Kukla's Korner Hockey
Entries with the tag: alex+ovechkin
It’s Not Just Crosby & Ovechkin Playing
by Alanah McGinley on 05/05/09 at 03:52 PM ET
Comments (3)
From Dmitry Chesnokov at Puck Daddy:
Q. I know that you get really tired of this question. But this series thus far is exactly what the NHL wanted: Crosby vs. Ovechkin.
OVECHKIN: I am tired of this… This is a game. Two teams are playing, and not just two players. What must not be forgotten are those chances that our teams create for us. Yes, we score goals. Yes, our names are announced as stars of the game. But if it weren’t for our teammates, the guys who create those chances, we wouldn’t be anywhere.
much more from Ovechkin, plus Sergei Gonchar, and Simeon Varlamov
Filed in: NHL Teams, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin,
LeBron James Sends Ovechkin a Gift
by Alanah McGinley on 05/01/09 at 01:36 PM ET
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From Mike Zeisberger at Sun Media:
Heading into his upcoming showdown against Sidney Crosby’s Pittsburgh Penguins, the NHL’s most electrifying superstar is getting the support of NBA royalty.
If Alexander Ovechkin was wondering who might be in his corner in this star-studded second-round showdown between his Washington Capitals and the Penguins, he received his answer this morning courtesy of a gift from LeBron (The King) James.
James, whose CIeveland Cavaliers await the identity of their second-round opponent in the NBA playoffs, sent The Great 8 a personally-signed Cavaliers jersey.
The message?
“To Alexander The Great. Keep Up The Good Work. King James,” it said, scrawled across the jersey’s white numbers in James’s personal handwriting.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, lebron+james,
Full Speed Ahead
by Alanah McGinley on 02/24/09 at 02:14 PM ET
Comments (7)
Mike Green and Alex Ovechkin have a little fun.
This bit is from a Thursday night special on the NHL Network at 7pm ET, featuring “A Day in the Life of Mike Green.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, mike+green,
Washington - Pittsburgh Chatter Continues
by Alanah McGinley on 01/15/09 at 12:37 PM ET
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From Slava Malamud, contributing at Tarik El-Bashir’s blog in the Washington Post:
And here is what we could learn about the assorted feuds of the Alexes, the Kid and Malkin. You can believe me when I say that Russian journalists would much rather write about goals and wins, but since this story is apparently a gift that keeps on giving, we deemed appropriate to get further into it.
For one, Alex Ovechkin apparently speaks to Sidney Crosby. Loud and clear at that, to the point where all the teammates of both players and a couple of officials would like to gather around and partake in the exchange. And here is another thing: Alexander Semin also speaks to Crosby. At least, according to Evgeni Malkin, and that is a bit of a surprise, to say the least. And here is the third thing: Ovechkin and Malkin - nope, still not talking to each other, presumably, because both are so busy talking to Crosby.
Sheesh. This story is turning into some sort of odd Russian love triangle/feud, with a stray Canadian tossed into the mix. Read on for quotes after last night’s Pens-Caps game.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, alex+semin, evgeni+malkin, sidney+crosby,
Evening Line
by Paul on 01/13/09 at 05:40 PM ET
Comments (1)
‘’We’ll stick up (for Malkin), like you would for any teammate. They’re intense, physical games and as long as that’s the way they stay, that’s safe. But if there’s deliberate intent to hurt someone, you kind of step outside the line a bit, you have to make sure you stick up for your teammate.’’
-Sidney Crosby speaking about the game tomorrow against the Washington Capitals. More from the CP via TSN.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Alex+Ovechkin, Evgeni+Malkin, Sidney+Crosby,
Premature Reports on AO’s Grandfather
by Alanah McGinley on 11/03/08 at 12:14 PM ET
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From Ted’s Take:
I just spoke with Alex Ovechkin after practice and he informed me that his grandfather HAS NOT passed away. This report in a Russian paper and on this blog is incorrect. Alex asked for respect of his privacy and that they will communicate to our fan base in an official capacity if there is any news on this matter.
added 1:16pm (Paul), from Tarik El-Bashir of Capitals Insider,
One day after the Caps were put through a brutal practice, and two days after they suffered their worst loss since March, Ovechkin was at KCI celebrating goals and joking with teammates loudly in the dressing room.
