RMNB Investigates: Why did Alex Ovechkin yell 'Heinz 57' at Andrew ...
Andrew Mangiapane scored his first goal as a member of the Washington Capitals on October 19, contributing to the team’s 6-5 overtime victory over the New Jersey Devils.
Inside the locker room postgame, Alex Ovechkin seemingly yelled at random “Heinz 57” at his teammate after head coach Spencer Carbery gave the former Flames forward his milestone goal puck.
Spencer Carbery: And also, we got a guy that broke the seal tonight. Andrew Mangiapane. First goal as a Washington Capital.
(Locker room erupts for Mangiapane.)
(Players start yelling “speech.”)
Alex Ovechkin: Heinz 57, baby! Heinz 57.
Andrew Mangiapane: Heinz 57, boys. That’s the trick. Good game tonight, boys.
But why? Is it a nickname? Is it an inside joke about Connor McDavid’s fear of ketchup?
RMNB went directly to Mangiapane for the answer.
“No, that’s just, [before] one of the games, O said, ‘If you want to score, have this,'” Mangiapane said after a recent Capitals practice. “Did it and then scored.”
So wait, just to be clear, future Hall of Famer, Alex Ovechkin, gave Mangiapane a ketchup packet, and that was the secret sauce to unlocking his big goal?
“It wasn’t like a ketchup packet, it was just — I don’t even know if it’s like the steak sauce or the chicken or whatever,” Mangiapane explained. “He said, ‘Have this and you’ll score.’ So then you have it and ended up scoring, and that’s basically it.”
Upon conducting exhaustive research to write this article (aka conducting a simple Google search), we learned that Heinz 57 is a “multi purpose” steak sauce that combines tomato puree, vinegar and spices to create a “zesty kick.” The Heinz website reports that it has been an “American favorite over the last 100 years.” And now, I guess, at least one Russian as well.
Mangiapane further elaborated that the Ovstradamus moment happened during a pre-game meal, and apparently Tom Wilson was a part of the conversation, too. Ovechkin scored against the Devils and Wilson had two goals, including the overtime game-winner that night.
After his steak-sauce-fueled goal against the Devils, Mangiapane would continue to feel the “kick” and struck again in the Caps’ next game, notching the game-winning goal shorthanded over the Philadelphia Flyers on October 22. He has recorded a total of three points (2g, 1a) in his first nine games with the Capitals. Though, there are no stats available for how many Heinz 57 packets he’s had.
