WASHINGTON, April 8. /TASS/. Russian hockey star and Washington Capitals’ captain Alexander Ovechkin has been nominated by his club for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, US journalist Sammi Silber wrote on her X social network account on Wednesday.
The Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy has been awarded annually since 1968 to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to the sport of hockey. The trophy was named after Canadian-American player Bill Masterton, who is notably the only player in NHL history to die from injuries sustained during game play.
Each NHL club nominates a single player from its team for the Bill Masterton award. This year, the Washington Capitals nominated Ovechkin for the second year in a row. No Russian player has ever won the award in its 58-year history.
The most recent Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy was awarded to Sean Monahan from the NHL Columbus Blue Jackets club following the 2024/2025 season.
A Washington branch of the Professional Hockey Writers Association (PHWA) issued a statement later saying that: "In Alex Ovechkin’s 21st season with the Capitals, and after breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record a season ago, he continues to play with the same passion and dedication he has given to the game since entering the league in 2005."
"At 40 years old, Ovechkin continues to be an integral part of the Capitals’ locker room. And on the ice, Ovechkin leads the team in goals and has made history again this season, hitting 1,000 career goals combining regular season and playoffs and tying Gordie Howe for the most 25-goal seasons in NHL history," the statement continued.
"He remains undecided on his future going into next season but has maintained a love for hockey that is contagious in the dressing room," according to the PHWA.
On April 6, 2025, Ovechkin scored his 895th career regular season goal in a game against the New York Islanders, passing legend Wayne Gretzky for most all-time (894 goals).
And now, the Russian player is within reach of Gretzky’s combined regular season and playoff goals record, once thought untouchable. He’s just 11 away from tying the Great One’s 1,016 goals (894 in regular season and 122 in playoffs).
This NHL season, Ovechkin has appeared in 78 of Washington's games, scoring 31 goals and dishing out 30 assists for the Capitals.
Ovechkin is signed with the Washington Capitals through 2026. The Russian forward has played his entire NHL career with the Washington Capitals, who selected him with the 1st overall pick in the 2004 draft. Ovechkin led the Caps to a Stanley Cup title in 2018, the only one of his career, and the only one in the club's history.
In 2008, 2012 and 2014, "Ovie," as he is called by his fans, won gold medals at the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) World Championships to go along with his two silver and four bronze medals at the world championships.
Ovechkin has won a slew of NHL awards in his career, including the Calder Memorial Trophy (2006), Art Ross Trophy (2008), Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020), Hart Memorial Trophy (2008, 2009, 2013), Lester B. Pearson Award/Ted Lindsay Award (2008, 2009, 2010), Conn Smythe Trophy (2018) and others.