Photo credit: Mitchell Layton

It was hard not to notice Alex Semin on Opening Night. Not only did he score the Capitals first goal of the season on a breakaway, he also made his presence known physically with a big hit on Bryan Allen. Semin, who had one of his necklaces ripped off in the melee sparked by the questionable check, was given a two-minute minor for boarding. On Sunday, Stephen Whyno of The Washington Times reported that Sasha Minor will not face any disciplinary action from the NHL.

After the game, Slava Malamud of Sport-Express caught up with Semin to get his thoughts on the Caps victory, his broken jewelry, and celebrating his goals with a smile. RMNB’s Igor Kleyner has your translation below.

The way Semin looked did not seem to corroborate Matt Bradley’s words. Alexander appeared exhausted (having pedaled on a stationary bike for a very long time after the game), with a bleeding scratch on his nose, but in a great mood. Judging by his answers below, Semin may appear irritated, but if you were to insert in the text [smiling] as a clarification, it would be almost in every sentence.

Slava Malamud: What’s with your nose?

Alex Semin: I was kissed.

Slava Malamud: How did you get your necklace ripped?

Alex Semin: Well, at the same time. Someone grabbed it. They did it on purpose. I wasn’t even trying to fight. Darn it, such rams oafs! Why would I fight them?

Slava Malamud: Were you worried while sitting in the penalty box in OT?

Alex Semin: Well, was that a penalty? Honestly – was it or not?

Slava Malamud: What’s the difference? In any case everybody would say: “Semin was penalized, the team lost.”

Alex Semin: Yes, you would write exactly that. I am used to it already.

Slava Malamud: I would rather write about the beautiful goal you scored.

Alex Semin: I just got lucky.

Slava Malamud: Lucky? But you intentionally took off to get open.

Alex Semin: I did exactly the same the first time, but Brouwer saw me too late, so the pass was a bit awkward. But the second time the puck came to me very nicely. So I took off. I was taught to do that.

Slava Malamud: You should smile after scoring. You made such a mean grimace.

Alex Semin: So far it’s not working out exactly as I would like. A bit hard. Probably because it’s a first game. Later everything will come around.

Slava Malamud: So, about that penalty at the end. You may end up suspended for boarding. Or did he turn his back at the last moment?

Alex Semin: I was going for shoulder to shoulder. How far away from the board was it, did you see? Pretty far. Not a penalty!

Slava Malamud: You started giving interviews in English. Is the club forcing you?

Alex Semin: Well, why. I just interact with him (pointing at Tarik El-Bashir from The Washington Post). It’s easy with him. I don’t interact with others.

Slava Malamud: Is the commotion around that statement by Matt Bradley affecting you?

Alex Semin: It’s total nonsense. Why pay attention? I am not little, this is not my first year playing here. So he said whatever he said – now what, blow it out of proportion? I already forgot about it. I don’t care.

Additional reporting by Ian Oland.