Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin may have ruffled a few of the hometown fans’ feathers Thursday with his declaration that he’s “Team Putin.”
The forward took to social media to express his feelings about Russia and his relationship with Vladimir Putin. Ovechkin made clear his support for the Russian president in an Instagram post.
“Lately, in the Western Press, I’m noticing a comparison to Putin’s team. And you know, I really liked that comparison,” Ovechkin stated. “Personally, I’m ready to be a member of that team.”
“I’m certain there are many of us who support Vladimir Putin,” Ovechkin added.
I translated the caption on Ovechkin’s Instagram post. Think it’s a little more accurate than google. If you use it, please credit WaPo. pic.twitter.com/MvUTu1VYIP
— Isabelle Khurshudyan (@ikhurshudyan) November 2, 2017
Ovechkin announced back in September that he has accepted that he will not be playing for Russia’s Olympic hockey team in the 2018 winter games due to new NHL rules. This did not deter the 32-year-old hockey star from showing his passion for a united Russia.
“Let’s unite and show everyone a strong and united Russia,” Ovechkin continued in his post. “Today, I want to announce a social movement in the name of Putin Team.”
This is not the first time that Ovechkin made his support for Putin known. Ovechkin has been photographed with Putin many times off the ice.
Ovechkin has said he’s officially neutral in his politics due to his good relations with both Russia and the United States.
Putin has been accused of presiding over a massive operation that resulted in his government meddling in the 2016 election. The American intelligence community has determined Putin tried to harm Hillary Clinton’s chances of being elected with a massive hacking and cyber influence campaign.
