Ovechkin: 100 points mark reaction...

 Here is the English version of Sport-Express article about Ovechkin...

english.sport-express.ru, Mar. 30, 2009 "OVECHKIN: 100 POINTS… NOTHING TO CELEBRATE"

In the dressing room the Russian forward of Capitals Alexandr Ovechkin appeared before the journalists with a clean face without any signs of shaving crème that his teammates spread over his face celebrating the 50th goal.

Apparently 100 points is not such a high-leveled result. And Alex’s face looked not very happy, probably because of the fatigue, after all he spent 27 minutes on the ice.

"My 100th point…. An empty goal," said on of the leaders of Washington. "I had enough time to look at the clock and saw that there were ten seconds left. A lot of time."

"And I did not hurry, skated to the goal and sent the puck into it. I had no thoughts about celebrations."

"In fact now the team is really good, we have secured the place in the play-offs already."

"Last year we fought for every point till the end and now we feel comfortable and calm, and work on power play that is very important in the play-offs."

"At the moment I m not ready to think about either World Cup or Olympics. My head is full with the play-offs. So, no offence meant."

"Of course it pleases me that the coaches [Vyacheslav Bykov and Igor Zakharkin] came here to watch Evgeny Artyukhin and us. He is very good this season, with many chances and good fighting."

But the other Russian forward of Washington Alexandr Semin let us know that if Capitals tumbled out of the play-offs rather early and will be free the whole three of us Semin-Fedorov-Ovechkin will join the team at the World Cup in Switzerland.

Well, they didn't bother to mention who conducted the interview, maybe it's clear for the the whole Russian population that it could be... the one and only... (drum roll) ...

Slava 'the coach' Malamud

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From Pummeler music at MySpace

 Pummeler: WATCH THE OVECHKIN VIDEO MADE BY A CAPS/PUMMELER FAN! GREAT WORK!!!

Ovechkin's quote about our song, to a Russian interviewer:
"But not long ago Washington fans made up a song in my honor. It went something like "When they broke his nose, he hammered in four goals against Montreal". And all of this to the tune of some slamming music something like Rammstein. Well, it is true, you can't break your nose to Mozart."

Check Pummeler music new song 'Crosby sucks' at MySpace (auto play)

h/t to Caps forum.

Update:

Here's the great interview with Pummeler:

The band consists of three siblings who consider themselves "the anti-Jonas Brothers," men who "would wear IMpurity rings, but the nastiness of our flesh would corrode the metal in seconds," as one of them wrote me. (Their MySpace page is here; language warning.) You could buy their music on Amazon, if you wanted, but I have to give you an "explicit language" warning even to go look at the offerings. In fact, go wash your mouth out with soap right now, just to make sure.

The gents used to play out in clubs, but now, one wrote, they're all 'sedentary and complacent American schlubs with 'serious' day jobs and various athletic obsessions that make us sore and thirsty for scotch." Sorta like your typical sports columnist.

Anyhow, you can't keep a good artist down, and hence, the creativity of Pummeler still roams the Internet. Their latest piece of work: "Crosby Sucks." If you haven't listened to it yet, please do, immediately. Sample lyrics:

Canadian sensation, well at least on certain stations;
A poster child for Francophiles who dance to Zombie Nation.
All his fans are morons who defend his every stunt;
And the "C" that's on his chest, well it really stands for...

Haha, you get the idea. Despite the guaranteed receipt of at least three e-mails from native Pennsylvanians telling me this is why newspapers are dying and/or canceling their Post subscriptions, here's a fairly amazing Q&A with the gents behind the music. I think you'll like it. Unless you're one of the aforementioned native Pennsylvanians.

Sports Bog: Who wrote this song and why?
Lord Jupiter: It was an idea I had after the recent bleating by Don Cherry about Ovechkin. We thought about doing an anti-Cherry song, but figured "Crosby Sucks" made more sense, especially since Cherry's barely worth a line these days, nevermind an entire song. So thank Don Cherry for this one. If Deion Sanders were born in Canada and became a lumberjack wannabe, he'd be Don Cherry. That guy's got no room to talk about flamboyance. Has he looked in the mirror??

Philosoraptor: The song is an attack on NHL marketing. Sidney Crosby is the blush-faced, conservative poster "Kid" for that marketing. There are a lot of adult fans out there who resent the new dumbed-down, kid-proofed Bettman NHL. They resent the idea of marketers trying to put a safe, North American "face" on the sport to try and neuter it for soccer moms, instead of letting the game develop its own natural character through the men who play it. They resent the presentation of Crosby as some sort of Matrix-Neo of hockey, when the guys who are actually pulling off legendary, storybook type of plays happen to actually be two inconveniently ugly and scary Russians. This song points at that 900-pound gorilla in the room, and demands that he stop flinging dung at the truth.

OBM: At first, most people won't get the deeper meaning of the song, but really it's all right there in the title. Crosby Sucks.

more...

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Theo Fleury: Celebrate when your team scores, just the way Alexander Ovechkin does

 Theo Fleury talks to George Johnson, CALGARY HERALD, Mar. 29, 2009 "Cherry full of sour Grapes":

Why does it bother us so much when Alex Ovechkin celebrates a goal?

That's his job... to score goals. He's the best goal scorer of his generation. So because Don Cherry is upset about this we need to talk about it for weeks? C'mon.

Don't get me wrong, this guy is one of the best PR guys around, but as someone who actually played and had a lot of success in my day, I can't take it any longer. I'm calling a spade a spade on this one. The Washington Capitals are fun to watch and the reason is every guy on that team loves to score.

I like guys that make me feel part of the game and Ovechkin makes me feel as if I'm part of the game. I remember when I scored my first NHL goal--I wanted to jump out of my own skin. There is no better feeling than that.

Well, if the guys on the other team are p---ed off about Ovechkin's goal celebrations, then do something about it. Play harder against him. Good luck with that, though.

