The NHL All-Star fantasy draft was held on Thursday night. In case you missed it, Alex Ovechkin was selected
Ovechkin opted to skip the entire weekend after getting slapped with a three game suspension for his hit on Penguins defenseman Zbynek Michalek. He’s been spotted down in Miami, which sounds 1000 times better than Ottawa anyway.
His decision to steer clear of weekend has come under fire though. Andy McDonald of the St. Louis Blues called Ovechkin “classless” in a tweet on Wednesday.
As Japers’ Rink points out, if Ovi did attend, the weekend would center more around his suspension and the hit and distract from the game itself.
Ovechkin explained his decision after George McPhee announced he would not be Ottawa. “My heart is not there. I got suspended, so why I have to go there?” Ovechkin said according to Katie Carrera of the Washington post. “I love the game, it’s a great event, I love to be there but I’m suspended.
The Boston Globes’ Kevin Paul Dupont said Ovechkin needs to be “more respectful of the ASG.” Isn’t that exactly what Ovechkin is doing by putting the spotlight on the game rather than himself?
I can’t figure out why Ovechkin’s decision has common under such scrutiny while Teemu Selanne and Nicklas Lidstrom also opted out. Had he decided to attend I’m sure he would have caught just as much grief for being the center of attention during the NHL’s showcase of stars.
