OVECHKIN’S MUSEUM

Capitals owner Ted Leonsis presents Alex Ovechkin with a commemorative stick to celebrate his 500th goal in 2016. Ovechkin saves the sticks from his milestone NHL goals. NHLerwhohaskeptmementos from his career, but his collection has been described asonthe“extreme”side.The saved sticks are behind glass in what Ovechkin calls his gym “because there’s some heavy stuff there.”

It’s a sort of attraction for those who visit his house in McLean, Va.

“His basement is definitely a shrine,” forward Tom Wilson said.

It feels as if he’s already immortalized at the family dacha in the Moscow suburbs. In the summers, he spendsmostweekendshere. A banner with a close-up photo of his face lines the back fence of the basketball court, and a second one runs along the tennis court. There’s a painting in the living room depicting Ovechkin riding a horse while playing the mandolin. Old posters and cardboard cut-outs of him advertising everything from a brand of hockey equipment to a Russian bank are scattered throughout the sprawling The Ovechkin family’s country home in Russia, about 90 minutes from downtown Moscow, is home to hundreds of souvenirs from the Russian star’s early hockey career. property. Of the five German shepherds, his mother points out the one named “Ovi.”

“Look how strong Ovi is,” she says, referring to the dog.

Ovechkin calls his mother every day, and Tatiana and Mikhail stream every game in their breakfast nook. “It’s like we’re in Washington,” she says.

A framed Russian magazine article with a photo of a dapper Ovechkin is beside the TV. An Ovechkin Russian nesting doll sits atop a nearby shelf. At his parents’ apartment in Moscow, there are three more glass cases with plaques, photos and signed hats, everything from medals dating back 16 years to a D.C. Sportsman of the Year award from 2008 to the puck from his first NHL goal. It all has a place, and nothing is too insignificant to be discarded.

“There’s more. But Sasha has to display it for himself,” Tatiana says, referring to her son by the affectionate Russian diminutive for Alexander.

That exhibit resides back in his McLean basement, another elaborate display that should soon grow larger still.

“He obviously takes a lot of pride in it, but it’s almost like a museum — an Ovechkin

Coming off a down season by his standards — 33 goals in82gameslastyear—there was some concern age had finally caught up to Ovechkin. As salary cap constraints forced the Capitals to part with two top forwards last summer and rely on less experienced and less expensive players, Ovechkin has carried the load, scoring 20 per cent of Washington’s goals this season. He’s on his best points-per-game pace (1.11) in five years, even as he’s poised to play in his 1,000th game April 1 against the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“I feel like we’ve already seen four or five milestones this year,” centre Jay Beagle said. “I don’t even know what they are, but he just keeps collecting pucks.”

“I think this is the quickest season of my life, you know?” Ovechkin said. “Timemovesfast.”

His memorabilia collection is a reminder of that — a combination of his personal history, hockey history and the intersection.

When Ovechkin was a 20-year-old rookie, the Penguins’ equipment manager sought him out after a Capitals practice in Piney Orchard, Md. He had a gift for Ovechkin: a signed Mario Lemieux stick. It was the first one he had ever received from another player, so Ovechkin then started asking other stars for their sticks, typically offering one of his in an exchange. He has roughly 100 sticks from other players now, including Pittsburgh centres Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid. Lemieux’s is still his favourite.

Even as his basement has started to rival Toronto’s Hockey Hall of Fame, Ovechkin has acquired other memorabilia. When Capitals goaltender Olie Kolzig retired, Ovechkin asked for his glove as a way to remember a dear teammate. After Braden Holtby won the Vezina Trophy two years ago, the league’s top netminder, Ovechkin asked for Holtby’s goalie pads from that season. At his parents’ apartment in Moscow, there’s a Marty Turco mask from the 2007 All-Star Game in Dallas that Ovechkin had other players there sign for him.

Ovechkin doesn’t need reminding of what’s still missing from his collection. A first Stanley Cup would complete it, a perfect complement to the scores of individual accomplishments and the sticks of other stars who have already celebrated a championship. But the Alex Ovechkin museum is far from a finished product.

“I think this is for my future generation, you know? Kids, grandkids,” Ovechkin said. “They will see it, and I think it’s a proud moment.”