Alex Ovechkin has spent most of his career partnered with hockey equipment manufacturer CCM, but during a majority of his NHL preseason debut against the Detroit Red Wings on September 28, the Capitals captain played with a twig from a different company.
Hockey equipment nerds Gear Geek re-posted a picture of Ovechkin rocking a Bauer Nexus Geo during the game. The stick features metallic blue graphics along the side.
The photo was originally posted by the Capitals in a gallery on their Facebook page.
Upon closer look at the Capitals-Red Wings preseason game on Monumental Network, Ovechkin used the Bauer stick during the first and second periods and then switched to a CCM twig in the third. Ovechkin assisted on Nicklas Backstrom’s goal, the Capitals’ first tally of the game, with the blue Bauer.
The CCM stick Ovechkin used in the final 20 minutes of the game was a red JetSpeed FT5 Pro, a model that he played with off and on late last season. Ovechkin’s gloves, skates, pants, and helmet were all CCM branded.
Screenshots: Monumental Network
What the dalliance means is unclear. It’s unknown if Ovi’s contract with CCM is expired or near expiring as the terms of the contract were never publicly revealed. But it does follow the same playbook Ovi followed in 2017 when his six-year contract with Bauer ended.
During that year’s preseason, Ovechkin experimented and played with CCM sticks before entering a “long term global partnership” with the company before the team’s season opener. Ovechkin would play with a Ribcor Trigger ASY, a black twig that featured light green graphics, and later win the Stanley Cup that season.
The 2023 preseason marks six years since Ovechkin signed the deal with CCM in October 2017.
The experimentation with a Bauer stick comes over a year after CCM halted promotion of Ovechkin due to Russia’s war with Ukraine.
“Although Mr. Ovechkin is not responsible for the Russian government’s actions, we took the decision to not use him (or any Russian player) on any global CCM communication at this point,” CCM Hockey chief executive Marrouane Nabih said in a statement.
Ovechkin noticeably switched hockey stick models and used a JetSpeed FT4 Pro, which had much more muted CCM graphics, in the game after the announcement.
If Ovechkin is coming due on a new contract, an agreement with The Great 8 should be highly sought after. Ovechkin is one of, if not the most marketable player in the NHL. He is also currently enthralled in The Gr8 Chase as he tries to catch Wayne Gretzky’s goals record of 894. Ovechkin sits 72 tallies behind The Great One, needing to average 24 goals per year left on his current contract to reach the mark.
If Ovechkin were to catch Gretzky and his once-thought unbreakable record, the photos and video of that moment would stand the test of time. It would also prove to be an incredible marketing and branding moment for whatever stick manufacturer is associated with the Capitals captain.
Headline screenshot via Monumental Network
