NHL’s Lead Scorer Faces Backlash After Appearing in Pro-Putin Ad

The captain of the Washington Capitals, Alexander Ovechkin, and the National Hockey League are facing criticism after the star player appeared in a campaign ad for the United Russia party, which supports Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin.Mr. Ovechkin, a Russian citizen and the top goal scorer in the NHL, was featured in a video, standing behind Russia’s foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov. Mr. Lavrov said in the video, “Whoever comes at us with the sword shall not expect mercy … let us all stand united as one.” The ad comes ahead of Russia’s first parliamentary election since Mr. Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine in 2022.The presence of the star player has led to criticism on social media. On Wednesday, a Republican Congressman, Joe Wilson, sent a letter to the NHL commissioner, Gary Bettman, calling the participation of “one of the [NHL’s] most prominent players” in the ad “alarming.” He noted Russia has “consistently exploited” prominent athletes and sporting events to “legitimize its regime,” and that the ad also featured Maria Lvova-Belova, who has been sanctioned by the International Criminal Court for “unlawful deportation and transfer of Ukrainian children from Russian-occupied territory.”Mr. Wilson said that Mr. Ovechkin has “every right to hold personal political views,” but said that the participation of the captain of the NHL team in America’s capital “raises serious questions about the standards expected of players who represent the League and their communities.”Mr. Wilson asked the NHL to clarify that “any endorsement of Putin’s party is not an official position of the NHL or the Washington Capitals.”“The Capitals are losing a longtime fan if they try & explain this away,” a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, Gary Schmitt, wrote on X. “If a German hockey player gave a testimonial for Hitler, would we just excuse? And yes, Putin is a murderous tyrant like Hitler.”Mr. Ovechkin has not been afraid to express his support for Mr. Putin. In 2017, he launched a “Putin Team” social media campaign, saying that he hoped the movement would bring together “people who are proud of their country and want to make Russia stronger” ahead of Mr. Putin’s reelection bid. The NHL star has pulled back from his activism since Russia invaded Ukraine, though he has still referred to the Russian president as “my president.”On Monday, the Washington Capitals said in a statement, “Alex Ovechkin is a Russian citizen who lives in Moscow with his family during the offseason and will live there following his retirement.”“This summer, while in Russia, he was asked by his country to participate in a video campaign. As the longest-tenured athlete in Washington, D.C. and a pillar of the community, his focus and ours is on the season ahead and the continued impact he makes on the ice and in our city,” the statement added.Mr. Ovechkin has played for the Capitals since 2005. In April 2025, he broke Wayne Gretzky’s record for most career goals when he scored his 895th goal. Since then, his goal total has risen to 929.The NHL did not respond to The New York Sun’s request for comment by the time of publication.

NHL’s Lead Scorer Faces Backlash After Appearing in Pro-Putin Ad

NHL’s Lead Scorer Faces Backlash After Appearing in Pro-Putin Ad

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