"Yes."
- Alexander Ovechkin, when asked "So if push came to shove, you would leave the NHL to play in Sochi?" (via Alex Ovetjkin)
almost 3 years ago
J.P.
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Good for him. Don’t let the league get away with such stunning hypocrisy.
I hope GMGM and Ted will/would have the good sense to support him if it ever came to it.
assume the Caps OK ovechkin playing even if the NHL doesn’t shut down for Sochi. Is there a scenario where they could give him their blessing, but suspend him without pay while he is missing NHL games?
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 1:44 PM EDT up reply actions
I support this but it will so suck for the league if the russians commit a mass escape to Sochi
miss u, CR baby...u want 2 get back 2gether? - now with lots of Ducks love
One wonders if this is just a bluff. Hopefully we’ll never have to find out.
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i think he’s crazy enough to do it… and i believe home olympics means a lot for russians
miss u, CR baby...u want 2 get back 2gether? - now with lots of Ducks love
I think it’s a little of both, and agree that I hope we never have to find out. It’s also going to always be an issue. Who gets the winter olympics after Russia? (I know that there isn’t an answer yet.) Their players in the NHL will feel the same way (watch, it’ll be Japan, or some other country with no NHL’ers).
He was just named the Ambassador for the Sochi Olympics. I believe he would treat that appointment seriously.
He also has said more than once that he takes his contracts seriously. The question would be, I believe, if the Russians will consider their old contracts binding under the new CBA.
/Yikes
I don’t know how calculating Ovie really is (his earnestness may be a bit of a smokescreen), but I am sure this will get the NHL’s attention at least a little. They should not be playing politics with the Olympics, which is how skipping Sochi would appear (to be charitable) with the previous Olympics in Vancouver.
All 3 MVP finalists this year were Russians and Ovechkin is one of the two faces of the league and its most transcendent player. I think the league is going to get the message. This isn’t going to be a big problem, I suspect.
you have to think the NHL doesn’t want to give Russian players any more incentive to eye the KHL as a better professional alternative.
On a similar note, this doesn’t sit well with me
You’ve signed a 12-year contract with Washington, so you obviously are not going back to the KHL?
You never know what is going to happen tomorrow.
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 1:47 PM EDT up reply actions
As much as I love Ovie being Ovie, sooner or later the Caps PR needs to start getting him on more of a leash, especially as he gets more confident with the media.
Wow. That doesn’t sit well with me either. I mean, he’s right, but there could have been a better way to phrase that to point to the uncertainty of the future for anyone rather than make it sound like he’s break his word, which I seriously don’t think he would do.
There's always more to learn about Hockey.
I totally agree with both your points…
My feeling (and hope) is that this is Ovi throwing the gauntlet, so to speak. By publicly saying that he’d leave the NHL over the Olympic debate, he’s sending a message that this is a serious issue and that he and other players feel strongly about it. I have a sneaking suspicion that this might be what the Olympic coordinators hoped would happen when they named Ovi the ‘ambassador’.
And I’m not entirely sure that the Caps PR team should be controlling him about something like this – it’s their job to maintain the team’s image, and while this does affect the team in a general way, the Olympics don’t have any impact on the team beyond the February break. It’s his right to speak about issues he feels strongly about, right?
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I’m perfectly fine with what he said about Sochi…not so much with the quote that Sombraro Guy provided.
I’m kind of inclined to think this isn’t really something to worry about for the next 12 years. At least.
Bingo – much ado about nothing. In a recent interview, he was asked a similar question and he said something akin to “Only if the NHL has another lockout.”
Don’t worry yourselves about this translated soundbite.
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I agree – I don’t think Ovi’s going to skip out on his contract in the near future for no reason at all, plus it’s obvious when you read the interview that the interviewer was pushing for him to say something like this. I actually read ‘tomorrow’ as ‘the future’, which has less of an immediate meaning and is probably more along the lines of what he said in Russian.
In general, I don’t think it’ll come to the point where players are actually leaving the League because the NHL has forbidden participation in the Olympics. As you said before, this is like a warning that will hopefully prevent things from progressing that far.
On a side note about the CBA: does anyone know what happens to long-term contracts like Ovi’s when the new CBA is negotiated if those contracts are in violation of the new terms?
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Basically, the folks who draft the new CBA need to be smart enough to deal with it by crafting the proper grandfathering clauses.
by Gould Old Days on Jul 28, 2009 4:17 PM EDT up reply actions
Think the players took a pay cut when the current CBA was instated
by red army line on Jul 28, 2009 5:49 PM EDT up reply actions
i hear ya, I would have preferred to see something more along the lines of “we’ll see what happens after my contract with Washington is finished”.
