Is Alexander Ovechkin in the Olympics?

The 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea are starting, but will Alexander Ovechkin be on the ice for his country?

Since 1998 in Nagano, NHL players have been participating in the Winter Olympics to add a layer of competition and credibility to the proceedings in men’s ice hockey. Washington Capitals winger Alexander Ovechkin has participated in the last three winter games, representing Team Russia of course, but will he be participating again this year?

In a controversial decision, the NHL has decided not to allow players to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics. The required break in the schedule and some notable injuries during the 2014 games in Sochi, Russia, have been cited as reasons for the decision. Ultimately their own product is what the NHL has to protect, above and beyond any backlash from fans, players, etc.

Ovechkin openly expressed his frustration with the NHL’s decision to keep players out of the Olympics, saying last spring he would consider going to Pyeongchang and playing for his country against the league’s wishes. Capitals owner Ted Leonsis went on record to say he would allow players to go to the Olympics, even if it meant missing some of the team’s games. But in September Ovechkin conceded he would not be going to South Korea, with a statement through the Capitals to close the matter from his end.

"I said every time I was asked since last Olympics that nobody is going to tell me I can’t play because my country was going to be allowed to ask me,” Ovechkin wrote. “Now the IIHF and NHL say my country is not allowed to ask anybody in the NHL to play and there is nothing to talk about anymore."

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Ovechkin recently became the third player in NHL history with 30 goals in at least 13 straight seasons, and he won the Hardest Shot Competition at All-Star Weekend. In 17 Winter Olympic contests for Team Russia he has 11 points (eight goals and three assists), including five goals over eight games during his first go-round in 2006.