Ovechkin defends appearance in Russian election ad

Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin defended his appearance in a campaign advertisement for Russia's ruling United Russia party, stating he participated because he supports his country. The ad, which surfaced days before Russia's parliamentary elections, shows the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer standing behind Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. "I'm Russian, and I support my country," Ovechkin told reporters at the Capitals' media day on Thursday. "I'm for peace and love, and I hope in the world it doesn't matter who you are. I hope everybody understands, everybody wants peace, and everybody hopes everything is going to be OK in the world." The advertisement, which also featured longtime Soviet hockey star Viacheslav Fetisov, began circulating online Monday. Russia's parliamentary election is scheduled from September 18 to 20, the first since the country launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ovechkin, who turned 41 on Thursday, said he was asked to participate in the video and did not hesitate. "They asked me to do that. I say yes. So it's as simple as that," he said. He also confirmed plans to live in Russia after retiring from hockey.