“I feel good and I feel bad,” he said. “I feel good I saw my grandpa, but I feel bad I didn’t play and couldn’t help my teammates win the game.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals, Hockey Related Stories | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin,
Best Of The Bunch
by Paul on 10/27/08 at 09:20 AM ET
Comments (2)
from Seth Rorabaugh of Empty Netters,
A popular question for hockey fans in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s was who was a better player: Wayne Gretzky or Mario Lemieux?
There were viable arguments to either side of that debate. Gretzky had all the records. Lemieux had lesser teammates to work with. Etc.
Either way, it was a simple argument that only had two choices.
Things are a little bit more complex in this day and age. There are three potential choices to that argument.
Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin or Alex Ovechkin.
continued with a statistical argument…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: Alex+Ovechkin, Evgeni+Malkin, Sidney+Crosby,
Evening Line
by Alanah McGinley on 10/08/08 at 08:00 PM ET
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“I want to win the Stanley Cup; that’s why we play hockey in the NHL. I’m always that way. I want to do everything for the victory.”
-- Alex Ovechkin - via USA Today with more on AO and his role with the Washington Capitals
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin,
Adding Up Ovechkin
by Alanah McGinley on 10/01/08 at 12:21 PM ET
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Alex Ovechkin was modeling for the cover of ESPN Magazine a few days ago. In the aftermath, ESPN came up with a simple equation…
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, alfred+e+neuman, espn, mad+magazine, media,
Afternoon Line
by Alanah McGinley on 08/08/08 at 12:01 PM ET
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Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau talks about his first day with the team:
“I had to get their respect right off the bat, so I gave Alex [Ovechkin] crap. It was on the first shift of the first practice and he missed a drill. I pulled him aside in front of the guys and told him he couldn’t do that.
“I knew I had to give it to him before anyone. If all I did was give crap to the nine guys I coached in the minors before, then it would be I was just giving crap to the AHL boys.”
-- sourced in The St. Catharine’s Standard
*thanks to Capitals Insider for the pointer
Filed in: | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, bruce+boudreau, coaching,
AO Receives His College Degree
by Alanah McGinley on 07/01/08 at 10:20 PM ET
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From Sportsbox.ru, translation by the Alex Ovetjkin blog,
“I was very nervous, almost like during the game” confessed Ovi to “MK”. “Still, these are different emotions. Probably because of the fact that at the games I work out physically, but here it was different, it was brain’s work out! Now I’ve realized that I can succeed not only playing hockey, but in other areas of life… College education will to add to my game, now I’ll try to think more during the game, to use the theory in practice…”
Ovechkin’s diploma thesis was about “Speed training of the top level hockey players”. He defended it with an “A”
more including a photo of Ovechkin receiving his degree
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin,
New Generation of Stars
by Alanah McGinley on 06/12/08 at 10:25 AM ET
Comments (1)
From Jim Kelley at Sportsnet,
I buy into the argument that the Hart should go to the player adjudged most valuable [to] his team. If you want a flat-out best player in a single season award, call it the Wayne Gretzky and we’ll move on, but whatever criteria you use to determine this thing the guard has clearly been changed. The new generation of NHL stars has arrived and, for now at least, Ovechkin and Crosby or Crosby and Ovechkin are likely to lead the way.
That doesn’t augur well for stellar stay-at-home defencemen or 2.00 and lower Goals Against Average goalies, but so be it.
Update 11:28am ET: More thoughts on the Hart from Jeff Z. Klein at Slap Shot in the New York Times.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, hart+trophy, sidney+crosby,
Move Over, Phaneuf
by Alanah McGinley on 06/10/08 at 08:47 AM ET
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From the Ottawa Sun,
As was first reported in the Sun on the weekend, Calgary Flames D Dion Phaneuf will be the main cover boy for Electronic Arts’ NHL 09 video game.
But the two-time all-star and 2007-08 Norris Trophy finalist won’t be getting the video game limelight all to himself.
Two countries will sell games with a player other than Phaneuf on the cover—one of them Sweden, where Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson draws the coveted cover spot. Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin will be on boxes in Russia.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Ottawa Senators, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, daniel+alfredsson, dion+phaneuf,
Whoops!
by Alanah McGinley on 06/06/08 at 04:46 PM ET
Comments (3)
From TSN:
Alexander Ovechkin is the winner of the 2008 Hart Trophy as the National Hockey League’s most valuable player to his team.