As a fan of the game, I want to see the guys who actually give two hoots about what they do on the ice. When they get excited about scoring, it makes me feel good inside and gets me closer to the game. You can't play hockey without emotion and excitement. It's what makes the game so great. You never know what the outcome is gonna be. Every second of every minute something could happen that makes part of history. I'm getting goose bumps writing about it.

The fans want to feel as much a part of the game as the players do and when Ovechkin scores, he shows a part of himself that the fans enjoy seeing.

So celebrate when your team scores, just the way Alexander Ovechkin does.

Until next time, chew on that.

“He's a staple as far as Canadian hockey goes. And I grew up watching Coach's Corner, and he serves a purpose. But he really does not know shit about hockey. He knows, like, unnecessary facts about putting Sears catalogues on your shin pads. He says a lot of things. He calls people by their wrong names. And it's just, like, enough of this guy.”

~ Sean Avery's interview on the CBC's The Hour.

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Ovechkin's McDonald's mini-helmet

 Only in Canada! Alexander Ovechkin's McDonald's mini-helmet!



Pretty nice, eh?

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Cooking with Alex and Geno

 By Joe Starkey, TRIBUNE-REVIEW, Mar. 29, 2009 "Larionov stars for Penguins":

Now, she is back in the game, having recently moved to Pittsburgh to attend The Art Institute, where she majors in fashion retail management. She joined the Penguins in December, working with Pens TV, which is accessible on the team's Web site.



Alyonka says her greatest desire is to make her father proud. Igor Larionov grew up in the harsh world of Soviet Red Army hockey, where he rebelled against the system and eventually bolted for North America.

In his third NHL stop, he became part of the Detroit Red Wings' famous "Russian Five," with Sergei Fedorov, Slava Kozlov, Vladimir Konstantinov and Slava Fetisov.

Alyonka remembers making Joe Louis Arena a second home with the children of those players and others, such as Steve Yzerman and Brendan Shanahan.

"They are all like second family to me," she said.

Ovechkin, too, is a life-long friend, which is why Alyonka laughed when rumors of a romance began after the two were photographed on the red carpet together at last year's NHL Awards Ceremony.

They're just friends.

"I've known him since I was a kid," Alyonka said. "He asked me to go to the Awards with a large group of friends. I didn't think people would make such a big deal of that. I also took pictures with (Red Wings forward Pavel) Datsyuk, and no one said anything about me and Datsyuk. I've known him my whole life, too."

I asked about the apparent feud between Ovechkin and Malkin, whom Alyonka did not know until this past winter.

"They're fine, I think," she said. "I don't know what this whole feud is."

That's when we started talking about possible future segments of "Cooking with Geno." One could see her and Malkin make cheeseburgers for the team.

"That would be funny — two Russians serving American food to a bunch of hungry hockey players," she said.

Then, she thought of a better idea.

"Actually, what we should do is a huge (cooking) segment with Geno and Alex. That would be funny!"

Malkin's up for that, as well.

"Why not?" he said after a 4-3 victory over the New York Rangers on Saturday.

This has to happen. Maybe from this year's Awards Ceremony in Las Vegas, the one in which either Malkin and Ovechkin likely will be named league MVP?

"I'm down for that," Alyonka said. "I'll give Alex a call and see if he wants to do it."

Here's YouTube video if you haven't seen it yet:

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Hockey Night in Canada with Don Cherry, Mar. 28, 2009

 



Starts at 2:35. Coach's Corner with Ron MacLean & Don Cherry shows Ovie's soccer warm up in 'Coaches Corner' T-shirt, 'Hockey Night in Canada' shorts and a sign RESPECT in the back.

Don Cherry is so happy that he shows Ovie's empty netter over Bolts and claims that Ovie has learned, he didn't jump over the glass. bwahaha... Come on, Ovie never did that after empty netter goals, get the facts straight, Don.


CHRIS YOUNG/CANADIAN PRESS
Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, wearing a 'Coaches Corner' T-shirt as a reference to his war of words with Don Cherry, plays soccer outside the visitors dressing room in the Air Canada Centre ahead the NHL game against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Toronto on Tuesday, March 24, 2009.

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Ovechkin and Russian 4

 By Corey Masisak, Mar. 28, 2009 "Recipe for success starts in Capitals' melting pot"

The Caps' openness to Russian players comes back to one guy: Ovechkin. Ovi's contract will keep him in the District for three-plus presidential terms, and the Caps reason that younger Russians will want to come to Washington to play with their country's greatest star.

Ovechkin does his part: He hosted Varlamov, Kugryshev and Viktor Dovgan at his house in Arlington during training camp and generally serves as a mentor to his younger countrymen.

"They spend all day at my house with me, and my mom cook for everybody," Ovechkin said during camp. "I just try to help young guys out. I remember when I came here [Dainius Zubrus] helped me a lot, and I just try to take care of them."

Ovechkin isn't a rah-rah leader — the guy who delivers the fire-and-brimstone speech. What he does is connect people from different backgrounds and different countries.

After every practice, many players participate in a game affectionately dubbed "Juice Boy." Participants must place a shot in each of the top corners of the net from a predetermined point on the ice.

The game goes on until only one player has not successfully hit both corners. The last man standing is Juice Boy for the day. The punishment: Juice Boy is required to serve sports drinks to each player at his locker.

The contest's popularity has grown tremendously. The game, once mostly the province of a small collection of guys who played for Boudreau on the Hershey minor league team, now includes most of the roster.

One day last month, the loser was Ovechkin — the man who scored 65 goals last season, the man who can hurl pucks at nearly 100 mph with his stick. There he was in the dressing room, Juice Boy, delivering drinks to his teammates.


From left, Viktor Kozlov, Alexander Semin, Sergei Fedorov and Alex Ovechkin are Russians playing for the Washington Capitals. The Caps field more Russians than any other NHL team, and they all play a critical role in the team's remarkable, newfound success. (Peter Lockley/The Washington Times)


"A lot of the Russian guys I've played with are very quiet and kind of keep to themselves," Poti said. "They didn't interact with our team that much, but our guys are kind of front and center with everything that is going on. I think it is easier for everyone to mesh and kind of get to know everyone when you have Russians who act like our guys typically do. There's a lot camaraderie and guys are always doing stuff with each other. Nobody is on kind of the outskirts of the team."