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 2:36 PM EDT up reply actions
wasn’t there also a quote from AO about the blackhawks’ restricted free agent bungle and how the players should be loyal to their teams? i can’t find it anywhere so maybe i’m confusing the facts or imagining it, but earlier this summer i think we got a reminder about how AO views the player-team dynamic.
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 3:20 PM EDT up reply actions
I think Ovie was commenting on the players who had commitments to the NHL and KHL, and saying that they should honor agreements they make.
ZING! ZANG! ZUNG!
which is something I am fairly certain I have seen him say before. I’m willing to buy the notion that “tomorrow” is a loose translation for “future”.
I don’t think there is much smoke here, I just didn’t like reading that.
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 3:31 PM EDT up reply actions
I’m not too worried. Unless the KHL becomes a better league, competition-wise, he’s not going anywhere. He’s interested in playing with the best. If it were just for playing at home, he’d have gone home before his 13-year contract.
by DrinkingPartner on Jul 28, 2009 2:48 PM EDT up reply actions
I thnk …
1) The Olympics comment is sincere and that he sincerly hopes it doesn’t come to that – I too hope it doesn’t I think the NHL’ers should now ALWAYS go to the Olympics.
2) On the “you never know what will happen” I think that’s an off handed comment to Russian press to expres his disatisfaction that Fedrov won’t be back… but that’s just rectal extraction on my part I’ve seen nothing to base it on, just instinct and mine often are wrong on things like this. Personally I think we’ll see/hear more stuff like this until OVie sees BOTH Backstrom and Semin signed to expensions this season. Semin going elsewhere would really peeve him off if I had to guess.
by markbona-capsfan99 on Jul 28, 2009 3:33 PM EDT up reply actions
expensions
.
A combination of extensions and expensive. I like it!
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 3:34 PM EDT up reply actions
I think it’s a bullshit answer to a stupid question. “You never know what’ll happen in the future” is so trite as to have no meaning.
by Gould Old Days on Jul 28, 2009 4:18 PM EDT up reply actions
link fail?
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 1:54 PM EDT up reply actions
it redirected me back to this same exact page.
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 2:08 PM EDT up reply actions
that’s the headline you’re clicking on, i think. (if you right click on the broken picture link, copy and paste the properties URL, even that doesn’t work for me…blocked by my work?)
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 2:11 PM EDT up reply actions
eh, the link or photo just isn’t showing up then. All I saw was the headline. No biggie.
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 2:38 PM EDT up reply actions
Today he’s young and single.
By 2014 he may have a wife and a couple of US-born Alexandroviches.
We’ll see.
Maybe not a wife but a couple of US-born Alexandroviches
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jul 28, 2009 2:29 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
EVERY woman I’ve ever seen sitting in his friends and family seats in Section 102 is/was Russian AND had several, or more specifically a couple, of physical attributes/characteristics that are very similar to each other. Much like his current wish list intro …http://www.topnews.in/sports/files/Maria-Sharapova3.jpg
by markbona-capsfan99 on Jul 28, 2009 3:37 PM EDT up reply actions
The genie is out of the bottle
The NHL should get over itself and plan for a two-week vacation every four years. Let your players play for their countries. Don’t bitch about the insurance or anything else.
/Duh
by EmilyB on Jul 28, 2009 2:13 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs
Re: Your Nation's Capital
What he said – word!
by markbona-capsfan99 on Jul 28, 2009 3:39 PM EDT up reply actions
Everyone on the internet is ALWAYS a dude until at least a picture is provided…
It’s always better safe then sorry!
Honestly, it doesn’t bother me all that much. We’re all collectively “the guys” here, I guess. It’s funny, though, when one of us gals says something that makes it obvious we’re female and someone misses it. At this point, I think it’s all in fun.
It’d be nice to have a standard tweak to usernames or avatars though. It actually does bother me to get it wrong.
by Gould Old Days on Jul 28, 2009 4:20 PM EDT up reply actions
honestly, most of us girls who frequent “guy sports” sites are used to it. We just like to tweek people about it.
I’m tempted to find a pink and glittery avatar that says “100% Princess” to use for a few days. even though I am neither a princess or the glitter type.
we are soooo beyond off topic at this point.
My avatar has a PacMan theme, which is kind of a guy thing (circa 1981, heh), but if you look closely, my avatar is made of cupcakes.
