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Andrei Svechnikov, a 19-year-old scoring winger for the Carolina Hurricanes, was hospitalized after a fist-fight on Monday with his Russian role model Alex Ovechkin.
In Game 3 between the Hurricanes and Washington Capitals, a team captained by Ovechkin. Svechnikov and Ovechkin appeared to exchanged slashes before a fight broke out.
Ovechkin told reporters after the game that Svechnikov, who did not engage in a fight for all 82 games of his rookie season, issued the challenge.
“First of all, I hope he’s okay,” Ovechkin told reporters, including Isabelle Khurshudyan of The Washington Post.