Victor Kozlov

"I think he's definitely a little more vocal," said Caps defenseman Tom Poti, a teammate of Kozlov on the New York Islanders. "I think he just has a better comfort level when you have more guys from your homeland around. I've definitely seen more of a funnier side from him, and he's definitely a lot more vocal than when I played with him before."

Kozlov has spent much of this season on the team's top line with Ovechkin and Backstrom. His statistics in two seasons in Washington are not a departure from his career norms, but Boudreau referred to him as "a round peg in a round hole" — a strong fit playing alongside the team's precocious tandem.

"Yes it is," Kozlov said when asked if he's had more fun in the District than previous stops. "In my experience, it is. That doesn't mean the other teams were bad, but this is such a fun team with fun guys. Plus, we are winning and that helps.

"We are all together here. It is a young team, and with a young team it is like a family the way we spend time together. Like I am married, but I still like to spend time with all the guys. We have fun times — lots of jokes."


Sergei Fedorov

After three-plus years of discontent with teams in Anaheim and Columbus, Fedorov joined the Caps in February 2008.

He was rejuvenated. Fedorov was glad to get away from rigid, defense-first coaches, but he was especially happy to join a team with young Russian talents like Ovechkin and Semin.

"I think what brings us together is a mutual respect and a mutual understanding and admiration of each other," Fedorov said. "Obviously, the younger generation is much funnier than us, but [Viktor Kozlov and I] try to stay young with them."

At 39, Fedorov on some nights looks 10 years younger on the ice.

Fedorov also draws a smaller, personal benefit from his association with the club's young Russians: The chance to catch up on the current slang of his native language and regain a better comfort level speaking it.

"In that regard I do get to speak Russian more," he said. "On the ice, I still speak English with everybody. It is not like I speak Russian all the time now. I try to interact with everybody, and it is definitely more comfortable here. It is a totally different atmosphere than in Anaheim or Columbus. It is just very good."

Alexander Semin

When Fedorov arrived, a profound change took place. The number of dominant performances by Semin grew, and the days when he made coach Bruce Boudreau want to yank out his few remaining hairs dwindled.

"He really looks up to [Fedorov]," Green said. "They are really close. Anytime [Ovechkin and Semin] are getting out of line, he will say something to them. That's what they need sometimes. They are two crazy guys, and he kind of keeps them under wraps. It is good.

Away from the ice, Semin now is less introverted. Case in point: A visit by Semin and Ovechkin with kids at a local hospital earlier this season. Ovechkin played a boxing game with a child on Nintendo Wii, flailing his arms in unorthodox fashion.

Ovechkin was mocking the fighting style of Semin, who a few days earlier took part in his first NHL scrap and earned plenty of ribbing for his, um, unconventional technique. But instead of feeling embarrassed by Ovechkin's jest, Semin broke into hearty laughter.

He still is naturally shy, but other teammates besides Ovechkin and Kozlov interact with him more. He still doesn't speak English to reporters, but he understands the language and knows more than he lets on.

Semin is not yet a finished product — on ice or off — but his great progress gives reason for hope of more to come.

"I think we communicate a lot better," Boudreau said. "I think he can speak and understand a lot more than he says. I think we're on a good level. Him and Alex are best friends, and they play together like it when they're on a line. He's been an easy guy to coach for me now."

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Lightning goalie Mike McKenna apologized to Ovechkin

 By Damian Cristodero, Lightning blog, Mar. 28, 2009 "Paper trail, and McKenna apologizes to Ovie":

Here's something you don't see every day, a package of game notes being thrown into the stands from the Lightning's press box suite at an opponent's stadium. But that's what happened early in the third period of Friday's game with the Capitals.

It was 2:30 into the period when a cross-checking penalty on Tampa Bay's Evgeny Artyukhin nullified Jeff Halpern's goal that would have tied the score 3-3. All of a sudden the notes came flying out of the suite and into the stands. Fans threw them back.

GM Brian Lawton, who was in the suite with Lightning owner Oren Koules, said he was not responding to the game but to fans who threw something into the open-air suite first. Either way, there were smiles all around as Lawton and the fans laughed the whole thing off.

As for Lightning goalie Mike McKenna, you might recall he was one of those who criticized Washington star Alex Ovechkin for his celebration last week at the St. Pete Times Forum after his 50th goal.

Ovechkin was in the hallway leading to the Lightning locker room after Friday's game talking to his buddy Artyukhin. McKenna saw him and approached and said he wanted to apologize for the criticism. McKenna said the emotions of the moment got the best of him.

"I wanted to tell him there was nothing to it," McKenna said."It's water under the bridge."

...hhmmm... I wonder if he would apologize if the Bolts would win. What a dipshit.


By Corey Masisak, TWT, Mar. 27, 2009:

Why does Mike McKenna have such a sour disposition? First, he took a shot at Ovechkin for his goal celebration (seriously -- how sweet would it have been to see No. 8 do a spin move in front of McKenna after scoring?). But he must have complained to the officials six times tonight.

Look, at the beginning of this season he was no higher than FIFTH on Tampa Bay's goalie depth chart (behind Mike Smith, Olie Kolzig, Karri Ramo and Riku Helenius) and now he is getting a chance to start some NHL games. Just saying, maybe he needs to lighten up a little.

WASHINGTON - MARCH 27, 2009: Keith Aucoin #20 of the Washington Capitals celebrates the game winning goal by Brian Pothier #2 (not shown) against Mike McKenna #30 of the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 27, 2009 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. The Capitals defeated the Lightning 5-3. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

Capitals Insider, Mar. 27, 2009:

When I was walking out of the Caps' room, I saw Lightning goalie Mike McKenna seek out Ovechkin and shake his hand. I asked McKenna what that was all about, and the goalie said, "I just wanted to tell him that there was nothing to it. It's water under the bridge."

