NHL: Hasek calls out Ovechkin and wants Russian players banned

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine progresses, many companies and countries are boycotting Russian goods or preventing them from being sold in the country. A Hockey Hall of Famer wants the practice to be taken to the next level and is calling on the NHL to suspend all contracts of Russian players.

Dominik Hasek, a great and arguably the best goalkeeper to ever play the sport, took to Twitter on Saturday morning to share his thoughts about a certain Russian star who wanted peace.

“What!? Not just an alibiist, a bastard, but also a liar! “Every adult in Europe knows full well that Putin is a crazy murderer and that Russia is waging an offensive war against the free country and its people,” Hasek said in one Tweet in response to Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin expressing hope for an end to the conflict.

As a central and key figure in Russian sport, Ovechkin was asked on Friday for his opinion on the invasion.

“It’s a difficult situation. I have many friends in Russia and Ukraine. And it’s hard to see the war. I hope it will be over soon and there will be peace around the world,”

“Please, no more war. It doesn’t matter who is at war – Russia, Ukraine, different countries – I think we live in a world where we have to live in peace and a great world.”

After a plea for peace, Ovechkin, who has supported Vladimir Putin in the past, said he still supported his president but stressed he was an athlete and not in politics.

This angered the reaction of Hasek, who went even further and demanded that the NHL immediately suspend all contracts of Russian players on the grounds that they represented the country and its actions.

“The NHL must immediately suspend the contracts of all Russian players,” Hasek wrote. “Every athlete not only represents himself and his club, but also his country and its values ​​and actions.” That is a fact. If the NHL does not do this, it will indirectly share responsibility for the deaths in Ukraine.

“I would also like to write that I am very sorry for those Russian athletes who condemn Putin and his Russian aggression in Ukraine. However, I currently believe that their exclusion is a necessity.”

It remains to be seen whether the league will actually take an appeal from its alumni seriously and suspend the league’s dozens of active Russian players for the overseas attack.

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