Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals are champions for the first time in their 44-year history. The Caps took on the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the 2018 Stanley Cup Finals, finishing them off in Game 5 in Las Vegas. This is Ovechkin’s first time winning the Stanley Cup.
Ovechkin has had the support of his wife, Anastasia Shubskaya, often referred to as “Nastya” for short, whom he married in 2016. The couple, who both hail from Russia, live outside of Washington D.C. together.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. She’s Been in Las Vegas Supporting Her Husband & His Team
Shubskaya has been known to travel with her husband to watch him play hockey. Just last month, she was in Tampa, Florida, for the Eastern Conference Finals and was able to celebrate a huge win with her man.
She traveled to Las Vegas to support her husband, as he and the Washington Capitals faced the Las Vegas Golden Knights in the Stanley Cup Finals. She has been posting frequently to social media, sharing her adventures in Sin City with her followers.
Not only was she expected to be on-hand at T-Mobile Arena for Game 2 on Wednesday, May 30, but she was also enjoying some downtime. Last Sunday, she posted some views of the Las Vegas strip, as she did the tourist thing before Game 1. She filmed some of the hotels on the Strip, including the MGM and New York, New York, before arriving at the newly-built ice hockey arena.
Shubskaya took videos from the game, focusing in on her hubby during the National Anthem. Shubskaya didn’t post anything on Instagram following the Capitals’ loss to the Golden Knights. She hasn’t posted anything since the Capitals big win, but it’s believed that she’s in the arena and will be congratulating her husband soon.
2. She Married Ovechkin in 2016 in Russia
Shubskaya married Ovechkin on July 8, 2016. The couple celebrated their nuptials in their home country of Russia. The two exchanged vows in front of their family and friends at Barvikha Luxury Village, located outside of Moscow. Although it was raining, their ceremony was beautiful, with hundreds of large blooms lining the aisle and creating a huge archway where the duo shared their first kiss as husband and wife.
After the wedding, Shubskaya’s makeup artist, Irina Mitroshkina, spoke to a Russian media outlet about the bride.
“Nastya is a traditionalist by nature, she has a very classic, elegant style, and all these years it does not change. It is good when a girl finds an image in which she is comfortable and not rushing about in search of a new one. We found her image at the very beginning of acquaintance: make-up and hairstyle, and even if we depart a little from it – still come back to our classics,” Mitroshkina explained.
Shubskaya wore a white gown with a lace overlay and carried a bouquet of white blooms. Her five bridesmaids wore pink gowns.
After the ceremony, the newlyweds entered their reception, making their official debut as husband and wife to the song “Play That Funky Music.” At one point in the evening, Ovechkin removed his shirt and danced. You can check that out in the video below.
3. Her Mother, Vera Glagoleva, Was an Actress & a Director
Shubskaya may have married a hockey star, but she’s used to having famous people around her. In fact, her mother was Vera Glagoleva, a well-known actress and director. Glagoleva, who passed away in August 2017, was best known for her roles in films such as At The End Of The World and Poor Sasha, which were both released in Russia.
“Vera Glagoleva was born on January 31, 1956 in Moscow, Russian SFSR, USSR as Vera Vitalyevna Glagoleva. She was an actress and director, known for One War (2009), Zakaz(2005) and Slomannyy svet (1991),” reads her bio on IMDb.
Glagoleva was previously married to Rodion Nahapetov. They had two children together before they divorced in 1991. Glagoleva later married Shubskaya’s father, Kirill Shubsky, who is a shipbuilding entrepreneur.
Glagoleva battled cancer and died from the disease in a hospital in Germany.
4. She Is a Model
Shubskaya was born in Switzerland. When she got older, she broke into the modeling world and has done work for various outlets over the past several years.
Shubskaya graduated from the Gerasimov Institute of Cinematography in 2014. Elle Magazine named her one of the top-ten most eligible bachelorettes in Russia that same year.
She has worked as a model over the years. Her social media page is filled with pictures from various photoshoots that she has done. Her wedding to Ovechkin was a highly photographed affair and some of the photos were printed in Russian magazines after the event.
In April 2018, she shared a picture from an apparent photoshoot that she did for TSUM Department Store, located in Moscow.
Based on her social media, it appears as though she travels to Russia quite frequently, and the majority of the work that she has done has been in her home country.
5. Ovechkin Was Previously Engaged to Maria Kirilenko
Ovechkin met his ex-girlfriend, tennis star Maria Kirilenko, at the U.S. Open back in 2011. The two exchanged phone numbers and started forming a relationship. On New Year’s Eve 2012, Ovechkin popped the question — and Kirilenko said yes.
In 2014, however, Kirilenko announced that she broke things off with her hockey star beau.
“I have decided to terminate the engagement. There are many reasons, but do not want to go into details. I’ll Say one thing: our relationship [is] completed, but I respect Sasha as a person and athlete and I sincerely wish him continued athletic success,” Kirilenko told the Russian Tennis Federation (RTF).
Although the two never divulged any details about their split, it had been rumored that Ovechkin was seeing Russian gymnast Karolina Sevastyanova behind Kirilenko’s back.
Ovechkin started dating Shubskaya the following year.
She previously dated Artem Bolshakov.