McKenna, who has appeared in exactly 12 NHL games, was one of the Lightning players who complained publicly about Ovechkin's goal celebration last Thursday.

Funny thing is that McKenna also got bent out of shape tonight. After Backstrom's second score, the goalie felt the Caps were celebrating a little too close to his crease and he responded by shoving a few players from behind.

By Thom Loverro, TWT, Mar. 28, 2009:

"Can't touch this," read one poster, with a drawing of a flaming hockey stick.

Boudreau had done all he could to defuse what was seen as a volatile situation resulting from Ovechkin's celebration. It ruffled some feathers, but the Capitals' coach had met in person with Lightning coach Rick Tocchet to calm the situation.

"I respect that he came by my office face-to-face," Tocchet told the St. Petersburg Times. "It was a nice gesture."

Tocchet also said he thought everyone was "blowing it out of proportion."

"I'm sure you'd like to see our players react, but reacting is playing in Washington and playing abrasive and not playing stupid."

This is what happens when you have a superstar whose presence is growing beyond hockey arenas. You have TV crews from Canada coming to the District to fan the flames, so to speak. You can't have it both ways.

Everything about Alex Ovechkin will be blown out of proportion because there are no proportions to measure a Russian athlete becoming one of the biggest sports stars in North America. This is unchartered territory, and Boudreau and the Capitals better get used to it.

The heat will always be on.

If someone would "donate" the picture of that poster, where there is stick in flames and the sign "Can't touch this", I'd appreciate it. I loved it.

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Alex Ovechkin's post game (video) vs. Bolts

 

Alex Ovechkin's speaks to media about home win over Tampa Bay

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4 point night for Ovechkin

 Bolts 3, Caps 5. Alex had 2 goals, 2 assists, total ice time 27:04(!), average shift 1:17, 7 shots on goal, 3 hits. For comparison Mike Green had 27:39.



WASHINGTON - MARCH 27, 2009: Alex Ovechkin #8 of the Washington Capitals celebrates his first period goal (52nd) against the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 27, 2009 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)


Alex also reached 100 points mark of this season and scored his 52nd and 53rd goal. He was all over the place in the first period:

 6:49 PP WSH  8 A.OVECHKIN(52), 19 N.BACKSTROM(59), 21 B.LAICH(24)
11:17 PP WSH 19 N.BACKSTROM(20), 8 A.OVECHKIN(46), 52 M.GREEN(38)
19:38 PP WSH 19 N.BACKSTROM(21), 52 M.GREEN(39), 8 A.OVECHKIN(47)

The second goal was an excellent pass by Ovie. Instead of shooting the puck he saw Backstrom and Fleischmanne on the right going to the net. He makes a pass almost to the right post that was reflected in the net by Backstrom's skate.

Bolts' Matt Smaby tried to catch Ovie behind the net with a big hit. Ovie stops at the last moment and that prevented the big damage. Ovie goes immediately after Smaby and plasters Smaby over the boards.

When the game was stopped, Smaby tried to rough up Ovie, but Ovie just skates away. And then Smaby's gone, didn't return after the first.

Don't mess with Great Eight. Matt have learned it a hard way tonight.

1. Evgeni Malkin, PIT 106
2. Alex Ovechkin, WSH 100
3. Sidney Crosby, PIT  96
4. Pavel Datsyuk, DET  89
5. Zach Parise,   NJ   88

Ovie has shortened Malkin's lead to 6 points. Go, Ovechkin!




Bruce Boudreau's post-game


Mar. 27, 2009:

WASHINGTON (AP) -For more than two periods, the game was about possible retribution for a week-old goal celebration by Alex Ovechkin.

Then, with the score tied in the third, the player whose career was nearly ended by a concussion scored his first goal in the more than a year, an emotional moment that brought the Verizon Center to its feet.

Brian Pothier's slap shot with 15:30 remaining proved to be the winning goal, and the Washington Capitals maintained their dominance over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday night with a 5-3 victory.

Ovechkin scored his 52nd and 53rd goals - and did nothing over-the-top after the puck went in either time - and added two assists for the Capitals, who blew a 3-1 first-period lead before holding on to beat the Lightning for the 10th straight time. Nicklas Backstrom scored his 20th and 21st goals. Ovechkin reached 100 points for the season with his second goal, an empty-netter with 7 seconds to play.

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Fedorov's Ferrari Enzo

 "Mike "Lambo-Greenie" Green's got a Lamborghini and Sergei Fedorov's got a Maserati and a Ferrari."

~ Capitals Insider


On request of our readers here is a picture of Fedorov's Ferrari Enzo.

CarForums.net, June 21, 2003:

BLOOMFIELD HILLS - Embattled hockey superstar Sergei Fedorov made news again early Friday morning when he crashed his Ferrari into a tree.

According to police, he was not injured and there was no indication that alcohol was involved. Bloomfield Hills police said in a statement that Fedorov's red Ferrari was involved in the accident. He is known for his love of sports cars and reportedly has at least two Ferraris.

The Russian-born speedster - on the ice - was driving at 2:55 a.m. Friday, according to police, when the 2001 car struck a tree adjacent to Woodward Avenue just north of Bloomfield Parkway in the city of Bloomfield Hills, where the hockey player lives. Police said he was heading south on Woodward when he looped around to head north to Long Lake Road.

According to radio reports, Fedorov called police from his home, which is nearby.

Police would neither describe the extent of the damage to the car nor say if Fedorov was or would be ticketed.


Sergei Fedorov drives a Ferrari Enzo

About a month ago, Fedorov made news again by purchasing a yellow Enzo Ferrari for a reported $650,000 from Cauley Ferrari Maserati in West Bloomfield Township. With a top speed of 216 mph, it was one of 70 such cars in the U.S. and 400 worldwide.

