Reminded Of His Early Days, Ovechkin Takes Miroshnichenko Under His Wing As He Adapts To North America: 'He's A Warrior'

The Capitals captain sees quite a bit of himself in Miroshnichenko, who is also a reminder of what life was like for Ovechkin when he first entered the league.

ARLINGTON, V.A. — Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin has taken Ivan Miroshnichenko under his wing to open training camp, and as Ovechkin goes over drills with him in Russian and gives him pointers between shifts, he notices something in the young Russian: flashes of himself.

Ovechkin sees it not only in Miroshnichenko's game, which is headlined by his elite shot but in his background, mannerisms and overall situation as Miroshnichenko makes his way overseas to pursue his NHL dream.

"He was taken high in the draft, skill guy... He's a fighter, he's a warrior," Ovechkin told The Hockey News.

Miroshnichenko has looked up to Ovechkin for years now and even rocked the captain's iconic yellow laces during development camp. Going into his first pro season in North America, he said he is eager to follow in Ovechkin's footsteps and also prove he can keep up with the NHLers.

For Ovechkin, he's doing everything he can to help him accomplish that goal, and he not only sees Miroshnichekno as a student but as a reminder of where he was at in his life 19 years ago: coming overseas for the first time with plenty of nerves and little knowledge of the English language. That alone has made the captain even more willing to teach.

"He's a little shy guy," Ovechkin said. "You know, the most important thing, that we help him here to feel comfortable. Because when I was little kid, when I came first day in the league, whole team helped me out to feel comfortable."

To help Miroshnichenko further acclimate to the lifestyle and team, Ovechkin has been serving as a translator on the ice and helping break the language barrier when he can. Fellow Russian speakers Evgeny Kuznetsov, Aliaksei Protas, Alex Alexeyev, Alexander Suzdalev and Bogdan Trineyev have helped here, too.

Off the ice, the two will train alongside each other, and Ovechkin has also been taking him to dinners, joining him for meals and spending as much time as he can with him.

For head coach Spencer Carbery, it makes all the difference, especially when it comes to getting Miroshnichenko acclimated to the team's systems and better with English.

"Those guys are doing an excellent job. I see it all the time... anybody that can help him with drills, with positioning on the ice, with all the little things that we take for granted when we know the language. He's very, very green when it comes to the English language, so he's trying to figure out where to go, listening to coach, where should I be, and I think it's important for us as coaches and as an organization that we keep that in mind when we're evaluating him," Carbery said, adding, "I appreciate those guys trying to do everything they can to help him as much as possible, even in the middle of drills as they're going a million miles an hour just trying to worry about their own game."

Ovechkin has been following Miroshnichenko's story since he was taken 20th overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. He cites Miroshnichenko's resilience as inspiring, as he's watched the rising star overcome Hodgkin's Lymphoma and subsequently bust out onto the scene and made his mark in the KHL in 2022-23.

Now that he's in North America, Ovechkin knows that there will be a learning curve, but he's confident that Miroshnichenko has what it takes to adapt quickly, even saying that his English has improved and that he's not afraid to ask questions.

"He have to be ready for battle because he's a warrior; everybody knows that," Ovechkin pointed out. "He's gonna be playing different hockey, so I'm pretty sure it's gonna be time he's gonna be a little struggle, but right now, I see him on the ice. He’s skating well, great shooting, obviously."

Miroshnichenko has been one of the more notable names to open camp, as he's not only showcased his goal-scoring ability but has also put his speed, playmaking and physicality on display.

"He looks good out there. He's got a phenomenal shot. I ran into him just kind of by accident in the 3-on-3, and I had to go down to one knee, so he's pretty strong," T.J. Oshie added. "That's good to see... very cool story. We're happy to have him here and excited to see where his career goes."

At the end of the day, Ovechkin is excited to see what Miroshnichekno brings to the table, whether it be with the Capitals or down with the AHL's Hershey Bears. For now, though, he's doing what he can to ease his transition to the states.

"If he need something, he's always asking," Ovechkin said. "I'm sure that lessons [will come with time]... he's gonna get better and better."