Former Washington Capital great Alexander Semin did an interview with Sport-Express’ Mikhail Skryl on Friday, and much of the talk gravitated to his time in DC and the exploits of his longtime teammate Alex Ovechkin.
Despite Ovechkin scoring 50 or more goals three different times while Semin wore a Capitals jersey from 2006-2012, the sniper admitted he could have never imagined his legendary line-mate passing Wayne Gretzky’s career goal total of 894.
“No, I never thought about it,” Semin said in Russian to Sport-Express and per a translation by Google Translate. “And I think Alexander himself couldn’t imagine it either. I don’t think there will be such people in hockey in the next 100 years. In Ovechkin’s case, everything came together: health, talent, and luck.”
“Sasha just plays hockey, gives himself to his favorite thing to the end,” Semin said. “It must be admitted that he does it better than others. His shot is phenomenal, that says it all.”
He added, “Ovi himself is unique in his goal instinct, shot, persistence and tenacity.”
Semin traveled to Washington DC shortly after Ovechkin broke the NHL’s goals record against the New York Islanders on April 6, showing up at a Capitals practice and attending the April 10 Capitals game where the team honored Ovechkin with a “Gr8ness Pre-Game Ceremony.” Semin later had an opportunity to hold up Ovechkin’s record-breaking goal puck for a photo.
Over the years, Semin has watched Ovechkin change from a player who scored countless goals off the rush to someone who can score via one-timers on the power play.
“Let’s be realistic: Ovi’s style has changed,” Semin said. “He doesn’t run like he did when he was 20. It’s just impossible. But his scoring instinct and shot haven’t gone anywhere. And scoring instinct is the most important skill in hockey. Goalies still can’t handle Ovechkin’s shot.”
Semin described Ovechkin’s booming howitzer as something he just naturally developed from his time as a kid in Moscow. While many NHL players have since emulated Ovi’s booming clapper, none are as “accurate and powerful” per Semin. For his part, the former Capitals winger never tried to shoot like Ovechkin, saying that “everyone has their own style” and that “our sticks are different in height and bend.”
During the conversation, Semin named his favorite starting five of former line-mates, picking Ovechkin, Viktor Kozlov and himself at forward along with Sergei Fedorov and Mike Green on defense. Semin’s biggest goal as a player was not to hoist the Stanley Cup, but to win a World Championship.
“I went out on the ice and did my job as best I could,” Semin said of his career. “Thinking about the hopes placed on you will not lead to anything good: unnecessary thoughts appear in your head that you need to score or pass. You just need to be yourself and play hockey.”