Pink and glittery could be fun tho.
Its just been one fail after another for me today. Starting with my office building catching on fire…..
That’ll teach ’em to take your Swingline stapler…
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by J.P. on Jul 28, 2009 4:52 PM EDT up reply actions 3 recs
I hear you, and that’s very gracious, but it bugs me. I don’t want to be the kind of guy who gets that wrong. I’ve got a mental list now of the posters I know are female, but I still get it wrong sometimes.
by Gould Old Days on Jul 28, 2009 4:25 PM EDT up reply actions
There are always new ones. :)
"It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees." - Delores Ibarruri
Yup. Thus the “tweak.” Could be something really neutral, just something to let us know. And obviously, this goes both ways — it identifies men just as much as women.
I don’t know, I’m just rambling. don’t mind me.
by Gould Old Days on Jul 28, 2009 5:47 PM EDT up reply actions
That’s what gender-neutral statements are for.
What Your Nation’s Capital said – word!
by red army line on Jul 28, 2009 5:57 PM EDT up reply actions
We have established this. We female Rink Rats are capable of sex changes on a moment’s notice :)
"It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees." - Delores Ibarruri
take a cue from international soccer in this respect. it is convenient, though, that the world cup doesn’t directly interfere with the standard international soccer season (exception: MLS). i know there are objections from time to time when a player is called for international duty, but it’s a rare occurence.
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 3:49 PM EDT up reply actions
But they also have a rule, like max 3 players over 21 or something. Most of the players don’t play professionally yet I’m guessing, but in “the minors”
by red army line on Jul 28, 2009 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions
i’m confused…who has a rule? not olympic hockey and not world cup soccer. are you thinking olympic soccer?
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 6:07 PM EDT up reply actions
olympic soccer does have some sort of “only 3 professionals” allowed rule (argentina won last year with the awesome trio of riquelme, messi and mascherano)…could be based on age. but i was more referring to world cup and euro championship qualifying matches, which require the stars to miss games for their club teams. the english and spanish club teams will usually allow players to miss games without comment, since international soccer is so esteemed.
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 6:13 PM EDT up reply actions
I think the soccer in the olympics is 23 years old and younger. So mostly not the major European stars.
except the three exemptions per team. hence riquelme. hence lalas and keller and cobi jones in years past for the USA. but olympic soccer also doesn’t conflict with european league seasons, so it’s the other international games that i was holding up as examples.
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 6:36 PM EDT up reply actions
I don’t think the NHL has only the Russians in Sochi to worry about. What guy doesn’t want to play for their country? It’s the Olympics for pete’s sake. Just let the guys play, Gary.
but its less of a showcase for the NHL if the games are all being aired at 10 am or noon eastern time.
Don’t get me wrong, I agree the players should be allowed to play but the timing of those games makes it tough for TV execs and the NHL to get excited.
Because now I can justify browsing and commenting during the work day with the argument that I am promoting my business.
by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 2:40 PM EDT up reply actions
Hey, they moved the swimming competitions in Bejing to the early morning so they’d air in the US in prime time. You don’t think they’d try to force something similar if it was important to get the hockey on US/Canadian television likewise? Hockey players are nocturnal creatures, right? Games at 3am? Big deal! ;-) (Figure skaters, on the other hand, I can’t see it, and that plays the best of all olympic winter sports.)
bah, you think that’s bad, not only did they move the gymnastics competitions to the morning for the sole benefit of US viewers, they completely switched around the traditional event finals schedule so NBC could broadcast gymnastics for an extra day (and thus get a rantings bump).
Hockey at 3am would give us a taste of what all those Muscovites endure to watch their beloved Capitals :)
Actually, I was having the games played at 3 am local Sochi time to air in the US in prime time. Sorry, I love hockey, but not enough to get up in the middle of the night. Although I did see some of the US/Spain basketball final live in the middle of the night (not by plan).
ooooh, embarrassing reading comprehension FAIL! on my part.
I have stayed up god awful hours to watch live sporting events (when I was living in Italy watching hockey playoffs after midnight…..gymnastics live from Australia at 4 am……). Makes me a rather unpleasant person to be around, actually.
Got lucky last year at the MLB ASG, caught the end at 10am in India (+9.5 hrs).
by red army line on Jul 28, 2009 5:59 PM EDT up reply actions
Doesn’t really matter, the NHL GMs seem convinced that Olympic participation doesn’t do squat for the NHL itself (i.e. no new fans/ratings generated) and somehow the two week break gets people out of their hockey-watching habits.
