Pittsburgh fans gave Washington striker Ovechkin a standing ovation

Fans of the HC Pittsburgh Penguins hockey club during a commercial break in the National Hockey League (NHL) regular season match stood up and began applauding the Russian forward of the Washington Capitals Alexander Ovechkin. The match took place on April 11 in Pittsburgh and ended with a score of 3:6 in favor of the guests.

"It's a show of respect. All the time we spend competing in the playoffs and the regular season shows respect," Ovechkin is quoted as saying on the official website of the capital club.

The ovation began when a video was shown on the big screen dedicated to Ovechkin's career and his rivalry with Penguins captain Sidney Crosby, who did not participate in the match due to injury.

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Among the nominees are Ovechkin, Kucherov, Demidov, Sorokin and Vasilevsky.

Ovechkin scored his 1006th career NHL goal in a playoff game against the Pittsburgh Penguins on April 11. He scored in the 57th minute of the game, kicking the puck into an empty net and ending a four-match goalless streak. The Pittsburgh team is in fifth place in the Eastern Conference table with 98 points, while Washington is in 10th place in the Metropolitan Division with 91 points.

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