Exchange of Russian defender Dmitry Orlov from the Washington Capitals in February of last year still remains one of the most unexpected and even sad events of recent years in the National Hockey League. The Capitals were unable to offer the Russian the contract he deserved to fit him into their payroll, and were therefore forced to part with a valuable asset and a reliable high-class player in order to get anything in return. Orlov himself admitted that he was shocked by this outcome and that he did not expect such a development of the situation, and his longtime comrade and companion Alexander Ovechkin, with whom Dmitry won the Stanley Cup, in a conversation with the Caps management, according to rumors, expressed his dissatisfaction with this exchange. But nothing can be done.
Since then, Orlov managed to play first for the Boston Bruins, where he was traded, and in the summer he moved to the Carolina Hurricanes as a free agent. The Russian played once for both teams against Washington, but only today he came to the Capital One Arena in the US capital for the first time, where he spent many years of his great career. He will remember this match for a long time.
Even during the pre-match warm-up, Orlov managed to talk with one of his Washington teammates, Evgeny Kuznetsov. Together they won the Stanley Cup, and today they share the court for different clubs, but remain good friends.
Already during the game, “Washington” presented Orlov with a special greeting. There is a tradition in the NHL when clubs, during one of the pauses in the game, display a video on the media cube in honor of their former players, and Dmitry’s Caps were not deprived of this. Television cameras managed to capture the Russian’s face at that moment, and he could hardly restrain his emotions from watching the video, as well as from the loud applause addressed to him by Washington fans and Alexander Ovechkin personally.
Moreover, the game itself during this period did not develop in the best way for Orlov’s club. In the first 17 minutes of the meeting, Carolina conceded twice and lost with a score of 0:2. Ovechkin also had a hand in this, deceiving the Hurricanes defense with a fake shot and a cool pass for a goal to Dylan Strome.
However, later the Hurricanes were able to completely turn the tide of the confrontation. The key period was the third period, which included five goals scored by the guests at once. By this point, they had already managed to get one goal back, and then covered Washington’s possession with waves of dangerous attacks. For example, Andrei Svechnikov was involved in them. The Russian super-forward of the Canes extended his scoring streak to six matches and scored 3 points (1+2) today. Formally, his pass to Brent Burns deprived the Capitals of any chance of salvation.
But at the end of the meeting, Dmitry Orlov also took the floor.
He already had an assist in the episode with a goal from Seth Jarvis that tied the game. And a couple of minutes before the final siren, he skillfully shot at the empty Washington goal from the far side, marking his return to Washington with a goal. He did not celebrate it out of respect for his former club.
«»This is a special night. This is my first time playing here since the trade. I was drafted by Washington in 2009 and played several years for this great organization. I have amazing memories. It was hard to stay calm while watching this video. But it was «It's nice to hear the applause from the fans. I am grateful to Washington for everything. I have a lot of emotions inside me from this evening. My goal? I didn’t celebrate it because I respect my former teammates. A goal is just a goal,» Orlov told the American journalists, having difficulty restraining their emotions.
The evening turned out to be special for another Russian from Carolina.
Vasily Ponomarev probably experienced one of the most eventful days of his life. In the morning he was called up from the AHL club Chicago Wolves, in the afternoon he joined the Hurricanes in Washington, and in the evening he made his NHL debut. And if in the first two periods the 21-year-old Russian played in short periods and did not particularly stand out, then in the third 20 minutes he first scored his first scoring point in the league, assisting the same Jarvis, and at the very end of the match he scored his debut puck. It is noteworthy that this happened right in Washington, where Vasily saw an NHL match live for the first time — in 2017 he attended one of Washington’s matches with Pittsburgh.
“»I saw Ovi and Crosby score. I just dreamed of more. And now I understand how necessary it is to dream big, so that, maybe in 7 or 10 years, you will find yourself in the same situation as them,” Ponomarev said.