Putin’s team player: Russian propaganda is capitalizing on new NHL all-time goals leader Alexander Ovechkin

RU

Why Ovechkin’s record is so significant

Alexander Ovechkin is now the all-time leading goal scorer in the 107-year history of the NHL. Over the last 35 years — since the fall of the Soviet Union — the league has consistently featured the best players in the world. Wayne Gretzky’s previous record of 894 goals, set between 1978 and 1999, stood for 26 years.

At age 39, Ovechkin remains a top performer, currently in his 20th NHL season. His record-breaking goal was his 42nd of the 2024–25 campaign, placing him fourth overall despite missing 10 games due to injury.

Only regular-season goals are considered in the count, as playoff games vary in number between teams. Including playoff goals, Gretzky still leads with a total of 1,016 (894 regular-season + 122 playoff), compared to Ovechkin’s 967 (895 + 72).

The Capitals have qualified for the playoffs and are among the favorites to win the Stanley Cup. Given that Oveckin is under contract through the 2026 season, it’s likely he will play another 90 or so NHL games. Before his record-breaking goal, he announced that he intends to return to HC Dynamo Moscow — the team that introduced him to professional hockey at 16 years old — after this contract ends.

The NHL has remained accommodating to Russian players throughout the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In the 2024–25 season alone, over 50 Russian athletes are playing across different teams. Banning them would have unbalanced the league.

Ovechkin remains the most prominent, a media and commercial asset — despite his well-known political views. Some brands distanced themselves from him in March 2022, but the league continued promoting his pursuit of Gretzky’s record as a long-term campaign titled The Gr8 Chase. The promotion was even co-branded with LNG company Venture Global.

Just a week after Ovechkin set the record, the NHL released eight limited-edition bronze sticks signed by him, priced at $27,999 each. Six sold almost immediately. Merchandise featuring the number 895 and Ovechkin’s face was available within minutes of the record-breaking goal.

Propaganda frenzy

Russian state media quickly framed Ovechkin’s achievement as a political win. Vladimir Putin offered congratulations, and Olympic champion and State Duma MP Svetlana Zhurova predicted Ovechkin could have a future in the country’s parliament — or even as Russia’s representative to the UN.

Playing for a team based in Washington, Ovechkin is the biggest sports star in the U.S. capital. The NHL turned his record chase into a major media event, and the milestone was achieved in New York. The timing of the game — Sunday evening Moscow time — was perfect for Russian audiences.

Immediately after scoring the historic goal, Ovechkin delivered a message that fed straight into the propaganda machine. After offering thanks to teammates and the club, along with a joking shoutout to the Islanders’ Russian goalie Ilya Sorokin (who conceded the goal), Ovechkin said: “All of you fans, the whole world, Russia — we did it, boys, we did it, it's history!”

Russian media — both sports-focused outlets like Championat and news-oriented agencies like state-controlled TASS — twisted this into “Russians, we did it!” Stripped of context, the line took on a distinctly different tone.

Three days later, Ovechkin appeared via video link on Let Them Talk, a show on Kremlin-controlled Channel One. Asked to clarify his words, he said: “Yes, I meant all the fans, all my friends in Russia. Everyone who supported and was pulling for me — we did this together. Without that support and love, it would’ve been difficult.”

The prime-time broadcast was entirely devoted to Ovechkin — celebrating his strong family, his loyalty to Russia in difficult times, and even speculating that his brain structure gives him a “basic superiority” over others. At the end of the show, he was gifted a cow from a dairy plant in Orenburg.

Even before the record was broken, controversy was brewing around coverage of the Russian star’s chase. It was soon revealed that only after Ovechkin personally intervened did Russian journalists receive accreditation to cover potential record-setting games. NHL teams had revoked previously approved press credentials without explanation, regardless of the outlet or whether journalists were based in Russia or the U.S.

According to one Russian sports reporter who spoke to The Insider, NHL teams — including the New York Islanders, which hosted the record-breaking game — had begun quietly restricting access to Russian media as the 895th goal approached.

But the day before the game in New York, Ovechkin became aware of the situation. After he requested that the restriction be lifted, Russian outlets were granted access to the game. Reporters from major state broadcasters — including Russia-1 and NTV — were among those present, and they spoke with Ovechkin postgame.

“I think everyone in Russia will be celebrating now,” he said in the locker room before the official press conference. “Because a Russian is the top goal-scorer in the world. I’m happy — happy for the country, for all my coaches, and the players who helped me grow.”

NHL teams were eager to have Ovechkin break the record on their home ice. A commercial department staffer from one club told The Insider that everyone in the league recognized the marketing potential of Ovechkin’s chase. Teams scheduled to face Washington in the season’s final weeks tried to capitalize on his appearances.

The NHL had pre-announced it would pause the game to honor Ovechkin if he broke the record. After he tied Gretzky with goal No. 894 on Friday night (Saturday morning Moscow time), ticket prices for Sunday’s game surged — with resale prices starting at $1,200.

