With the Washington Capitals now eradicated from the postseason, all eyes flip to Alex Ovechkin’s future as he approaches 40 years previous. Capitals coach Spencer Carbery definitely anticipated Ovechkin to return for the 2025-26 season.
“My understanding is he is underneath contract, so he’ll be again subsequent yr,” Carbery stated following the Capitals 3-1 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes in Sport 5.
Ovechkin did not seem like a participant on the verge of retirement this previous season. He tied for third within the NHL with 44 targets in simply 65 video games. That is a 55-goal tempo in a full season, which Ovechkin did not get as a result of his marketing campaign was interrupted by a damaged leg.
Within the second spherical towards the Hurricanes, Ovechkin and the remainder of the Caps struggled to attain. The brand new all-time targets chief discovered the again of the web simply as soon as, however Carbery stated he favored Ovechkin’s sport.
“I assumed [Ovechkin] was nice within the playoffs,” Carbery stated. “I do know, on this sequence, the stats will not be flattering.”
On the finish of the 2023-24 season, when Washington received swept by the New York Rangers within the first spherical, there have been some who questioned if Ovechkin may bounce again. As Carbery famous in his press convention, the Capitals’ captain did that and extra.
NHL Playoffs 2025: Stanley Cup schedule, bracket, scores, as Hurricanes advance and Jets drive Sport 6
Austin Nivison
“For him to come back again this yr and play the way in which that he did,” Carbery stated. “Chase down this report. The beginning that he had. Breaking his leg and getting back from that. Simply persevering with to not solely do the issues he did individually statistically, however lead our crew.
“That is a part of the story that can type of be a minor a part of it, however it’s a giant a part of it. Persons are gonna take a look at this crew and go, ‘How did they achieve this properly? How did they win the East?’ Nicely, he is a part of that as our captain.”
For his half, Ovechkin stated the Capitals performed properly sufficient to stay alive, they only could not make the most of their probabilities.
“We’ve got our probabilities, however we simply do not execute, perhaps,” Ovechkin stated. “Luck was not on our facet. I do not suppose we performed unhealthy hockey. We had plenty of probabilities to get the lead, however it’s robust.”
Ovechkin nonetheless has a lot to play for at this late stage of his profession. He is simply three targets away from being the one NHL participant in historical past to attain 900, after which 1,000 is likely to be on his radar. On high of that, Washington seems to be a crew on the rise, so Ovechkin may need not less than another deep playoff run in him.
