Alex Ovechkin has a lot to smile about these days, between winning his first Stanley Cup in June and welcoming his first child in August. But there’s something a little different about his trademark toothy grin lately.
Ovechkin’s remaining front tooth has been cracked in half.
The cracked incisor was on full display Monday evening during his late-night workout with Evgeny Kuznetsov.
Photo: @aleksandrovechkinofficial
After some investigation, it’s not one hundred percent clear exactly when the incident occurred.
All of Ovi’s teeth looked intact when the Capitals eliminated the Tampa Bay Lightning on May 23 and became Eastern Conference champions.
Photo: Mike Ehrmann
Five days later, however, Ovechkin’s face took a bit of a beating.
While on the bench, the Russian machine got hit on the right side of the face by an errant puck during Game One of the Stanley Cup Final.
Ovechkin never flinched, and somehow, lost no teeth.
We believe Ovechkin’s tooth broke later that night, at the beginning of the third period. Ovechkin appears to be hit in the mouth by William Karlsson after one-timing a shot and assisting on a Tom Wilson goal.
Ovi can be seen putting his glove to his mouth as he falls to the ice.
The Capitals captain, who typically celebrates teammates goals more than his own, looks stunned as he gets up off the ice, appearing to motion to the Caps bench.
In a still, Ovechkin can be seen putting his tongue through the gap in his teeth.
His lip appeared swollen during the post-game interview.
Photo: @Capitals
Ovi’s tooth was definitely chipped before the start of Game Two.
Photo: @capitals
Ovechkin broke his first tooth during a game against the Atlanta Thrashers in the 2006-07 season. Despite the fact that the medical team yanked out the remaining part of the tooth and gave him 14 stitches, Ovechkin wasn’t bothered.
According to the Associated Press, “[h]e seemed to delight in the empty space between his teeth Saturday, sticking his tongue in there and smiling widely whenever he noticed his mug up on the new high-definition video screens above the ice. He resembled a little kid who loses his first incisor and can’t wait to see what the Tooth Fairy leaves under the pillow.”
Photo: @Capitals
It might have something to do with the hockey player allure, as Ovechkin said to Steinberg during an interview for the Washington Post, “It makes me look hot. Girls like it. Like a warrior.”
At that point, his plan was to fix the gap, but there was the small matter of where the original tooth was.
“I forget it in Atlanta,” Ovechkin continued to Steinberg.
Those plans have changed, as Ovechkin still has the gap plus a little extra these days.
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) September 11, 2018
All things considered, it’s a good look for him.
Headline photo: @Capitals
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