Alexander Ovechkin answered some tough questions earlier this week about his hometown Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and an NHL Hall of Famer wasn’t pleased with the way the Washington, D.C. star had handled the situation.
Former NHL goalkeeper Dominik Hasek, who has spent most of his career with the Buffalo Sabers and Detroit Red Wings, posted on Ovechkin in an animated Twitter clip Saturday. The 57-year-old Czech called Ovechkin a “chicken” and called for all Russian NHL players to have their contracts suspended.
“What!? Not just an impostor, a chicken but a liar!” Hasek wrote in response to Ovechkin’s comments (edited by LBS for profanity). “Every adult in Europe knows well that Putin is a maniac killer and that Russia is waging an offensive war against the free country and its people. NHL must suspend the contract immediately. NHL must immediately suspend the contracts of all Russian players! Each athlete represents not only himself and his club, but also his country and its values and actions. That is a fact. If the NHL fails to do so, they have indirect co-responsibility for the deaths in Ukraine.”
Hasek said he feels “very sorry” for the Russian athletes, who have condemned the actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, he feels “their exclusion is a necessity.”
Hockey reporter Rick Westhead has confirmed that the Twitter account does indeed have belonging to Hasek.
Hasek’s opinion is clearly not very popular. Some people are not satisfied with how Ovechkin answered the question about the Russian invasion. That is not to say that every professional Russian athlete has to be unemployed.
Hasek won a gold medal at the 1998 Olympics playing for the Czech Republic. He also won two Stanley Cups with Detroit and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2014.
