Carolina fans gave Ovechkin a standing ovation during the NHL match

Fans of the Carolina Hurricanes hockey club gave a standing ovation to Russian striker and Washington Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin during the National Hockey League (NHL) regular season match. The meeting took place on the night of October 14 in Raleigh and ended with the defeat of the guests with a score of 2:4.

The audience cheered the 41-year-old Russian during the commercial break in the first period. For Ovechkin, who is spending his final season in the NHL, this match was his last at the Carolina home arena.

As the hockey player's media team reported on its Telegram channel, the arena in Raleigh is of particular importance to the Washington captain. It was here that the NHL draft took place in June 2004, at which the capital's club selected the Russian striker at number one.

Ovechkin's first match at this venue took place on October 12, 2005. Then Washington lost to Carolina with a score of 2:7, but the Russian scored his fourth goal in the NHL.

According to the athlete's media team, Ovechkin has played 49 matches and scored 33 goals in the Hurricanes' home arena in 21 seasons. This is a record among all the hockey players of the visiting teams who have ever played at this venue.

Despite the warm welcome of the fans, Ovechkin did not show any results in the last meeting. The striker spent 13 minutes and 2 seconds on the ice, including 2 minutes and 31 seconds in the majority. During this time, he made two shots, none of which reached the opponent's goal.

Among the winners, Russian forward Andrey Svechnikov scored a double, who also scored an assist. Eric Robinson and Mark Jankowski scored another goal each. Boone Jenner and Justin Hall scored for Washington.

In six games this season, Ovechkin scored two points, scored one goal and made one assist. The Russian hockey player is nine goals away from repeating Wayne Gretzky's record for the number of goals scored in the NHL, taking into account the playoffs - 1016.

Next ice: when Ovechkin will return to Dynamo

The Washington captain has reiterated that he intends to end his career at his hometown club.

Ovechkin announced his retirement from the NHL on October 5. The Washington Capitals also published a farewell letter from the hockey player. The athlete said that this summer, together with his family, he decided to make this season his last in the league. He noted that he loves hockey, but considers this decision to be the right one.

Vladislav Tretyak, President of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, supported Ovechkin's decision to end his career. The functionary also noted that the hockey player's future performance in Russia will depend on his well-being.