Russian-born professional hockey player Alexei "Alex" Kovalev plays for the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League. A quick skater and skilled puck-handler, Kovalev has competed for his home country in numerous international competitions including three World Ice Hockey Championships and three Winter Olympics.

Kovalev was selected as the MVP of the 2009 NHL All-Star Game, which was played on January 25, 2009, in Montreal.Chicago Tribune: Canadiens' Alex Kovalev Delivers MVP Performance...

Upon being drafted fifteenth overall by the New York Rangers during the first round of the NHL entry draft, Kovalev became the first Russian player to ever be drafted in the first round. He joined the Rangers for most of the 1992-1993 season and was placed on the first line with Mark Messier and Adam Graves the following season. He went on to score 21 points in 23 playoff games to place third in scoring among the Rangers and became, along with teammates Sergei Zubov, Sergei Nemchinov, and Alexander Karpovtsev one of the first Russians to have his name on the Stanley Cup when the Rangers won the Championship in 1994.

After six seasons with the Rangers, Kovalev was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins early in the 1998-1999 season. He went on to record a career high of 105 points with the Penguins during the 2000-2001 season. The Penguins traded Kovalev back to the New York Rangers in the spring of 2003 and less than a year later, he headed to Montreal to play for the Canadiens. As an unrestricted free agent, Kovalev signed on to play four more years at $4.5 million per year with the Canadiens in the summer of 2005.