MOSCOW, August 14. /TASS/. NHL’s Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin of Russia told TASS on Monday he was inspired by demands of his hockey fans in order to launch a clothing line under his brand.
"I wanted to express my emotions and style for people, who want to be like me and admire Alexander Ovechkin," the Russian hockey star said in an interview with TASS. "This is only an initial stage and we hope that it will be a success in the future."
"The most important was to come up with the good quality and to satisfy consumers’ needs," he added.
Russia-based Zasport company, which is the official outfit supplier of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), reported on August 12 that Ovechkin rolled out his own line of clothing under the brand of OVIGR8 in collaboration with the company.
The brand’s name is a mixture of Ovechkin’s two famous aliases, which are 'Ovi' and 'The Great Eight,' since the Russian player flies Number 8 on his jersey playing for NHL’s Washington Capitals.
Ovechkin, 37, signed with the NHL’s Washington’s Capitals in 2004. The Russian player is a 2018 Stanley Cup champion and a 2008, 2012 and 2014 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships gold medalist, in addition to his two silver and four bronze medals at the world championships.
Ovechkin currently ranks second in the NHL for all-time goals with 822, trailing only the legendary Wayne Gretzky, who netted a total of 894 goals throughout his NHL career.