Wikipedia on [some] "Famous people seen driving an Enzo":

Paul Allen, Microsoft co-founder

Sergei Fedorov, NHL player. s/n 130689 Now owned by LV Eric, Las Vegas NV.

Michael Schumacher, former Formula 1 driver for Scuderia Ferrari. Also owns the only Enzo based Ferrari FXX painted in all black with asingle racing stripe.

Teemu Selänne, NHL player.

Rod Stewart, Rock Star. s/n 136497[2]

Niki Lauda, Former Formula 1 driver and World Champion.

Axl Rose, legendary rock star, leader of band Guns N Roses

50 Cent, American rapper. Owns a yellow Enzo claimed to have been purchased for over US$1 million.

Maserati Quattroporte
coolspotters.com:

Who else drives Maserati Quattroporte:

Lindsay Lohan, Actress

Pamela Anderson, Actress

Kanye West, Musician

Kathy Griffin, Actress

Bono, Musician

...and Olie the Goalie.

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Need a little help from my friends

 

Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz ?
My friends all drive Porsches, I must make amends.
Worked hard all my lifetime, no help from my friends,
So Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz ?

By Corey Masisak, TWT, Mar. 27, 2009

Six weeks ago, Alex Ovechkin was the slam-dunk choice to repeat as the NHL's MVP.

But Ovechkin hasn't been the most dominant player in the league on a nightly basis in recent weeks, and the Washington Capitals have plateaued as they await the beginning of the playoffs.

Meanwhile, a couple of other teams with MVP candidates have surged, and other players - namely Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin and New Jersey's Zach Parise - have garnered more attention for the award. So with seven games left in his regular season, is Ovechkin still the favorite, and does he deserve to become the first back-to-back Hart Trophy winner since Dominik Hasek in 1997 and 1998?

"He is the best player in the league," Caps general manager George McPhee said. "Who else does what he does? Who else scores as many goals and gets as many points and plays as physical? Nobody - he's still got 20 percent more goals... and he still has more hits than anybody that would even be close to him in points. He is still the most unique player in this league - and the best."

Because the Caps essentially have been assured either the No. 2 or 3 seed in the Eastern Conference for quite some time, the team has struggled to replicate last season's strong finish. They have lost nine of their past 17 games.

"I feel strongly that he still deserves it," said Sergei Fedorov, the Hart winner in 1994. "It is not Alex Ovechkin that is struggling - it is our whole team that is struggling. I think he still puts pucks in the net."

Without any signature Ovechkin performances recently, voters - the members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association - who may have come close to selecting him unanimously in mid-February have had a wandering eye of late.

With a 10-point lead on Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby, Malkin is likely to win the Art Ross Trophy as the league's scoring leader. He also leads the NHL in points on the road and at even strength.

Before last month, Malkin was racking up points for a mediocre team. Now the Penguins have shot into contention for the No. 4 seed in the conference, and Malkin's candidacy has gained steam.

Ovechkin still has the most third-period goals and is tied with Malkin for most points in the final 20 minutes. And no player can match his combination of production and physical play. He ranks seventh in the league with 230 hits. The only other player in the league in the top 40 in scoring and hits is Phoenix's Shane Doan; he's 32 points and 49 hits behind Ovechkin.

"He is the most valuable player to his team - just look at the position that we are in," Caps coach Bruce Boudreau said. "I know we've got good players and we've got a good team, but I think you look at the third-period goals and the times that we need goals in games and who comes through.

"When we needed to win, just look at the games against New Jersey and Boston and the better teams in the league and what his production has been. You'll see in big games he is the guy we count on."

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Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes-Benz :-)

 Capitals Insider, Mar. 27, 2009:

Alex Ovechkin's collection of sweet rides just got even sweeter.

Surrounded by a small crowd of fans and teammates outside KCI this morning was Ovechkin's newest toy: a brand-new, 200-mph Mercedes S65 AMG Black Series.



Its price tag is about $250,000, and only 350 are expected to be produced worldwide.

Ovechkin now owns three AMGs (one of which is modded), a Porsche Cayenne GTS and a souped-up BMW M6 (it's in Russia).

Mike "Lambo-Greenie" Green's got a Lamborghini and Sergei Fedorov's got a Maserati and a Ferrari. But Ovechkin's collection of hot sports cars is unmatched around here, and the S65 tops the list. You could put this thing on a NASCAR track and it would win any race, hands-down.

It also makes the Caps' parking lot arguably the best in the NHL (I'm thinking it also might rival the Wizards').

Check Ovechkin's first car:

Alex Ovechkin: "My first car was Russian made Zhiguli, model 6" (VAZ-2106)." It was produced from 1976 to 2001 by VAZ from Togliatti, the home town of Victor Kozlov.

The 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG is a sports car of 2009. It has a top speed about 185 miles per hour.

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Krikunov, AHL and Fedor Fedorov

 New.Sport-Express.ru, Mar. 27, 2009:

The head coach of Neftekhimik and ex-head coach of team Russia Vladimir Krikunov came back from US on Wednesday.

Krikunov was looking for the hockey players overseas who could potentially strengthen the Nizhnekamsk team.

"I am not ready yet to give the names, but I scouted a few AHL games in New York area and penciled a couple of North American defensemen," said Krikunov. "I was surprised by elevated demands of the AHL players. Earlier in the American League in general the players were paid peanuts and now their salaries have rosen significantly. And it's not so easy to get the hockey players from the AHL now.

Q.: Will you keep Fedor Fedorov whose contract with your team has expired?

Krikunov: Yes, we are interested and negotiating with him.

Krikunov is also former Alex Ovechkin's Moscow Dynamo head coach.

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Who could've expect this from Artyukhin?

 By Damian Cristodero, blogs.tampabay.com, Mar. 26, 2009:

Lightning right wing Evgeny Artyukhin is friendly with Ovechkin and said when he spoke to Ovechkin after the March 19 games, he seemed contrite. "He said, 'I'm not looking to embarrass your team,' " Artyukhin said. Still, Artyukhin said he was embarrassed. "It's a game. We'll see what happens," Artyukhin said. "We can't say, 'Yeah, we're going to kill him,' but we'll see what happens on the ice."


