On Sunday, April 6, Alex Ovechkin’s Gr8 Chase finally ended. After an entire season of anticipation, Ovi broke Wayne GRetzky’s coveted 894-goal record in front of a bustling home crowd inside Capital One Arena. As if that wasn’t impressive enough, owner Ted Leonsis put things into perspective. “He’s almost 40 years old, and he missed 15 games with a broken leg,” said Leonsis.
“I mean, it’s honestly unheard of,” the Capitals’ owner added. Naturally, the organization felt compelled to honor their record-breaking captain. And what better place than home to honor the Gr8? So as renowned play-by-play Joe Beninati took to the stage, a packed Capital One Arena witnessed a special celebration ceremony honoring Ovi’s achievement. Yet, not everyone seemed to enjoy what the Capitals had in store.
Many fans on Reddit thought they knew what Ted Leonsis would gift Alex Ovechkin. How, you ask? Wayne Gretzky had dropped a major hint about a six-figure car. “I told Mr. Leonsis, when I broke the record, they got me a Rolls-Royce. So I hope they get you something,” the Great One recalled about what he got after breaking Gordie Howe’s NHL goals record.
Yet, that didn’t happen. Instead, the evening started with alternate captains Tom Wilson and John Carlson getting Ovechkin and his family two massive flower bouquets. Then came the unique gifts. President of Hockey Operations Brian MacLellan presented the NHL’s leading goalscorer with a one-of-one engraved, full-sized golden hockey stick.
Then again, technically, the stick wasn’t completely one of a kind. The Capitals surprised Alex Ovechkin’s sons, Sergei and Ilya Ovechkin, with mini versions of their father’s golden hockey stick. Ted Leonsis personally gifted two Rolex watches to Ovi and his mother and a third Cartier to his wife, Nastasiya Ovechkina.
Finally, there was another, this time a true one-of-one, sculptural painting by Detroit-based artist TYP. To say the NHL’s most game-winning goalscorer felt humbled would be an understatement. “It’s tremendous. I still can’t believe it happened,” the 39-year-old said after the ceremony. Yet, did the fans feel the same?
Not everyone vibed with the uniqueness of Alex Ovechkin’s gifts
Many fans thought the Washington Capitals might create a tradition of continuity by gifting Ovechkin a Rolls-Royce. “I really thought after the Gretzky comment that Leonsis was going to toss Ovi keys to a new Rolls-Royce,” commented one fan. While even the cheapest Rolls-Royce, the Ghost, would cost the team over $350,000, the gifts they gave were not cheap.
In fact, you could argue the total value of such bespoke pieces, alongside luxury watches, and that unique art piece was no less than a Rolls-Royce. Yet, it’s the 6-foot art piece that many didn’t seem to prefer. “The artwork was weird. What does anyone do with something that big?” added the Alex Ovechkin fan. Meanwhile, others didn’t think the gifts were so unique.
“The stick was meh. I’m pretty sure he has stuff like that already. It’s definitely not unique in any way. More garish. It will just be another piece in his museum,” claimed another ice hockey enthusiast. While we don’t know if Ovechkin has many of these unique gifts in his collection, the mention of museums reminded us of something else.
Monumental Entertainment plans to have a statue grade when the renovations at Capital One Arena wrap up. No points for guessing; but Alex Ovechkin will be getting his own at that statue museum. “Elena Delle Donne retired last week, she’s a two-time MVP and won a championship, she should have a statue, and (Ovi) will have a statue,” Leonsis said about the Washington Mystics icon and Ovechkin.
Meanwhile, others thought the entire ceremony was quite awkward. While Joe Beninati cracked some jokes to keep the crowd entertained, some didn’t feel entertained. “I thought it was incredibly awkward they left his father-in-law standing there with nothing,” one fan said about Mrs. Ovechkin’s father, who was also there.
The fan may have found it weird because Alex Oechkin’s father-in-law didn’t get any individual gifts. Then came those who didn’t even like the gifts, the artwork, or the ceremony. “We were there, and the lighting made it look like it was paper mache, like a piñata? We thought for sure something was going to pop out. Like football kids through the banner…” commented one fan.
On the flip side, artist TYP was very deliberate with how he created the sculpture painting. The flaws that the fan pointed out were creative choices by the artist. Shaped like a puck, the art piece featured concrete casts of Ovi’s skates. TYP painted a portrait of Ovechkin over that cast. The piece also had an actual pair of Ovechkin’s yellow lace skates and a full-size stick.
The overall aesthetic gave the piece a three-dimensional element. However, the fan didn’t prefer the style. “When we found out that WAS the gift, we were really disappointed,” the netizen commented. Others said the same about the Alex Ovechkin celebration ceremony. “The whole gift ceremony was awkward as hell. I think the Rolex watches and such could’ve been gifted behind the scenes,” commented the Capitals fan. And the fan did have a point about the Rolex watches.
While certainly expensive, the watches may not have been as bespoke as the hockey stick, because Leonsis handed Ovi and their family three bags with the watches. Meanwhile, Brian MacLellan the NHL goals leader, posed for photos with the engraved hockey. “This should’ve been a ceremony for the fans and yeah, a better gift for Ovi,” the fan added.
However, Alex Ovechkin himself didn’t feel this way. Watching the fans fill out Capital One Arena to celebrate his milestone, and his team go above and beyond during the celebration ceremony, made the hockey icon feel grateful. “It’s such a great moment for me, my family, and the organization, for DC. It’s great,” Ovechkin confessed. Yet, how did you feel about the ceremony? Tell us in the comments.
The post Calls Mount Against Capitals Owner for Alex Ovechkin’s Ceremony Despite Wayne Gretzy’s Six-Figure Request appeared first on EssentiallySports.
