Alex Ovechkin logged on social media to thank all the frontline workers who are battling COVID-19 on Tuesday. Nearly 13k people in the United States have died and 394k have contracted the novel coronavirus so far.
“Thank you to all doctors and hospital teams for everything you are doing ))We thank you!!!! God bless 🙏🙏” Ovechkin wrote.
He posted a photo of himself posing with the Stanley Cup and healthcare workers.
Thank you to all doctors and hospital teams for everything you are doing ))We thank you!!!! God bless 🙏🙏#healthcareheroes pic.twitter.com/DLfQokpSHr
— Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8) April 7, 2020
Despite the NHL season being suspended and players being sidelined, Ovechkin has tried to maintain a presence and be a leader in the worldwide community.
In March, Ovechkin took to Instagram to urge his English and Russian-speaking followers to stay inside. “Now more than ever, we are one team,” Ovechkin wrote.
Ovechkin was also one of the first NHL players to speak to the media in a Zoom teleconference including the New Jersey Devils’ PK Subban, the New York Islanders’ Anders Lee, and the Columbus Blue Jackets’ Nick Foligno.
“The most important thing is to take care of yourself, take care of your family, friends. Help each other,” Ovechkin said during the call. “Just be safe. Right now it is a hard time. We all miss you… right now we are together and we have to fight through it together.”
During the break in play, Ovechkin has been working out with his personal trainer Pavel Burlachenko and Evgeny Kuznetsov. “I have a small gym and we just go run in the street, play some soccer and ride the bike and just try to stay [active],” he said.
“I am lucky enough to have my coach, my trainer with me, he’s helped me a lot, obviously,” Ovechkin said. “Because you get used to being with the team, working out with the team all year and right now you are kind of by yourself. It’s kind of hard to push yourself. Sometimes I don’t want to do it but he says, ‘OK let’s go, we have to work out.’”
To escape boredom, Ovechkin has played video games and played hockey with his one-year-old son Sergei. He’s also danced with his son.
“It is always a good time to sit on the couch and watch TV and play with [Sergei], but you never know when the season is coming back and you have to be in shape,” Ovechkin said. “So I try to do my best. It is kind of hard, to be honest with you. But in this situation, you have to (do) the best way you can.”
