Alex Ovechkin made a surprise appearance at Hershey’s Giant Center on Thursday night.
The NHL’s greatest goal-scorer attended Hershey’s first playoff game of 2026 along with Aliaksei Protas, who was there in support of his younger brother Ilya.
Ovechkin and Protas, a Calder Cup champion with the Bears in 2023, were announced to the crowd during the first TV timeout in the first period.
Ovechkin did the ROAR as the camera panned to him, a celebration first made famous by Mike Vecchione in 2023. Ovi notably wore a Hershey Bears jacket over an Air Jordan shirt and held a giveaway rally towel.
He also got to meet the team’s mascot, Coco.
As absolutely perfect hosts, the Bears had several bags of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos waiting for Ovechkin in the luxury box.
“You can see how many talented players this organization has,” Ovechkin told the Capitals’ Katie Florio in an interview. “Obviously, brought us Miro, Bogdan, Cristall. So all those young guys are gonna be like a very good players.”
A Bears representative tells RMNB that the team didn’t know Ovechkin would be at the game until late in the afternoon. It appears Ovi’s trainer, Pavel Burlachenko, was also there with him in the suite.
Ovechkin’s appearance in Hershey tonight comes after he missed the team’s preseason game there in the fall due to injury. Ovi never played in the AHL early in his career, but did play one preseason game for the Capitals in Chocolatetown in 2005.
“Last time I was here, my rookie year,” Ovechkin said. “You can see how many championships they have. You can see how many talented players this organization have — obviously, Protas, Miro, Bogdan, Cristall — so all those young guys are gonna be like really good players.”