Luxury SUVs — and a tea set from Putin

A personal congratulation from Vladimir Putin surprised no one — among active athletes, Ovechkin is one of the closest to the Russian president. Their acquaintance dates back to at least the 2007 IIHF World Championship in Moscow, but their relationship appeared to deepen in the spring of 2014.

That year, the Russian national hockey team, captained by Ovechkin, won the World Championship in Minsk. The victory came at a perfect time — just after a disappointing performance at the Sochi Winter Olympics, which had featured the world’s top players. The gold medal at the post-Olympic tournament was spun as a comeback and proof that Russian hockey remained strong.

Putin was eager to associate himself with that win, celebrated exactly two months after the annexation of Crimea. In the locker room in Minsk, Ovechkin handed the championship trophy to Putin, who drank champagne from it — a moment broadcast on Russian state television. According to a report by journalist Slava Malamud, formerly a U.S. correspondent for the Russian newspaper Sport-Express, Putin then kissed Ovechkin with lips still wet from champagne.

Back in Russia, the president invited the team to a Kremlin awards ceremony, where the now-famous photo of Putin with Ovechkin — still displayed on the athlete’s Instagram profile — was taken.

But what made even bigger headlines was another episode: Ovechkin asked Putin to award each member of the championship team with a Mercedes-Benz, and Putin agreed. In July 2014 — the same month that Russian Buk air defense system No. 332 shot down MH17 over Ukraine — each player received a luxury GL-class Mercedes SUV. The vehicle was originally awarded to Russia’s gold medalists at the Sochi Olympics, while silver and bronze medalists received lower-tier models — the ML and GLK, respectively.

Ironically, the Russian hockey team had been eliminated in the Olympic quarterfinals, meaning the players received top-tier rewards for a tournament that, while prestigious, never attracts all the world’s best talent due to overlap with the NHL playoffs. Players only join the national team if their clubs have already been eliminated — and in 2014, the Washington Capitals hadn’t even made the playoffs.

In August 2014, asked about the request, Ovechkin said it had come from his teammates and that he simply passed it along as captain. Irritated by the suggestion they hadn’t earned the luxury cars in Sochi, he replied: “You think we didn’t try? Maybe some thought it was inappropriate, but we just asked. If there was an opportunity, why not? No one would’ve been upset if we were turned down.”

Weeks later, Ovechkin posted on Instagram a self-portrait in which he wore a “No War” shirt while holding a sign that read “Save Children From Fascism.” The caption read: “Our grandparents saw the horrors of fascism. We will not allow it in our time!” The reference was widely interpreted as an allusion to the “civil” war in Ukraine, where Russian propaganda portrayed Ukrainians as child-killing fascists despite the fact that by then Russian active duty forces had already taken part in the fighting around Ilovaisk.

This post raised eyebrows in the U.S. When Ovechkin returned for preseason training in early September, he had to clarify his position. “As a Russian, I have lots of friends from Ukraine. I just don't want a war. Nobody wants a war. Especially when people are so close. It's hard to see especially when you live so close to Ukraine. It's hard and it's dangerous. People die. We watch the news all the time. It's hard. I have lots of friends up there. The people who live there, they don't want war. They just want to have a good life like all of us.” Criticism in the U.S. soon faded.

In August 2016, Putin personally called Ovechkin to congratulate him on his wedding. The president had already sent a telegram that was read aloud at the ceremony by singer Nikolai Baskov. The Russian leader gifted his hockey captain a tea set for two decorated with intertwined floral motifs.

On Nov. 2, 2017, Ovechkin announced the launch of “Putin Team.”

The birth of “Putin Team”

“Individual awards and prizes are great, but in hockey, as in life, teamwork matters most. Lately, I’ve seen the phrase ‘Putin’s Team’ in the Western press — and you know, I really liked it. Personally, I’m ready to be part of that team,” he wrote on Instagram in November 2017, a few months before Russia’s presidential election. “I’ve never hidden my support for our President. I’ve always stood by him openly. I’m sure there are many of us who support Vladimir Putin! So let’s unite and show the world a strong and united Russia! Being part of this team is a source of pride for me — it feels like putting on the Russian national jersey, knowing the whole country is behind you.”

Other athletes, artists, and public figures soon joined. A month later, Putin announced his candidacy for another presidential term.

While the “Putin Team” project technically still exists, Ovechkin’s 2017 announcement remains its most high-profile moment. The movement has had little regular activity and now functions mainly as a clothing brand with pop-up stores in various Russian cities.

According to a report by business publication Vedomosti, the idea for Putin Team originated with the company IMA-Consulting, which had won a Central Election Commission contract to promote public awareness ahead of the 2018 electoral process. While the Kremlin approved the project, IMA denied having any ties to the idea, and the campaign was publicly framed as Ovechkin’s personal initiative.

Putin Team representatives later confirmed to independent publication The Bell that producer Igor Matvienko’s team handled technical and content matters, while Ovechkin personally financed the project.

The movement has remained silent since the start of Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine.

