Bulgaria News
(Screengrab via X)
The Washington Capitals have been torched online for their statement defending star player Alexander Ovechkin after the NHL’s leading scorer appeared in a pro-Putin political ad.
Days earlier, hockey fans discovered that Ovechkin had been prominently featured in the ad for the United Russia party, of which Russian President Vladimir Putin is viewed as the leader. The ad came days before Russia was set to hold its parliamentary elections.
Critics quickly jumped on the video to accuse Ovechkin of supporting Russia’s war in Ukraine. In response to that criticism, the Capitals published a statement explaining his participation in the video. The statement read:
Alex Ovechkin is a Russian citizen who lives in Moscow with his family during the offseason and will live there following his retirement. This summer, while in Russia, he was asked by his country to participate in a video campaign. As the longest-tenured athlete in Washington, D.C. and a pillar of the community, his focus and ours is on the season ahead and the continued impact he makes on the ice and in our city.
That statement seemed to only add more fuel to the fire. Former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) called it “disgusting.”
Disgusting statement by the @Capitals https://t.co/2kFUICuuHr
— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini)
(@AdamKinzinger) September 16, 2026
(@AdamKinzinger) Former Premier of Alberta Jason Kenney said the statement was an “outright lie,” clarifying that Ovechkin was asked to appear in the ad by the party and not the country itself.
“Or are the Washington Capitals now part of Putin’s propaganda machine,” Kenney continued, “implying that there is no difference between Putin’s party and the Russian state?”
This statement from the Capitals is an outright lie.
It says Ovechkin was "asked by his *country* to participate in a video campaign."
He was asked by a political party, United Russia, to appear in a partisan ad, not by the Russian Federation.
Or are the Washington Capitals… https://t.co/t5sekW4lFX
— Jason Kenney
(@jkenney) Norman Ornstein, a contributing editor for The Atlantic, called the statement “mealy-mouthed” and “cringeworthy.” Moments later, USA Today sportswriter Christine Brennan said the Capitals’ statement was “absolutely disgraceful.”
Numerous others shared similar thoughts.
> "Alex Ovechkin is a Russian citizen who lives in Moscow"
> "Alex Ovechkin is a pillar of the DC community"Can we be serious please. https://t.co/oEbXxontIz
— Kareem Rifai
(@KareemRifai) Pathetic, disgusting and shameful reaction from @Capitals with regard to Ovechkin
— Volodymyr Tretyak
At the time of writing, Ovechkin had not yet responded to the criticism. As noted in a report from ESPN, Ovechkin was expected to speak to the media Thursday at the start of training camp.
The post Critics Take Shots at Washington Capitals for Defending Alexander Ovechkin’s Appearance in Pro-Putin Ad: ‘Absolutely Disgraceful’ first appeared on Mediaite.
Critics Take Shots at Washington Capitals for Defending Alexander Ovechkin’s Appearance in Pro-Putin Ad: ‘Absolutely Disgraceful’ 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-09-16 15:31:22 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
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