"It's kind of over," left wing Ryan Malone said. "I mean, there's not really much you can do anymore. If the hit is there, you want to finish your checks on him, but you have to keep your head up with him as well. It's just one of those things. He was celebrating his 50th goal, we understood that. But we still were embarrassed by it. It's our job to stick together."

Malone said the best retribution would be to "steal the two points."

"You're looking for people to react, and we're going to go into that game and give them a good, smart hockey game and play abrasive. But that's the way we want them to play in any game."

As for Ovechkin, he said, he is ready for whatever comes his way.

Too bad Brashear won't play. But he will another time.

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Heward and Ovechkin spoke

 Canadian Press via THN, Mar. 26, 2009 "Leafs defenceman Jamie Heward holding out slim hope of return from concussion":

That occurred in Washington on New Year's Day when Heward's head smacked the glass awkwardly after a hit by Alex Ovechkin.

He was knocked out cold and spent a night in hospital, where he woke up with concerns that he might have suffered some kind of long-term neurological damage.

Even though he was in a vulnerable position when he was hit, Heward holds no grudges against Ovechkin. The former teammates actually spoke about the incident earlier this week when the Capitals were in town.

"It's a physical game, a man's game," said Heward. "I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

"The fact that he even acknowledged that he had feelings about it and was emotional about it is enough for me. I know how he feels and what kind of player he is."

The road back to the NHL will still be difficult for Heward.

He's scheduled to undergo a test on Monday that will determine whether he can start practising with his teammates again.

All the best to you, Jamie!

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The Fifth Russian, Eric Fehr

 You live and you learn. Eric Fehr was born in Winkler, Manitoba, established by Russian Mennonites.

DC Sports Bog, Mar. 26, 2009:

For those of you who already knew that, well, did you know that there are several great Mennonite restaurants in Winkler, owing to its founding by a mass migration of Russian Mennonites? That despite that, Fehr has never spoken a word of Russian in Winkler?

The name Fehr definitely sounds like Russian Mennonite. Click here to see how many Russian Mennonites have the last name Fehr.

Wikipedia on Russian Mennonites:

North America

United States
The state of Kansas owes its reputation as a wheat-producing state in large measure to its early Mennonite settlers. Winter wheat was introduced to Kansas in 1873. The following year the Mennonites, who had experience with dry land farming in Russia, quickly took advantage of its characteristics resulting in rapid expansion of the milling industry in the State.[27] It was planted in the fall and harvested in the following summer, and was therefore ideally suited to hot, dry Kansas summers. Today Kansas is a top producer of wheat in America. Swiss Volhynian Mennonites settled in the Moundridge, Kansas and Pretty Prairie, Kansas areas. The Swiss Mennonite Cultural and Historical Association tells their story. Mennonites of Dutch-Prussian descent (who speak a language known as Plautdietsch, which can be loosely translated as "Low German") settled much of South Central Kansas.

After 1870 many Russian Mennonites, fearing state influence on their education systems, emigrated to the Plains States of the US and the Western Provinces of Canada. They brought with them many of their institutions and practices, including separate denominations heretofore unseen in North America, like the Mennonite Brethren.


Canada
The largest group of Russian Mennonites came out of Russia after the bloody strife following the various Russian revolutions and the aftermath of World War I. These people, having lost everything they had known, found their way to settlements in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, British Columbia and Ontario and in many regions of the United States. Some joined with previous Mennonite groups, while others formed their own.


South America
From North America, many groups, fearing state persecution and searching for a way to "live quietly on the land," have left to form groups in Belize, Mexico and Menno Colony of Paraguay beginning in the 1920s. Fernheim Colony was formed in the 1930s by Mennonites from the Soviet Union seeking a better life in Paraguay.[28] Old Colony Mennonites went from Mexico and Belize in the early 1970s and to Argentina in 1986. A smaller number of Russian Mennonites emigrated as refugees along with the retreating German army after the failed German campaign of World War II. There are 41 Mennonite colonies in Bolivia.[29]

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Tom Boswell responds

 "Ask Boswell", Mar. 26, 2009:

Washington, D.C.: How do you feel about the flak you've gotten from "real" hockey writers after defending Ovie's celebrations? Most seem to stem from a sense of insecurity when faced with the glaring fact that their favorite sport is still a second-class citizen.
I love a good fuss. Especially when I'm right. Sometimes, you don't know if you're right (even in your own opinion) until a couple of days after you've written an off-the-news column. Sometimes you think, "Rats. Another one I wish I didn't have to live with. Or change my mind."

I'm quite happy with my Ovie column. It's another good debate, not black-and-white. I've had some smart e-mails from readers that I respect. But the NHL can loosen up A LOT and still not come anywhere close to the NFL or NBA for pre-palnned celebrations. And still be way behind baseball, too, where it's still fairly rare.

However, I would NEVER want to give up the memory of the minor league manager with the Braves who planned out a base-throwing rant, then finished it off by CRAWLING up the back of the mound, picking up the reisin bag as if it were a grenade, then pretending to pull the pin and, from him knees, lob it right at the feet of the ump standing beside home plate.

I think the guy was fired and is out of the game. Not sure. But I saw the clip agaqin the other day and think it's funnier, more wonderfully surreal now than I did then.

Bleachers @ Kettler Capitals Iceplex, Arlington, Va: Thomas, have you seen today's "Morning Skate" at the New York Times?

"Boswell's understanding of hockey and the nature of the issues surrounding it is pretty limited, and he suffers from the usual malady of wanting it to conform to sports with which he is more familiar, rather than learning about it and letting it be its own wonderful, contradictory self, which is one point in Kern's very, very, very long (but very interesting) blog post. Of course, Boswell would probably leap through his computer screen if he read a hockey writer praise a batter for showing up a pitcher and condemn a pitcher for throwing at that batter for showing him up."

Hey, lets give 'em a free read.

