Captain of the Washington Alexander Ovechkin became a candidate of pedagogical sciences.

Russian forward of the National Hockey League (NHL) club "Washington Capitals" Alexander Ovechkin received a PhD in pedagogical Sciences. This was announced on May 12 by the Russian Machine Never Breaks portal.

In his dissertation, the hockey player analyzed the differences in the training of young athletes in Russia and North America. The author believes that it is useful for players to combine these two approaches in the process of growing up. According to Ovechkin, in Russia, coaches focus on technical skills and puck possession, while in North America, the main focus is on physical fitness and speed of play.

The striker's scientific achievements coincided with the completion of the next stage of his sporting career. In the 2025/26 NHL regular season, the 40-year-old captain of the Capitals played all 82 matches. The striker scored 64 points: he scored 32 goals and made the same number of assists. Ovechkin continues to close the gap on Canadian Wayne Gretzky's record for the most goals in the league, taking into account playoff matches.

Despite the leader's personal performance, Washington finished the season in ninth place in the Eastern Conference. Having scored 93 points, the team could not reach the playoffs and compete for the Stanley Cup, she added.Газета.Ru ".

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Brian McLellan, President of hockey Operations for the Washington Capitals, announced on April 20 that Ovechkin has a tremendous impact on the team. It was noted that the current agreement of the 40-year-old hockey player with Washington is calculated until the end of the 2025/26 season. Ovechkin himself had previously announced that he would decide on the future of his career in the summer.