That is, according to the NHL’s online shop for a few hours on Friday.
The league’s official website briefly displayed a blue Reebok Washington Capitals T-Shirt of the Russian superstar, with the title ‘2007-08 Hart Trophy winner’ splashed across the bottom.
“The Hart Memorial Trophy, originally known as the Hart Trophy, the “oldest and most prestigious individual award in hockey,” is awarded annually to the Most Valuable Player in the National Hockey League,” the sales page read.
Update June 7th: From the CP via the Toronto Star,
A league source attributed the gaffe to a mistake by a third-party distributor, while pointing out shirts are created for every possible scenario. Should Ovechkin not win, the T-shirts would be destroyed.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, hart+trophy,
2008 Nominees for the Lester B. Pearson Award
by Alanah McGinley on 05/01/08 at 01:58 PM ET
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Update 2:42pm ET: Some comments from Eric Duhatschek at the Globe & Mail, who notes that hockey writers and players actually agreed on these selections. A rare event.
From the NHLPA Press Release:
TORONTO (May 1, 2008) – The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) announced today that Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames, Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins and Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals are finalists for the 2007-08 Lester B. Pearson Award. The Lester B. Pearson Award is presented annually to the “most outstanding player” in the NHL as voted by fellow members of the NHLPA.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Calgary Flames, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, evgeni+malkin, jarome+iginla,
Grooming Tips From AO
by Alanah McGinley on 03/18/08 at 04:11 PM ET
Comments (13)
From Dan Steinberg in the DC Sportsblog, mention of a press release:
Hair Cuttery, the largest privately-owned chain of hair salons in the country, announced today that it has signed NHL Washington Capitals’ hockey star Alex Ovechkin to a 6-month partnership agreement commencing in October.
Ovechkin proves that even if you’re a multimillionaire, you can still appreciate a good haircut at a great price. After signing a 13 year, $124M contract - the richest in NHL history - the 22-year-old Washington Capitals’ left wing is still a regular client at the Ballston Common Hair Cuttery in Arlington, Virginia.
$14 haircuts. Interesting, this odd world of hockey endorsements. (And it seems like it would’ve been a decent gig for Jose Theodore, too.)
*hat-tip to Rick Couchman at Hockey.com for the link
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, endorsements,
Voting for Hart
by Alanah McGinley on 03/17/08 at 12:48 PM ET
Comments (1)
From Mike Brophy at The Hockey News,
It’s almost time to vote for the Hart Trophy and I’ve got to be honest, I am not even close to picking my winner.
I will say, though, I have narrowed it down to four candidates – goalies Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils and Roberto Luongo of the Vancouver Canucks, left winger Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals and right winger Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames.
I firmly believe, had Sidney Crosby not missed so much action with that high ankle sprain, he would have repeated as the Hart winner. Oh well.
Update 5:50pm ET: John Glennon at The Tennessean wonders this about Ovechkin,
“His energy and his passion — if you could bottle that and stick it inside your players — you would have an unbelievable team.’’
It sounds like the description of an MVP, but there’s a catch. The Capitals are in a position similar to that of the Predators, two points out of the playoff picture with nine games remaining in the season.
Hence the question: Should Washington fall short of the postseason, should Ovechkin win the MVP? The last player to accomplish such a feat was a guy named Mario Lemieux, who did it while playing for Pittsburgh in 1986-87.
Filed in: NHL Talk | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, hart+trophy, jarome+iginla, martin+brodeur, nhl+awards, roberto+luongo, sidney+crosby,
Alex Ovechkin Conference Call
by Alanah McGinley on 03/04/08 at 05:55 PM ET
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The NHL hosted a press conference call this afternoon with Washington Capitals star, Alex Ovechkin. Ovechkin reached the 50-goal mark for the second time in his three NHL seasons Monday, scoring a hat trick [video] and adding two assists in Washington’s 10-2 victory over the Boston Bruins. Ovechkin reached the milestone in his team’s 67th game of the season, the fastest since the Pittsburgh Penguins’ Jaromir Jagr and Mario Lemieux (59th game) and the Buffalo Sabres’ Alexander Mogilny (63rd game) in 1995-96.
The player below provides the audio of that conference call. A written transcript will be made available shortly.
