Alex Ovechkin Eats This Decadent Italian Meal Before Every Home Game

If you’re a modern-day NHL fan, you probably know the name Alex Ovechkin. He’s a rock star left winger and captain of the decorated Washington Capitals. And, over the weekend, Alex broke hockey history by beating previous record-holder Wayne Gretzky for most career goals. While Gretzky holds 894, Ovi now holds 895.

Ovechkin, like all athletes, needs a plethora of energy to prepare for a game—eating right can skyrocket an athlete’s ability to perform. So that begs the question: What does Alex Ovechkin eat before his home Caps games? It may seem unconventional, but he’s got a meal he comes back to time and time again. It’s even named after him.

What does Ovechkin eat before every game?

Think fully loaded and absolutely divine, a beautiful array of carbs and protein that would have any hockey player skating for hours on end. It’s exactly what you might think. Chicken Parmigiana, tons of bread and four sauces, including: a creamy Alfredo, a hearty meat sauce, a classic tomato and mushroom Marsala. For nearly a decade, Ovechkin has been devouring this meal from Baltimore’s own Mamma Lucia restaurant.

Normally, this kind of meal would have anyone wanting to take a good three-hour nap, but not Ovechkin. “He makes a big display of it too,” said his teammate Brooks Orpik in The Players Tribune. “There’s no shame. It’ll be eleven in the morning, way before anyone is really thinking about eating lunch, and Ovi will walk into the dining area yelling, ‘Mama Lucia! Mama Lucia!'”

Ovi has a signed picture in the Mamma Lucia restaurant and continues to eat there to this day. It’s become so popular, Mamma Lucia even made a meal named after him that’s available to order on home game days. Named “The Ovi,” this special includes a chicken parm dinner, a salad and a large pizza for $25. You can grab it for dine-in, carry out or delivery.