Mikhail Ovechkin dies at 71, father of Alex Ovechkin

Alex Ovechkin's father, Mikhail Ovechkin, died on Wednesday. He was 71.

"Today I lost my father," Ovechkin said in a post on Instagram. "I thank everyone for the support, but please be understanding and do not disturb my family in this difficult time for us. Thank you."
Ovechkin has been on leave from the Washington Capitals since Tuesday to travel home to Moscow to see his father, who has battled health issues that prevented him from traveling to North America in recent years. When Ovechkin left, Washington announced he would be away from the team indefinitely to attend to a family matter and the health of a loved one.
"The Washington Capitals organization is saddened to hear of the passing of our captain Alex Ovechkin's father, Mr. Mikhail Ovechkin," the Capitals tweeted Wednesday. "Mr. Ovechkin was a true gentleman and was such a significnt and consistent presence at Capitals games and practices. With a constant smile on his face, he loved interacting with our fans and expressing the gratitude for their support of his son, of whom he was incredibly proud. Our organization's thoughts are with the Ovechkin family at this difficult time."
Capitals center Nicklas Backstrom said Mikhail Ovechkin's personality was infectious.
"The one thing I will always remember is he was always happy," Backstrom said. "He would always smile. We both didn't speak English in the beginning, but we could understand each other with our hands. As I said, he was part of the beginning when Alex got over here. He was always in the locker room. He was hanging out with the guys. He loved that, I think. ... so to get hit by this sad news is obviously really tough. I feel for the whole family. I can't imagine what they're going through."

Mikhail Ovechkin, who played soccer professionally before an injury cut short his career, had a big impact on Alex's professional hockey career along with Ovechkin's mother Tatyana, who was a two-time Olympic gold medalist for the Soviet Union in women's basketball (1976 and 1980). They helped spark Ovechkin's love of hockey from a young age.
"My father, I remember, he would go on some trips and bring me some goalie helmets," Alex Ovechkin said after he signed a 13-year contract with the Capitals in 2008. "I didn't know what it was, except it was something about hockey, and when I was a little kid everything was about hockey, hockey, hockey."
Alex Ovechkin was selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2004 NHL Draft and has played 18 seasons in the League, all with Washington. He ranks second in NHL history with 812 goals, behind Wayne Gretzky (894).
Mikhail and Tatyana watched on television in Russia when Alex reached 800 NHL goals with a hat trick against the Chicago Blackhawks on Dec. 13, and when he scored his 802nd goal to pass Gordie Howe for second in League history against the Winnipeg Jets on Dec. 23.
Earlier in Alex's career, Mikhail often traveled from Russia to see his son play and shared some his biggest moments with him, even after having surgery for a heart condition in February 2014. Mikhail was with Alex in Los Angeles when he was named among the NHL's 100 Greatest Players in 2017, but was unable to travel with Tatyana to see the Capitals win the Stanley Cup in 2018, when Alex won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs.
When Alex brought the Stanley Cup to Russia that summer, he lifted it over his head alongside his father at the training facility for Dynamo Moscow, where Alex played as a youth and began his professional career.
"I can't even put it into words," Mikhail Ovechkin said through a translator after lifting and kissing the Cup. "Thirteen years we were working toward that goal, and finally to win the Stanley Cup, it's a huge happiness. Huge happiness."
Alex Ovechkin called it "a dream come true" when he signed a one-game contract with FC Dynamo Moscow, his father's old soccer team in the Russian Premier League, and scored a goal in a friendly against FC Amkal in Moscow on June 25, 2022.
Mikhail Ovechkin was among those in attendance.
"My dad was a professional soccer player and he got hurt," Alex Ovechkin said before this season. "So it was fun. He was there, too. He was watching and it was a great night."