“He’s my president. But I’m not in politics. I’m an athlete.”

On February 25, 2022 — the day after Russia unleashed its full-scale invasion of Ukraine — a routine press conference with Ovechkin turned into a grilling about the war.

Ovechkin: “Obviously it’s a hard situation. I have a lots of friends in [both] Russia and Ukraine, and it’s hard to see the war. I hope soon it’s going to be over and there’s going to be peace in the whole world.”

Reporter: “Do you support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine?”

Ovechkin: “I’m Russian, right? It’s something I can’t control. It’s not in my hands. As I said, I hope it going to end soon and it’s going to be peace in both countries. I don’t control this.”

Reporter: “You’ve shown support for [Putin] in the past, we’ve seen the pictures of you with him. Do you still support him?”

Ovechkin: “He’s my president. But like I said, I’m not in politics. I’m an athlete.”

Pressed on his views and reminded that other Russian athletes had spoken out against the war, one journalist quoted the phrase “No more war, please.” Ovechkin echoed: “Please, no more war.” He added, “It doesn’t matter who’s in a war — Russia, Ukraine, different countries... We have to live in peace.”

Sources told The New York Times that after this press conference, the Capitals asked Ovechkin to remove the photo with Putin or deactivate his account. He reportedly considered it but ultimately refused, citing concern that such a move would be seen in Russia as a political statement and could endanger his family. In October 2022, ESPN journalist Emily Kaplan noted that the photo still caused tension within the team and league, but Ovechkin’s stance remained unchanged.

Ahead of the 2024-25 season, Ovechkin unexpectedly touched on political themes in an interview on blogger Amiran Sardarov’s YouTube channel. Among other things, he said he couldn’t vote in U.S. elections because he doesn’t have American citizenship, that most of his friends are Republicans, and that he “needs to study more” to one day become Russia’s Minister of Sport.

Trump, Lukashenko, and the head of the FBI

Donald Trump, too, has been an enthusiastic follower of Ovechkin’s career. The Russian hockey star and the former U.S. president first met in 2018, when Trump hosted the Washington Capitals at the White House in celebration of their Stanley Cup victory.

Earlier this year, during his inauguration festivities, Trump held two events at the Capitals' home arena. At one of them, he praised Ovechkin as a “pretty great” player, and during the inauguration parade, he again highlighted the team’s successful season and singled out Ovechkin’s strong performance.

Trump doubled down on his admiration after Ovechkin’s record-breaking goal. In a speech broadcast on Fox, he said that, “A great gentleman just broke the record of Wayne Gretzky. The Great One, Wayne Gretzky. But we have another great one too, now, huh? Just broke the record, it was great.” The statement played off the players’ nicknames: Gretzky is famously known as “The Great One,” while Ovechkin is known as “The Great Eight” for his jersey number.

Also at the arena in New York that night was FBI Director Kash Patel, who congratulated Ovechkin in person. He had been watching the game from a suite alongside Gretzky and visited the Capitals’ locker room after the game.

Another head of state who publicly mentioned Ovechkin’s achievement was Belarus’ Alexander Lukashenko:

“Ovechkin is a fine fellow, our guy, a Russian man. And he broke the record not here, but in the NHL! Some may not like it — athletes are competitive. But look how everyone celebrated it. It’s important that Sasha Ovechkin, a Russian man, won them [the Americans] over. It’s a point of pride.

I was watching him closely because he was always alongside Alexei Protas — our Belarusian guy, who gave many assists and rooted for Ovechkin to score that many goals. So this is a point of pride for us too.”

When asked about the potential for “hockey diplomacy” to help resolve global tensions, Ovechkin responded: “God willing, God willing. God willing it all ends soon.”

During a briefing with Russian-speaking journalists, Ovechkin was also asked about rumored exhibition games between players from the NHL and Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), a topic that was supposedly discussed during a March 18 phone call between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump — “If that happened, which team would you play for?”

Ovechkin smiled and dodged the question: “I don’t know what the format would be. If it actually happened, of course it would be cool. I’d love to take part in a game like that. But I don’t know how it would work.”

The idea itself was paradoxical — logically, Ovechkin, along with other top Russian players, would be expected to play for the NHL squad. But that point appears to be moot. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov later confirmed that there had been no concrete discussions about the games, and NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly also confirmed there were no plans to organize anything of the sort.

Nonetheless, more than 24 Ukrainian-American and Ukrainian-Canadian organizations issued a joint appeal urging the NHL not to cooperate with the KHL in any form. Meanwhile, Russian Minister of Sport Mikhail Degtyaryov offered a different version: the proposed matchups would be between the Russian national team and Team USA, and that quiet negotiations were underway to potentially hold the games in Saint Petersburg and Washington, D.C.

The Capitals began their NHL playoff series on April 21. Ovechkin scored 2:26 into overtime to give Washington a 3-2 victory over the visiting Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round.

So far, in his two decades with the Capitals, Ovechkin has won the Stanley Cup only once — in 2018.