ENGLISH STILL 'SECOND LANGUAGE' FOR OVECHKIN

 

Sad but true … after 20 record-breaking years, ALEX 

OVECHKIN still has trouble with the language of this, 

his adopted, country. It was easy to overlook in the 

euphoria of the Great Eight’s epic, historical weekend in 

which he caught then passed WAYNE GRETZKY to 

become the NHL’s all-time leader in goals scored. 

The Washington Capitals’ scoring machine is, after all, 

one of the good guys. Everybody says so. Therefore, it 

must be true … and this was no time to go negative on the 

39-year-old wunderkind … even though there have been 

lingering questions about the native Russian’s oft-stated, 

never-repudiated affection for homeboy VLADIMIR 

PUTIN … and did that have anything to do with a well-

documented … shall we say sour relationship with 

countryman – and Pittsburgh Penguins’ super-star –

 YVGENY MALKIN?

“I told some friends … ‘I hope they don’t give him the 

mike again,’ because, after all these years in the U.S., he 

still speaks so much broken English,” said former NHL 

defenseman Willy Brossart. “Gretzky is humble AND he 

can carry a conversation … tell it like it is. Ovechkin just 

stumbles around. It is pathetic.”

Although Brossart. 75, and Ovechkin played years apart, 

we also were aware they are part of a select athletic 

brotherhood that is pro hockey … where anyone who 

cares even a little bit keeps up with the latest news, 

gossip, etc., knows who is doing what and, equally 

important, has opinions and isn’t bashful about expressing 

them

So, with that in mind, we checked in with Brossart, who 

played for Richmond’s first hockey team, the Robins 

(1971-76) en route to eight years in the NHL with the 

Flyers, Maple Leafs and Capitals. From Alan, 

Saskatchewan, Canada, he married a local girl, Sue, 

worked more than 30 years for Phillip Morris and lives in 

Ashland, retired and happy.

“I’m not saying he isn’t a good hockey player. He has the 

stats to prove it,” Brossart said. “But, he’s no BILLY 

CLEMENT when it comes to public speaking … I know 

that.” 

(A teammate here and later with the Flyers and Capitals, 

Clement was among the more articulate athletes … who 

proved equally adept playing or talking about hockey. 

Now retired and living not far from Asheville, N.C., the 

native Canadian from Quebec has written a book about 

his life and times in the game.) 

“When I was playing in Toronto, [teammate and well-

known tough guy] EDDIE SHACK would get tons of 

mail … but he was illiterate. So … I would open his mail 

… and read it to him,” Brossart said.

“Maybe Ovechkin doesn’t have any reading or writing 

skills. I wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t.”

In 2017, at the height of his career, Ovechkin started a 

movement, TeamPutin, in support of you-know-who … 

but insisted he wasn’t political … that this was simply his 

way of giving back to Russia. “I don’t know what’s 

happening out there,” he was quoted as saying. “I know 

it’s a hard situation, but it is what it is … I don’t want to 

fight between two countries, because it’s going to be a 

mess.” 

The Washington Post reported Ovechkin had a close, 

personal relationship with Putin … who was a hockey fan 

and sent him a wedding gift in 2016 … In early 2022, 

after Russia invaded the Ukraine, Ovechkin “called for 

peace and no more war,” according to his account on 

Wikipedia … which also said, “In May, 2022, he 

reiterated his support for Putin, as well as retaining the 

Russian president on his instagram profile photo.” 

Boy, did the critics unload on Ovechkin … while his 

supporters suggested he had no other choice ,,, that, had 

he badmouthed Putin, his mother and father (living in 

Moscow) would have paid a terrible price … Had 

Ovechkin been able to discuss his predicament more 

completely in English … never mind. 

As the war rolled on, and he would respond to questions 

about it with “no comment,” eventually all was all but 

forgotten, and Ovechkin’s chase of Gretzky’s record 894 

goals, set in 1994 and thought to be unreachable, returned 

center stage. 

Again according to Wikipedia, Ovechkin and Malkin, 

drafted one-two, respectively, in 2004, had been good 

friends until The Great 8 punched Malkin’s agent at a 

Moscow nightclub in August of 2007. On Jan. 21, 2008, 

during a game in Pittsburgh, Ovechkin “took a run” at 

Malkin who saw him coming just in time and ducked or it 

might have resulted in “a devastating injury.” … The feud 

lasted until 2009 when ILYA KOVULCHUK, Atlanta 

Thrashers’ captain and teammate of the two with the 

Russian National Team, was said to have brokered peace 

between Ovechkin and Malkin … and they “reportedly 

are very close friends again.” … There was no mention of 

Ovechkin’s apparent loyalty to Putin having anything to 

do with the temporary falling out between them.

“Who knows? You may have hit the nail on the head 

there,” Brossart said, adding, “Look, I like the guy 

[Ovechkin]. I just wish he was more presentable … so 

you could get his real feelings. It’s hard to understand him 

because he can’t say [in English] what he needs or wants 

to say to the public.”

Until next time ...