Putin praises Ovechkin after he breaks NHL all-time goal record

Washington Post

07-04-2025

Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin for breaking the NHL's goals record, the Kremlin said Monday.
'I would like to congratulate you on this outstanding achievement. You have surpassed hockey legends,' Putin said, according to a posting on the Kremlin's Telegram channel. 'This new achievement is undoubtedly not only a personal triumph, but also a truly joyous day for fans both in Russia and around the world.'
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Putin 'highly appreciates' Ovechkin's tally, adding that 'we are all very happy and congratulate him.'
On Sunday, Ovechkin topped Canadian hockey player Wayne Gretzky's record by scoring his 895th goal against the host New York Islanders. Gretzky scored his last 894th goal in 1999. For 26 years, no other athlete came close to eclipsing his record.
Putin's message of support and the response to Ovechkin's record inside Russia has highlighted the complex relationship between sports and politics, as many officials and supporters of Russia's invasion of Ukraine have hailed Ovechkin's victory as a win for Russian soft power and a boost to the country's global reputation.
Ovechkin has long openly backed Putin, regularly posting messages of support for the president on social media. In 2017, he announced the creation of a new social movement in support of Putin, which he called Putin Team.
'I never hid my relationship with our president, always openly supported him,' he wrote at the time in a post on Instagram.
On Sunday night, Ovechkin addressed his Russian fans directly.
'To all my fans, in the whole world, in Russia, we did it boys!' he said, in an emotional speech after the game.
Ovechkin's success is a rare, celebratory moment on the world stage for Russians, after international condemnation of the war in Ukraine saw Russian cultural and sporting figures ostracized, especially those who publicly supported the war.
When asked about the war at a news conference in 2022, Ovechkin called for 'no more war,' but gave a muted response when questioned about his support for Putin.
'Well, he is my president. But as I said, I am not in politics. I am an athlete,' he said. 'I'm Russian. It's something I can't control. It's not in my hands. I hope [the war] is going to end soon.'
Leading figures in Russia celebrated the record-breaking moment as one that breaks Russia's isolation.
'Proud of Alexander Ovechkin, proud of Russian sport!,' Mikhail Degtyarev, Russia's sports minister, wrote on Telegram. 'In an era when world sport has become an arena for political confrontation, the great Russian hockey player once again proved that a true champion will break through any barriers and win the love of fans in any circumstances.'
Degatyarev asserted that Ovechkin had never 'been shy about his passport' and remains a member of the Putin Team.
'There you go: a Russian guy, and the whole world applauds him. He has never once given up his flag, his anthem, his country's president,' wrote Vyacheslav Fetisov, a Soviet-era hockey player and current parliamentarian, adding that this would send a message to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
Russian athletes have had to compete under a neutral status since sanctions were imposed by the IOC and other sports governing bodies, primarily in response to Russia's invasion and previous state-sponsored doping violations in Russian sport.
Putin's chief negotiator and economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who heads the Russian Direct Investment Fund and was recently in Washington for talks with the Trump administration, signaled in posts on X that Ovechkin's record-breaking goal could help unite Russia and the United States.
The Russian Embassy in Washington also highlighted the 'unifying potential of hockey,' which it said was discussed during a recent call between Putin and President Donald Trump.
Russia's 'Z' Community — military bloggers, nationalists and supporters of the war — also celebrated the goal as a boost for the war and Russian soft power.
One nationalist blogger, German Kulikovsky, wrote on Telegram that Ovechkin's goal has 'direct significance' for Russia in its confrontation with NATO and the West.
'It is the success of an outstanding Russian athlete and a great man who has done much for Russia, and can do even more. It is the same soft power and cultural advancement that our enemies have always been strong on, that we have lacked,' he wrote. 'And we all know that the war goes on. But waging it, when good Russian people win not only on the battlefield, is somehow easier.'
Natalia Abbakumova in Riga, Lativa, contributed to this report.