I've covered Caps games every season since they got here back in the '70's. I've covered some of their best, and most brutal playoff games. I've talked with both Murrays, Ron Wilson, etc., about hockey until they probably never wanted to see me at their office door again. (They were all very helpful though.) Don't worry too much about my knowledge of hockey. I undersell it.

Gallery Place: Mr. Boswell, Ted called you out on his blog -- Did You Ever Think?

"Did you ever think that a Capitals player could become the center of the universe? :-) One week after the 50th goal was scored; the New York Times keeps the subject matter alive." Can we expect your move here in this chat or in a column tomorrow?

I'll give Ted a read, too!

He deserves the good times he's getting now after all the hard years. Also, when you succeed with any franchise or in any sport you get the Second Wave of fans and media attention. If you are a sane franchise (or sport) you WANT IT. As I've freely said in fact, taken pains to point out in an entire column I'm part of that wave! And happy about it.

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Boudreau: It's 10 friggin days since it happened

 

Washington Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau figures if the Tampa Bay Lightning want to get back at his star Alex Ovechkin for his on-ice celebration last week, the best way is to beat the Capitals when the two teams play Friday night in Washington.

Boudreau told reporters in Washington he's sick and tired of talk about retribution for Ovechkin's act, which saw him mime warming his hands over his burning stick after scoring his 50th goal of the season in a 5-2 Capitals win on March 13 in Tampa.



"It's 10 friggin days since it happened," Boudrea said when asked about the incident at Capitals practice. "We have talked to Tampa's coaches, we have said our speech. The people that are bringing the crap up are you guys (the media). Nobody cares about it anymore. You guys want to bring it up because you want to see a riot, then you want to talk about retribution. It's the dumbest thing in the world.



"Alex has not had a fight in four years in the NHL. Do you think he's going to go out there and people are just going to jump him for something that happened?”

Boudreau said he thinks Tampa's players are smarter and more professional than to seek retribution for what he said was a harmless, personal celebration.

"They'll probably try really, really hard to beat us and that would be the best retribution for Tampa, to work their rear ends off and beat us."

DC Sports Bog, Mar. 26, 2009:

As for TSN, Wallace said D.C. is one of their top-three U.S. destinations, along with Pittsburgh and Buffalo, and that "the reason we come here is because of Alex...It's because the best player in the game is playing here, and he's by far the most exciting and entertaining guy around. I mean, people love him in Canada."

(Ovechkin on the Tampa game? "If somebody wants to hit me, always pleasure," he said. "I'm ready. I don't care what's gonna happen. I'm ready. But I don't think it's gonna be some war, fights, hits.")

I asked Ovechkin whether he keeps track of his SportsCenter and SportsCentre exploits: "No,"he said, "I just go to Internet and watch over there some highlights or talking about something. On YouTube? "Always," he said.

As for the extended hype-front moving down from the North, "I think we deserve it," Ovechkin said. "I think we deserve the attention. We play well, we in the playoff spots, we first in our division, third in our conference, and it's a big step so I think our team need more, how you say, PR? So we deserve it, we have great players, so why not?"

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Rock the Red: по русски (Update)

 By Dan Steinberg, DC Sports Bog, Mar 26, 2009 "Rock the Red, Po Russki!":

I don't know the answer to this question, but has any U.S. sports franchise ever embraced the Cyrillic alphabet than the '09 Caps? I mean, the number of Cyrillic items for sale in the team's gift shops is truly remarkable. I wish you could pay in Rubles. Plus, has anyone made Caps nesting dolls yet? That's a must.

These say Rock the Red, apparently, and they've been available for about three weeks. I'd like one, but I try to remain sports agnostic in my apparel. And red makes me look pasty.

"These say Rock the Red?" Not exactly. "Красное знамя вперед" means "Go, Red Flag".

Doesn't make sense to me. At least it's not "Красная армия всех сильней". :-)

Update:






Puddin_an_Semin said, "I already have Washington Capitals Matroyska dolls Dan! I got them in Prague last summer!!! I love them they are my most treasured Caps possession!"

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Ovechkin's 10 best in NHL 09

 By HockeyWebCast: Inspired by Alex Ovechkins 50th goal thursday night against Tampa Bay, RDS look back at his ten best this season.

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Timati & Snoop Dogg

 

Lysenkov: Do you listen Russian music?
Fedorov: In Washington we spin Basta. I've got him from Ovechkin and Semin. They are basically playing our music [in a locker room]. I am touched by our rappers. Beautiful words, they talk about life. I myself was raised in that life. I understand what the guys talk in their rap. They have serious things. I also listen pop music. Timati, for example, goes well when in the mood.

Timati & Snoop Dogg



Wikipedia on Timati:

Timati (Russian: Тимати — incorrect transliteration of name Timothy) is the stage name of Russian rapper, pop-singer, musician, actor and businessman Timur Ildarovich Yunusov (Russian: Тиму́р Ильда́рович Юну́сов), also referred as Mr. Black Star.

Timati was born on August 15, 1983 in Moscow to Jewish mother and Tatar father. Lived in Los Angeles for 5 years, now lives in Moscow.

Well known to the Russian community from the music reality show Star Factory 4. Member of Banda group (Russian: Банда) ("Gang" in English) and co-founder of VIP77. Owned B-Club nightclub, the bar Black October and the stores Ё-Life. Also is the CEO of his own label called "Black Star Inc". In 2006, was featured in The Heat produced by Fyodor Bondarchuk. In 2008, Timati was featured in a Fat Joe song called "Put U Take it", also featuring Nox and Raul. 2008 video with Mario Winanas ( forever ). 2009 video with Snoop Dogg.. comming soon.

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Backstrom: This year we are ready to elevate our game (video)

 

In THN.com's latest video feature, producer Ted Cooper explores how many of Washington's warriors think a run to the Cup is in the cards. (Interview with Backstrom, Ovechkin and Mike Green)

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A week of ex'es continues (update)

 This time it's Fedorov's ex... :-)

H/t to Deadspin:

Anna K rang the bell at the New York Stock Exchange yesterday. So that's where all my money went.

