Caps’ Ovechkin to skip NHL All-Star game

ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) – Alex Ovechkin is skipping the NHL All-Star game, a decision he announced a day after getting a three-game suspension from the league for a hit on an opponent.

“My heart is not there. I got suspended, so why [do] I have to go there?” the Washington Capitals’ captain and a two-time league MVP said Tuesday. “I love the [All-Star] game. It’s a great event. I love to be there.”

But Ovechkin added: “I feel I’m not deserving to be there right now. If I’m suspended, I have to be suspended.”