Of course, it could also be just a bargaining position. “Hey, want to go to Sochi? You can go if you agree to a contract term limit.”
the NHL GMs seem convinced that Olympic participation doesn’t do squat for the NHL itself
Doesn’t matter what it does or does not do for the NHL. The Olympics commercialism transcends the NHL commercialism.
And intransigence on Gary Bettman’s part is a sure-fire way to ensure that no Russian prospekt will ever consider anything but the KHL, at least until 2015.
if 2010 were in Sochi, and 2014 was Vancouver, I can’t imagine the NHL would seriously even consider not letting the players go. Perhaps its just appearances, but allowing players to go to Vancouver, and playing the “well, we don’t know…” game on Sochi just makes them look petty and not really caring about the wants (yes, wants, not that North American players in Vancouver is any different) of European players.
I actually think the NHL should seriously consider the lessons from the dumping of baseball and softball from the olympic stage. If NHL players can’t play, that’s likely to even further narrow the pool of potential medalists, and not having the best players at the olympics is something the IOC certainly considers. And the IOC hates to see the same small pool out countries completely dominate. The NHL pulling out would have, I think, some potential serious consequences for olympic hockey.
Clearly seems like only Canadians can step up and play top-notch hockey right out of juniors. Backstrom (SWE) for example needed a few months, and even Crosby only really got good in the last 20 games or so of his rookie year.
by red army line on Jul 28, 2009 6:01 PM EDT up reply actions
Crosby did finish his rookie season with 102 points and had points in his first 6 NHL games.
Of course Ovechkin started his NHL career with an 8 game point streak and finished with 106 points so……
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by Sombrero Guy on Jul 28, 2009 8:41 PM EDT up reply actions
But I remember Crosby was only at a point-per-game for a while, then ended with like 35 points in 20 games.
by red army line on Jul 29, 2009 4:57 AM EDT up reply actions
If the Olympics went amateur it would look like the World Junior Championships, and basically the same pool of countries would be competitive, in relatively the same seeding. If they wanted to be truly amateur then at least some CHL players wouldn’t be eligible and a few Russians and Swedes as well. The depth of those countries is so great that they would still be the favorites. I don’t think the pool of likely winners would change as much as the quality of play. That’s not necessarily a bad thing because casual fans won’t really notice the difference and it will probably result in more goals. I think the NHL should commit to the Olympics through Sochi but I think there is a lot of merit to going back to a No-NHL Olympics. Forsberg v. Kariya was amazing.
OTOH, maybe by then the professional Olympian experiment could have failed, and the IOC would be keeping the NHL players out. (OK, not very likely to happen by 2014, but an international-style-hockey-loving-girl can dream…)
by CapitalCentre on Jul 28, 2009 2:53 PM EDT up reply actions
Do I think that NHL players will play at the Sochi games?
To quote someone great. “Yes.”
Do I think that they’ll be at the games after that?
Wouldn’t be surprised if it ended with Sochi.
Capitals Kremlin the second line center of the Caps blogosphere.
by CapitalsKremlin on Jul 28, 2009 3:46 PM EDT reply actions
my bad! hadn’t followed the alex ovetjkin blog’s link. the fanpost above has part II in addition to part I, though.
by Natty Bumppo on Jul 28, 2009 3:52 PM EDT up reply actions
For some reason, these comments didn’t show up ’til after I posted the link right below – sorry, Natty.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
Video here (thanks, Natty).
Look, the bottom line is this – the Olympics are a chip that the owners have to play, and they’re not going to give it away for nothing. There will be NHLers in the 2014 Olympics because it’s Russia. If it was Japan or Italy? Maybe not. But this will all be resolved with the next CBA and Alex won’t have to go AWOL.
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by J.P. on Jul 28, 2009 4:48 PM EDT reply actions 3 recs
rec’d for the fact that its what will happen. Not sure what else anyone was/would be expecting.
Not sure why this was a big topic. I clicked once I saw how many comments it had gotten. Thought I had missed something.
by Carl Putnam on Jul 28, 2009 6:37 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
fairs fair
if the NHL, after all these years, participates in the Canadian olympics and then finally decides not to participate any longer when Russia is set to host, the Russian players have every right to call shananigans. opt out of Vancouver or stop complaining. I’m getting sick of insurance getting in the way of life. mo more flotation devices in pools, no more high dives…
by Hunky Dory on Jul 28, 2009 10:44 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
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