More pix from thehollywoodgossip.com and from celebrity-gossip.net

Update:

by WILL BRINSON, fanhouse.com, Mar. 26, 2009

Anna Kournikova isn't great at tennis. She was very good at being very attractive and thus very good at garnering attention from the media and endorsers, but never very good at tennis. Unfortunately for Jimmy Fallon, she's pretty decent at beer pong, as he found out last night. Or at least better than Fallon anyway.

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Italian cousine by Rick Tocchet

 He is preparing Friday night spaghetti dinner. Bring it on!




Here are some comments:

roberge32
maybe thats why caufield couldnt fight for shit. was too full on pasta.

roberge32
you think he would hit the casino to kill a few hours after practice.

Grossdeutschland
what a next ??Macaroni??or how to deal with gretzky wife

pathicks28
classic 90s hockey hair lol

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Russian cuisine by Alyonka and Geno

 

H/t to Paul Kukla:

Alyonka Larionov and Mr. Malkin try their hands at some Russian cuisine and Kris Letang does the food testing.

A week in news is a week of Ovie's exes... :-)

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More pics of Ovie in 'Hockey Night' t-shirt

 

"Ovechkin is definitely the greatest player in the game right now – I would agree with that"

~ Curtis 'CuJo' Joseph.



CHRIS YOUNG/CANADIAN PRESS
Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, wearing a 'Coaches Corner' T-shirt as a reference to his war of words with Don Cherry, plays soccer outside the visitors dressing room in the Air Canada Centre ahead the NHL game against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Toronto on Tuesday, March 24, 2009.








AP photos by Chris Young

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What a game!

 Leafs 3, Caps 2 (SO).

Ovie had 1 goal, 1 assist, +1, total ice time was 23:27, average shift was 01:01, 4 hits, 7 shots on goal. Ovie was also interviewed by TSN.CA after the second period. When the commentator asked him about his 51 goal celebration, Ovie was clearly mad :-). He said, "I don't want to talk about celebrations, let's talk hockey and about the game."



sportsnet.ca, Mar. 24, 2009:

Ovechkin demonstrated his sense of humour prior to the game, wearing a "Coach's Corner" t-shirt while kicking a soccer ball with teammates.

Phil Oreskovic and Pavel Kubina scored in regulation for Toronto (31-30-13).

Ovechkin and Brooks Laich replied for the Capitals (45-23-7).

A relatively tame game produced a pretty wild finish.

Kubina appeared to have set the Maple Leafs up for a victory when he scored a power-play goal at 17:52 of the third period, but Laich tied it 2-2 with 56.1 seconds left. The Capitals forward stuffed the puck under Gerber, prompting the angry Toronto goalie to lightly push Leggo -- even still, he'll likely be hearing from NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell.

The Leafs were forced to insert Joseph and the veteran promptly stopped a late chance by Ovechkin, setting up overtime.

That was only the beginning. Joseph got a standing ovation from the sellout crowd as he turned away eight more shots in the extra session and all three shootout attempts.

Jeff Hamilton scored on Toronto's first shootout attempt to seal the win.

The focus started on Ovechkin but ended with Joseph.

Ovechkin once again demonstrated his sense of humour prior to the game, wearing a "Coach's Corner" t-shirt while kicking a soccer ball with teammates. It had the word "respect" written across the back.

The celebration after his 51st goal of the season later in the night won't draw the same kind of attention No. 50 did -- from Don Cherry or anyone else. Ovechkin simply kissed his glove and pointed to the sky after roaring around defenceman Luke Schenn and sliding the puck around Gerber with 20 seconds to play in the second period.

The play picked up in the second period after a dull opening 20 minutes. The teams started to trade some chances and ended up combining for 29 shots in the middle frame.

Oreskovic got the first goal and point of his NHL career on a strange play at 9:04. The hulking defenceman had his point shot bounce off at least one Capitals player before it got behind goalie Jose Theodore.

The celebration was pretty muted for a guy who only has two goals in 116 career AHL games -- he simply raised both arms in the air.

Ovechkin also kept himself in check when he tied the score 1-1 with 20 seconds to play in the period.

It was the 12th goal he's scored in 13 career games against the Leafs.

By Nate, Welcome to the show, Mar. 24, 2009:

Think Ovi can't have a little fun with the whole celebration nonsense? After answering about 10 minutes of questions about it this morning, he got a Hockey Night in Canada Coach's Corner t-shirt and shorts for his pregame soccer contest.

Ovi had one addition to the shirt: "RESPECT" written in black marker on the back, a sign of the respect he has for both Don Cherry and his opponents.

THN video: Ovechkin says he likes Coach's Corner, but doesn't care what Cherry thinks (2009-03-24)


By David Shoalts, Globe & Mail, Mar. 24, 2009:

Alexander Ovechkin gave one of his most severe critics a playful jab a little more than an hour before his Washington Capitals played the Toronto Maple Leafs on Tuesday night at the Air Canada Centre.

The Capitals star appeared for the traditional warmup soccer game wearing a Coach's Corner t-shirt and boxer shorts emblazoned with the Hockey Night In Canada logo on the backside. It was a cheeky shot at CBC broadcaster Don Cherry, who has often chastised Ovechkin for his exuberant celebrations after goals. Ovechkin also had the word “Respect” stencilled on the back of the t-shirt.

Ovechkin scored his 50th goal of the season last Thursday against the Tampa Bay Lightning and celebrated by dropping his stick and warming his hands over it like it was on fire. This resulted in much criticism, including some on this website from your blushing agent, as well as a relatively muted knock from Cherry.

After the Capitals' morning skate on Tuesday, Ovechkin insisted he likes Cherry's Coach's Corner show on Hockey Night In Canada.

“He can say whatever he wants,” Ovechkin said of Cherry's criticism. “I think fans love when something is going on around the league. His TV show is very popular, I think, and I like it.”

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