NHL star Alex Ovechkin appears in campaign ad for pro-Putin United Russia party

NHL star Alex Ovechkin, the all-time leading goalscorer in the league, has been featured in a campaign advertisement for the pro-Putin United Russia party as the new hockey season approaches. The advertisement, published by the Russian business newspaper Vedomosti, shows Ovechkin alongside prominent pro-Putin figures, including Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, United Russia's leading parliamentary candidate, and Margarita Simonyan, the editor-in-chief of the propaganda network RT.

Ovechkin, a longtime supporter of Putin, launched Putin Team in 2017 to unite "people who are proud of their country and want to make Russia stronger." He has praised Putin's leadership, stating that Putin exhibits "trust in and respect for his people, his fairness, righteousness, and the fact that he really cares." However, Ovechkin expressed more cautious views following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, hoping for an end to the war and a return to a "good world," while still acknowledging Putin as "my president."

Ovechkin has remained committed to the Washington Capitals, signing a one-year contract extension in July. The Capitals selected him first overall in the 2004 NHL draft, and he has played his entire NHL career with the team, winning the Stanley Cup as captain in 2018. In 2025, Ovechkin broke Wayne Gretzky's all-time scoring record by scoring his 895th goal, a milestone that few believed would ever be achieved.