Hockey Hug | RMNB

The first person to hug Alex Ovechkin in the locker room after his 800th goal was Nicklas Backstrom

Alex Ovechkin achieved one of the biggest accomplishments of his career on Tuesday when he hit the 800 career goals milestone. Nearly everything about the moment was perfect: it came via a hat trick, in a win, and there were no empty netters involved.

But there was one negative. Ovi hit the mark without his longtime center and running mate, Nicklas Backstrom, on the ice.

Thankfully, Ovi did not have to wait long to run into his close friend.

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By Ian Oland 9 months ago

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Nicklas Backstrom hugs TJ Oshie during press conference

Nicklas Backstrom seemed particularly emotional throughout the Washington Capitals’ 4-3 win over the New Jersey Devils, Saturday. Before puck drop, Backstrom was honored on the ice by the Capitals for passing the 1,000 point mark in a beautiful pregame ceremony. Backstrom’s family, including his mother and father, brother, fiancee, and three kids, were all in attendance.

Later, Backstrom scored in the third period, making it rain apples from the home crowd. Afterward, he had a message for fans in his postgame interview with NBC Sports Washington’s Al Koken.

“Thank you guys so much for coming out and celebrating this,” Backstrom said. “It means a lot. I love you guys.”

Inside the locker room, Backstrom admitted he was in awe of the surprise apple salute. In the moment, he could seen smirking on the bench.

“I was like ‘this is amazing,’” Backstrom said. “I mean, I didn’t score a hat trick, but it was fun the crowd did it. That was hilarious, I think. And then all the players kept shoveling. They needed some help out there, I think. That was just an awesome experience.”

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By Ian Oland 1 year ago

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Alex Ovechkin and Braden Holtby hug during warmups

It didn’t take long for former Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby to be reacclimated with his former teammates.

During pregame warmups, Alex Ovechkin approached Holtby and gave him a giant hug at center ice.

NBC Sports Washington posted the video on its social media.

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By Ian Oland 2 years ago

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Tom Wilson bear hugs Nicklas Backstrom to celebrate Backy being back from injury

Nicklas Backstrom is officially 100 percent healthy after missing the past eight games with an upper-body injury. And no one was more happy to hear the news than Tom Wilson.

At Sunday’s practice, Wilson was matched up with Backstrom and Alex Ovechkin on the top line. In the middle of practice, Wilson could not hold in his excitement any longer and gave his liney a bear-hug.

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By Elizabeth Kong 4 years ago

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A very good photo of Alex Ovechkin and Nicklas Backstrom cuddling

According to their practice schedule, the Washington Capitals spent Saturday in Vancouver before traveling to their next destination, Toronto, on Sunday.

Whatever the Capitals did in the Couv to relax and unwind, there was definitely some cuddling teammates, as documented on Alex Ovechkin’s Instagram.

“love u bro!” Ovechkin wrote in a caption as he sat in Nicklas Backstrom’s lap with his arms around his longtime center. The two veteran Capitals both laughed ridiculously.

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By Ian Oland 4 years ago

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Nicklas Backstrom on Alex Ovechkin’s hug after advancing to the Eastern Conference Final: ‘It was just a special moment’

Let me set the scene. It was Game Six between the Capitals and Penguins. The Caps led the series 3-2. The teams were in the first overtime. And that’s when it happened. After receiving a pass from Alex Ovechkin, Evgeny Kuznetsov raced in all alone against Penguins goaltender Matt Murray.

“Please score. Just f*cking please score,” Ovechkin recalled thinking.

Kuznetsov did indeed deposit the puck into the back of the net, sending the Capitals into a wild celebration. The moment marked the first time in the Alex Ovechkin Era that the Caps had beaten the Penguins in the playoffs and advanced to the Eastern Conference Final. Except there was one person missing on the ice: Nicklas Backstrom.

Backstrom, who had injured his right hand blocking a shot the game before, was forced out of the lineup. When Ovechkin entered the locker room, he let out a primal roar. Then he found his partner in crime and gave him a big hug. After years of brutal playoff exits, the pair finally advanced to the third round.

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By Ian Oland 5 years ago

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Jakub Vrana’s long hockey hug for Philipp Grubauer is the love all good goaltenders deserve

During his young career, Jakub Vrana has sometimes battled a narrative that he takes plays/games off, but I’d argue that he’s actually the ultimate team player and we should cherish him like an adorable baby pig.

Sunday in Calgary, Vrana scored the Capitals’ only goal (which was cool don’t get me wrong), but it was his long, passionate hug of Philipp Grubauer that I appreciated the most.

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By Ian Oland 6 years ago

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Jay Beagle receives colossal bro hug from Tom Wilson after scoring game-winning goal

Jay Beagle was the Capitals hero once again.

The Regal Beagle scored the Caps’ lone tally — a third period goal with 5:41 left in the game — during Friday night’s 1-0 snoozer against Detroit. It was Jay Beagle’s second game-winning goal in November and the eighth of his nine-year NHL career.

The goal was a masterpiece, if you count falling over and whacking at a rebound a masterpiece.

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By Chris Cerullo 7 years ago

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The best moment of Tuesday’s generally bad Caps-Rangers game was Alex Ovechkin’s goal by way of Nate Schmidt’s pass. It was Ovechkin’s 6th goal of the season, Schmidt’s first point, and occasion to celebrate with an intense hug.

Speaking with the Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan, Schmidt called the hug “magical,” and I think he means that in the Harry Potter sense, wherein hundreds of people die horrible deaths.

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By Peter Hassett 8 years ago

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