Sasha's blog: Q. and A.

Alex showed up on his blog and answered a few questions. He apologized for short answers and said he was too busy before leaving to North America and next time he will be on his blog from Washington D.C.

I've translated some answers. I am busy too :-)

From the blog of Sasha Ovechkin (Posted on Sep. 5th, 2007 at 11:31 pm):

Всем привет! :))) Hello to everybody!

Q. What is more important for you, to be the most productive player in your team in the new season, or to get into playoffs?

A. I want my team to get into playoffs, because we have not gotten in the playoffs for a long time, we were not even close to it. ((( But I am sure it's in the near future, it's all ahead for Washington Capitals.

Q. What can you say about Hanlon? Based on last season I have an impression that he is a good Coach at AHL level, but he is not good for NHL.

A. Every fan and every player has their own opinion. For me he is a good Coach and a good man. He is doing his job, and he works hard. That's why I believe one can't say that he is not good for NHL.

Q. Can you tell us about your influence on the team decisions? Is it true that Washington Capitals signed the contracts with Varlamov and Kozlov only after talking to you?

A. About Varlamov... it's a BS, as of Kozlov, yes, they asked my opinion, but it were scouts, not the bosses.

Q. Can you name the top 10 NHL players of the last season and the next rookie of the year?

A. Crosby, Kovalchuk, Nabokov, Malkin, Datsyuk, Jagr, Thornton, Hossa, Heatley... lots of good players. As of next rookie of the year, it will be
Bäckström.

Q. Who do you think will be playing in the Stanley Cap finals this season?

A. Washington - Pittsburgh. :)))) How's that?))