An Alex Ovechkin movie could soon be in the works. The Washington Capitals captain has chosen Russian tech company Yandex and its streaming platform Kinopoisk to produce a film, series or documentary on his NHL career, per an Associated Press report Tuesday.
Ovechkin and his representatives signed the rights to adapt his career story over to Yandex’s production label, Plus Studio, but no further details on the project have been released.
Yandex can be considered akin to Russia’s version of Google, with its search engine taking up more than 73 percent of the country’s market share, according to Statcounter. The company has multiple different branches that extend into various internet-driven fields like streaming, online shopping and web mapping.
It’s unclear if Yandex’s production is related to the Ovechkin-centered film the NHL is reportedly working on, which prompted him to be “banned” from exclusive interviews in his home country this summer.
Ovechkin, who turns 40 in September, has spent an illustrious 20 seasons in the NHL and passed Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky for most all-time goals in April. His chase for that once-thought unbreakable record was chronicled by ESPN in 2023 as the main focus of its “GR8TNESS” documentary.
Since being drafted first overall by the Caps at the 2004 NHL Draft, he’s won the “Rocket” Richard Trophy a record nine times as the league’s top goal scorer, three Ted Lindsay Awards and Hart Memorial Trophies, as well as the Calder Memorial Trophy and Art Ross Trophy once each. He also led the team to its first-ever Stanley Cup championship in 2018, earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff MVP. So, there’s plenty of material to cover in any production.
Ovechkin is heading into what could be the final season of his NHL career with just one year remaining on his contract with the Capitals.
