Russian NHL star Alexander Ovechkin is making his way across Western Canada this week as his team, the Washington Capitals, take on the Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers and Vancouver Canucks.
Ovechkin doesn’t find a lot of fans in these provinces, typically, due to the fact he arrived on the ice as a natural enemy, playing for an opposing team.
But his reception in Calgary and Edmonton has been a bit frostier than usual and it boils down to Ovechkin’s historically strong ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
At both games earlier this week, his mere presence on the ice resulted in a chorus of boos from Prairie-dwelling crowds. Definitely some boos and jeering the first time Ovechkin touched the puck tonight pic.twitter.com/PqHmssHpwS — Salim Nadim Valji (@salimvalji) <a href=«https://twitter.com/salimvalji/status/1501385463369588736?ref_src=» https: globalnews.ca>March 9, 2022 It’s likely he’ll be met with similar hostility on Friday night, when the Capitals face off against the Canucks in Vancouver.