dynamo played at the age of seventeen at one of the stages of the Eurotour, and became the youngest player ever to score in its squad.
In 2002/2003, he already spent a full season for Dynamo Moscow, scored 15 points and helped the team advance to the playoffs. However, Alexander Ovechkin really showed himself in the next draw of the national championship. He became a key player in his team, with 23 points in 53 games and was voted the best wing forward of the season. Ovechkin is called up to the national team, and he played for both the youth team and the adult, taking part in two world championships in one year.
A powerful fast forward with decent technique and a killer shot, he has become one of the main goals in the NHL. In 2004, the Washington Capitals selected Ovechkin in the No. 1 draft. However, due to the NHL lockout, Alexander postponed his departure overseas for one year.
Bright debut in the NHL
Ovechkin Alexander left Dynamo with a big scandal. The club demanded $ 2 million in compensation from the Washington Capitals and did not release the player. In the end, the forward left litigation and, having collected his things, he simply left for the USA.
Ovechkin Alexander began to stamp his goals in the NHL from the very first matches. In his debut game with the Columbus Blue Jackets, he scored a double and helped his team win. In the future, the forward did not slow down and regularly hit the rivals' goal.
Season 2005/2006 He was also noted for the confrontation between two star newcomers of the NHL - Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin. At the end of the season, both of them were recognized as the new faces of the league, and the subsequent era of North American hockey was associated with their names.
Nevertheless, it was in his first season that Alexander Ovechkin was unstoppable. He overcame the 100-point psychological milestone with 52 goals and 54 assists. By almost unanimous voting decision, it was Ovi who was recognized as the best newcomer in the league.
The following year, the opponents' players already began to take care of the hammer-in striker more tightly and did not give him the opportunity to turn around on the court. The performance dropped, but at the same time he improved his game, reaching a completely new level.
The reign of Alexander the Great in the NHL
The following seasons will be the time of the real dominance of the G8 in North American hockey. It was then that a formidable attacking tandem was formed, consisting of an excellent dispatcher Niklas Beckstrem and the best clean sniper Alexander Ovechkin.
In his third season, backed by the Swede, the Washington left forward scored 112 points, becoming the NHL's top scorer and sniper with 65 goals. At the end of the season, he was recognized as the most valuable player in the league and repeated this achievement at next year... Thanks to the Russian, the previously hopeless outsider of the Southeast Conference began to regularly enter the playoffs, where, however, he had already stopped fighting after the very first rounds.
Constantly breaking all possible performance records, the striker has become a real NHL superstar. Photos of Alexander Ovechkin did not leave the covers of magazines, and not only sports publications. People specially went to the matches of the modest "Washington" to watch the game of the superbombardier live.
Coaching leapfrog and criticism of Ovechkin
Accustomed to the fact that Alexander scores an incredible number of goals and taking this for granted, experts and fans began to demand from him further development... In addition, in 2010 he became the captain of Washington, and, accordingly, the level of responsibility for the game of the team as a whole increased, the results of which could not satisfy the fans and owners of the club. The result was a frequent change of team mentors.
With great performance, he had a terrible utility rate. This was thought to be the result of Ovi not doing his best in team play, not working out in defense to the proper extent.
Poor play in defense, lack of leadership qualities necessary for a captain - Alexander was criticized for all this. He was even called the "trainer killer." At the same time, he continued to score and remained the best sniper in the NHL.
Transforming a lone genius into a team player
In the 2014/2015 season. Barry Troz, a former Nashville mentor, was named Washington's head coach. They feared that he would have a difficult relationship with the players if he began to instill in the team his favorite defensive style, but he was able to find mutual understanding with all the leaders of the club, including Alexander Ovechkin.
Remaining still a dangerous attacking player, Ovi began to work more in the interests of the team, conscientiously helping in the defense. The first half of the season, he adjusted to the new style of play of the team, but then went out and, having scored 53 goals, in Once again won the prize as the best sniper in the League.
Analyzing Ovechkin's game, many experts noted that, while maintaining enviable physical condition and attacking potential, he began to take a more responsible attitude to business, conscientiously practicing in defense and taking part in the selection.
Ovi recently set another achievement: scoring 500 goals in the NHL and entering the number 50 best snipers Leagues of all time.
Personal life
The bright and charismatic Alexander was credited with relationships with many famous girls. Among them were Victoria Lopyreva, Zhanna Friske, Fergie from Black Eyed Peas.
Since 2011, he met with the famous tennis player Maria Kirilenko. It was going to the wedding, but three years later the girl announced the dissolution of the engagement. The athlete did not remain free for long. In 2015, Alexander Ovechkin and Shubskaya Anastasia announced an imminent wedding and after a while they got married. The hockey player's wife is the daughter of Vera Glagoleva.
