Photo: Alex Ovechkin Instagram
Former Washington Capitals forward, Alexander Semin, is officially ending his professional hockey career. In honor of that, he has decided to hold a charity game on June 30 in his hometown of Krasnoyarsk, Russia.
Semin has invited numerous friends and colleagues from Russian clubs and NHL teams to participate including Alexander Ovechkin, Evgeni Malkin, Ilya Kovalchuk, Pavel Datsyuk, Kirill Kaprizov, Alexander Radulov, Arseniy Gritsyuk, and Danis Zaripov. The final lineup will be announced at a later date.
This charity game will take place on June 30 at the Platinum Arena in Krasnoyarsk, with 5500 tickets going on sale. All proceeds will go to charity, primarily to the development of sled hockey in the Krasnoyarsk Territory but also to regional orphanages. The date that ticket sales begin and the cost of tickets is not yet known.
Link to video from Enisey TV in Russian.
Photo: kraysport.ru
Denis Petrovsky, the Minister of Sports of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, commented, “He would like to close the gestalt, put a beautiful end to his playing career. And he and I came up with the idea of such a powerful hockey match, which will also pursue a charitable goal.”
“It is certain that there have never been so many world champions, participants in the Olympic Games, winners of the Stanley and Gagarin Cups in the Krasnoyarsk Territory. This will be a truly stellar composition! And it will be a very powerful hockey match that will give a lot of positive emotions to Krasnoyarsk residents. “
End Of An Era
The Capitals drafted Semin in the first round of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft with the thirteenth pick overall. He played for the Caps from 2003-04 through 2011-12, playing in 469 games, scoring 197 goals, and recording 211 assists for 408 points overall.
After finishing his tenure with the Caps, he played with the Carolina Hurricanes and Montreal Canadiens before leaving the NHL. He played several years in the KHL, primarily with Metallurg Magnitogorsk and HC Vityaz (Moscow Region). He last played professionally with HC Vityaz in 2020-21. At the moment, he serves as an adviser to the director of Sokol, the hockey club in Krasnoyarsk where he learned to play.
By Diane Doyle
Further Reading
Story from Sports Express Russia
Story from Enisey TV
Story from TASS
Story from All Hockey Russia
Story from Newslab — Krasnoyarsk
Alexander Semin Continues To Play The Game He Loves, Even Amidst The COVID-19 Pandemic
Question and Answer Session with Former Washington Capital, Alexander Semin
Question and Answer Session With Former Washington Capital, Alexander Semin – Part 2
Semin, Samsonov Win the KHL’s Gagarin Cup
The Rise and Fall of Alexander Semin
