By now you’ve surely heard the heartwarming motivation behind Alex Ovechkin’s desire to be selected last in the NHL All-Star Draft.
The Washington Capitals captain (and part-time philanthropist) wanted to “win” a 2015 Honda Accord for 10-year-old superfan/sushi date Ann Schaab and her Washington Ice Dogs team, which provides special needs kids and adults with a chance to play hockey.
When Honda discovered why Ovechkin wanted a car so desperately, the company presented him with a giant key:
Alex Ovechkin on Twitter
ABC News caught up with the Schaab family to get their reaction to Ovie and Honda’s generosity.
“Ann was just excited to hear her name,” Ann’s mother, Melissa Schaab, told ABC. “I don’t think she understood the significance of a car, what a big donation that is. There was one gentleman that interviewed (Ovechkin) after the game and he said something about ‘a very special girl named Ann’ and her face just lit up when she heard that. She said, ‘That’s me. He’s talking about me.’
“It just surprised me that in the midst of all that activity going on, for Ovi to stop and give a shout-out to Ann and to special hockey was just amazing to me.”
A great side story: When Ann’s 15-year-old brother was sent a video clip of Ovechkin talking about giving a car to Ann’s team, he played it for Melissa, who thought Ovechkin’s gift would be something a little cheaper.
“I think he said card,” Melissa said to her son, Matthew. “I think he’s going to give Ann a card. Not a car.”
“But play the video again.”
