Ovechkin revels in Messi winning World Cup with Argentina
By STEPHEN WHYNO
AP Hockey Writer
ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin is one of the happiest athletes around about Lionel Messi winning the World Cup with Argentina. Ovechkin is a big fan of Messi and even got a jersey of his as a gift from teammates for his 1,000th NHL game three years ago. Ovechkin sees some parallels between finally hoisting the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals in his 13th NHL season and Messi winning the World Cup in likely his last opportunity at age 35. Messi also dominated on the way to the championship much like Ovechkin did in earning playoff MVP honors in 2018. Ovechkin’s only question is how Messi will celebrate compared with him and his teammates.