Coach Valery Nepomnyashchy noted Ovechkin's strong character

Alexander Ovechkin's outstanding character played a huge role in the sporting success of the Russian striker of the Washington Capitals. This opinion was expressed on March 16 in an interview with Izvestia by football coach Valery Nepomnyashchy.

In his opinion, physical talents alone could not have brought such great results to the striker. In particular, a special role in Ovechkin's career was played by his willingness to constantly study, which he demonstrated from the very first days of his professional career.

"The ability to learn, the ability to become taller — this always accompanies his character," the coach noted.

In addition, according to Nepomnyashchy, the hockey player has shown the ability to withstand difficulties. So, Ovechkin had a difficult period when he was fiercely criticized in the United States for the small number of goals.

However, the player subsequently coped with the pressure and began to actively gain performance. The coach noted that now the entire sports world is watching Ovechkin chasing Canadian hockey player Wayne Gretzky's record for goals in the National Hockey League (NHL) regular season during his career.

"This is a struggle with oneself, a struggle with resistance, a struggle with everything. It means that he has the strongest character," Nepomnyashchy summed up.

"The secret of my throw? I don't know myself!"

Washington captain Alexander Ovechkin talks about his friendship with Gretzky, his pursuit of a record and his dream of playing at the 2026 Olympics

A day earlier, the Russian hockey player scored the 887th career goal in a match against the San Jose Sharks. The forward reduced the gap from Gretzky's record to seven goals, and also surpassed him in goals in one calendar month.