Top 3 Russian Players in the National Hockey League
Ice, cold and ice skates are the first things a person thinks of when he generally hears the word “Hockey”, unless you live in Asia where hockey is played on a grass field with a curved stick. For the people of North America, Russia, Switzerland and many
other nations, hockey is a morning sport. The first thing many people wish to do as soon as they wake up is to put on their skates, grabs their sticks and go on to the ice to play a game of ice-hockey.
As ice-hockey originated in Canada, Canadians have always been great performers of the sport. With the increasing popularity of the sport, ice-hockey is not only Canada’s sport anymore, but many nations are starting to surpass them at talent and passion.
We see more and more foreign nationals entering into the sport, earlier considered as one type of man’s sport.
Baseball was considered only an American sport, ice-hockey a Canadian sport, cricket a European sport and Lacrosse an Asian one. However, in an era of globalization as cultures mix so vastly, players from virtually every background are found to be players
of all sports.
There is a great accumulation of hidden talent which is slowly being exposed from countries such as China, India, Japan and Russia into various sports including ice-hockey.
Yao Ming, a larger than life basketball player from China, was brought to USA to play for the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Ice-hockey is no exception, having more than 29 Russian players in the NHL alone.
This is something great for inter-cultural harmony and something which shatters the barriers of racism, stereotypes and hate.
These players possess amazing and raw talent, special abilities and a strong passion for the sport which they love.
It is difficult to mention all of them due to the vast number of names, but discussing the top few can show a little appreciation to their talent and the entertainment they provide to ice-hockey fans.
1. Alexander Ovechkin: (Washington Capitals)
Playing for the Washington Capitals, Alexander Ovechkin is a player who cannot be compensated for. Possessing both, agility and power, makes him a great all rounder.
Being the fourth highest scorer in Washington Capitals’ first five seasons, Ovechkin has made himself a name and a place in the NHL’s greatest players list.
Ovechkin has not only led his team into the playoffs this season, but helped them overtake Philadelphia Flyers for the Eastern Conference’s top spot.
He might not only be the greatest Russian player, but one of the greatest in the league overall.
2. Evgeni Malkin: (Pittsburgh Penguins)
Winning the Art Ross, Conn Smythe and Stanley Cup in the 2008-2009 season, Evgeni Malkin has taken Pittsburgh Penguins to a whole new level, scoring 77 points in 67 games. Malkin has earned the reputation as a great overall hockey player.
He remains out of the line-up due to an ankle surgery that he recently suffered and Pittsburgh is hoping that he returns early to help it penetrate deep into the postseason.
Pittsburgh Penguins will be facing Tampa Bay Lightning for the first match of the quarter finals.
3. IIya Kovalchuk: (New Jersey Devils)
Kovalchuk can be undoubtedly called the most famous player last summer when we saw him repeatedly renegotiating his contract with New Jersey Devils and finally settling for a whopping 15 year, $100 million deal.
We can say that IIya has done great for himself and hope that he keeps on playing the way he does.
Despite his talent and the teams’ hard work nearing the postseason, Devils was unable to make it into the top eight of the Eastern Conference.
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