Biography
Alexander Ovechkin is a Russian professional ice hockey winger and captain of the Washington Capitals of the National Hockey League (NHL). Prior to entering the league, Ovechkin played for Dynamo Moscow of the Russian Superleague for four seasons, from 2001 until 2005, and returned to play for them briefly during the 2012-13 NHL lockout. A highly touted prospect, Ovechkin was selected by the Capitals first overall in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft. Ovechkin joined the Capitals for the 2005-06 season. He won the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year, scoring 52 goals and 54 assists to lead all rookies with 106 points and finishing third overall in league scoring. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest ice hockey players of his generation.
Ovechkin has won the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, awarded annually to the NHL's leading goal scorer, an NHL-record nine times. His first such title came in 2007-08, when his 65 goals and 112 points also earned him the Art Ross Trophy for most points scored, the Hart Memorial Trophy for most valuable player, and the Lester B. Pearson Award for best player as voted on by the National Hockey League Players' Association. Ovechkin would again win the Richard Trophy, Hart Trophy, and Pearson Award in 2009; he won the Ted Lindsay Award (the renamed Pearson Award) for a third consecutive year in 2010, which also marked the fifth straight year Ovechkin was named to the First All-Star Team. After some years of decreased scoring, Ovechkin reclaimed the goal scoring title in 2013, earning the Richard Trophy and his third Hart Trophy. He would repeat as the Richard Trophy winner in 2014, 2015, and 2016, scoring at least 50 goals each season and becoming only the third player to score 50 goals in seven different seasons. Ovechkin reached 600 career NHL goals in 2018 and is considered one of the greatest goal scorers in NHL history. In 2017, Ovechkin was named one of the 100 Greatest NHL Players of all-time. After ten playoff runs with the Washington Capitals, Ovechkin won his first Stanley Cup in 2018 over the Vegas Golden Knights, as well as the Conn Smythe Trophy for most valuable player in the 2018 playoffs.
Internationally, Ovechkin has represented Russia in multiple tournaments. His first IIHF tournament was the 2002 World U18 Championship. The following year he made his debut at the World Junior Championship, helping Russia win the gold medal. He played two more years at the World Juniors, as well as once more at the World U18 Championships. Ovechkin's first senior tournament was the 2004 World Championship, and he also played in the World Cup that year. Ovechkin has played for Russia at the Winter Olympics in 2006, 2010, and 2014. Overall, Ovechkin has represented Russia at eleven World Championships and three Olympics in his career, winning the World Championship three times.
