Russia is currently banned from participating in the 2026 Winter Olympics due to their ongoing war with Ukraine, and Ovechkin is not happy with Bettman about this.

The war between Russia and Ukraine has been going on for a couple of years now, and ever since it began, Russia hasn’t been allowed to participate at any IIHF hockey events, and that will include the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. The IIHF is set to make a decision in May 2025 about whether Russia and Belarus will be allowed to participate in 2026.

Russian superstar, and current member of the Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin sounded off on this, expressing how badly he wants to compete in the Olympics and how frustrated he is with the IIHF’s decision.

“In theory, yes, but you see what is happening with our team now. They are not allowing us to participate in the World Championships or the Olympics, so I don’t know how this will all happen.”

Ovechkin isn’t getting any younger, and at 38 years old he knows this could be the last chance he gets at the Olympics, so if the IIHF doesn’t overturn their decision, not all hope is lost for Ovi, as he would have a way to still compete: he would have to join as an independent athlete, not representing any country. There’s no word if The Great 8 has thought about this, but perhaps as the months go on we’ll get more clarity.

Alex Ovechkin is chasing history, as he is only 42 goals away from breaking the all-time goals record held by Wayne Gretzky. He currently sits at 853 career goals and 697 assists in 1426 games.