KuklasKorner.com
Update 6:28pm ET: Transcript now available below.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, media, press+conference,
Stars of the Week
by Alanah McGinley on 01/28/08 at 11:42 AM ET
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From NHL.com,
Ottawa Senators right wing Daniel Alfredsson, Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin and Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Pascal Leclaire have been named the NHL’s ‘Three Stars’ for the week ending January 27.
Go here to check out their video highlights.
Filed in: NHL Talk | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, daniel+alfredsson, pascal+leclair, stars+of+the+week,
Ted Takes on the Ovechkin Rumors
by Alanah McGinley on 01/08/08 at 01:38 PM ET
Comments (7)
From Ted Leonsis of the Washington Capitals,
No mention of our team can pass, it seems, without noting Alex Ovechkin’s contract status, and I can tell from postings in the blogosphere and message boards that this has a lot of fans worried. I respect Alex and George McPhee’s commitment to keep the negotiations out of the media and frankly have wondered who is making up some of the things I have read. As I have stated on numerous occasions, we couldn’t be more impressed with Alex as a player and a person and we expect him to be in D.C. for a long, long time.
I don’t have much to add, but want to say this: We love Alex Ovechkin.
lots more... on the Caps, from prospects to television revenues to logos
Update 4pm ET: Yesterday, Leonsis discussed this same issue on XM Radio. Interview mp3 can be downloaded here.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, contracts, ted+leonsis,
Getting Ovechkin Signed
by Alanah McGinley on 11/17/07 at 12:18 PM ET
Comments (2)
From Scott Morrison at Sun Media,
Where exactly the Washington Capitals are in their negotiations with star Alexander Ovechkin, general manager George McPhee is not saying. He wants to keep contract talks as private as possible to avoid the daily questions and potential distractions. The Caps have enough on their plates on the ice, without any off-ice issues.
Bottom line is McPhee simply has to find a way to sign his star, who potentially could become an unrestricted free agent in the summer, but the Caps are not likely to let that happen
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, washington+capitals,
Ovechkin a Mentor
by Alanah McGinley on 10/30/07 at 09:32 AM ET
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From Mark Zwolinski at the Toronto Star,
Alex Ovechkin has become many things in Washington: a celebrity, a millionaire and a hero. Now he’s a mentor and role model.
The 22-year-old has opened up his home to newcomer Nicklas Backstrom, and is helping the Swedish rookie adapt to hockey and life in the U.S. capital.
“I remember being a rookie and Dainius Zubrus, he helped me, so I wanted to give back the way Dainius did for me,” said Ovechkin, whose two goals lifted the Capitals to a 7-1 win over the Leafs at the Air Canada Centre.
“OV (Ovechkin) has been very good for Nicklas, he takes him all over and kind of shows him around,” Capitals coach Glen Hanlon said. “Dainius was great with him, and now it hasn’t taken him long to reciprocate.”
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, nicklas+backstrom, washington+capitals,
3 Stars of the Week
by Alanah McGinley on 10/29/07 at 01:43 PM ET
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From NHL.com
NEW YORK—Los Angeles Kings goaltender Jason LaBarbera, Carolina Hurricanes center Rod Brind’Amour and Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin have been named the NHL’s ‘Three Stars’ for the week ending October 28.
Filed in: NHL Teams, Carolina Hurricanes, Los Angeles Kings, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, jason+labarbera, rob+brind'amour,
Ovechkin Getting More Defensive
by Alanah McGinley on 10/08/07 at 12:32 AM ET
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From Tarik El-Bashir at the Washington Post,
In his first two seasons, Alex Ovechkin had more ice time on average than any Washington Capitals forward. Yet there was always one situation in which he’d be glued to the bench: as his team protected a lead in the final seconds.
That, however, has started to change this season. With a renewed commitment to defense, Ovechkin has gained Coach Glen Hanlon’s trust, and as a result, was on the ice in the last minute during each of the Capitals’ first two games, both victories.
“Coach trust me more right now,” Ovechkin said after yesterday’s practice at Kettler Capitals Iceplex. “The reason is because I play well in defensive zone, I try to play more smart and I go to spot where I have to stay. It’s working.”
continued... (*link may require free registration)
Filed in: NHL Teams, Washington Capitals | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: alex+ovechkin, washington+capitals,
