HIGHLIGHTS
- Ovechkin recorded an assist in a 2-1 Capitals win over the Blue Jackets in what could be his final NHL game
- The 40-year-old played all 82 games this season and finished with 32 goals and 64 points
- See below for Ovechkin’s quotes, the fan reaction, and what comes next for the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer
Alex Ovechkin isn’t ready to say goodbye. Not yet, anyway.
The Capitals beat the Blue Jackets 2-1 on Tuesday night in Columbus in what could have been the final game of Ovechkin’s 21-year NHL career. He picked up an assist on Jakob Chychrun’s go-ahead goal in the third period, then walked off the ice to chants of “Ovi!” from Capitals fans who had traveled to Ohio for the occasion.
“I hope it’s not my last game,” Ovechkin told reporters afterward, per NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. “I don’t know what’s going to happen. So, we’ll see.”
That’s been Ovechkin’s stance all season long. No farewell tour. No grand announcement. Just a 40-year-old showing up every night and letting his play speak for itself.
The emotional scenes started a few days earlier during Washington’s final home game, a 3-0 win over the Penguins on Sunday. Capital One Arena was draped in “Gr8ness” towels. Fans chanted “One more year!” throughout the third period. Ovechkin’s response? A smile and a simple “I will think about it.”
Dylan Strome even got himself ejected from the opening faceoff so Ovechkin could draw against Crosby one last time. The whole night had that kind of energy.
Maybe the best moment from that Penguins game was what didn’t happen. Pittsburgh stayed on the ice after the final buzzer, waiting to shake Ovechkin’s hand as a sign of respect. He waved them off.
“I haven’t decided yet,” Ovechkin said. “Thanks to them for waiting out there.”
Coach Spencer Carbery got a kick out of it. “It’s kind of in his fashion,” Carbery said. “He’s like, ‘I’m not retired, so leave me alone.'”
Tom Wilson, who’s played alongside Ovechkin for over a decade, didn’t hold back on what the guy means to the franchise.
“What he’s done for this city, you can’t really put into words,” Wilson said. “He’s literally changed the game of hockey.”
Before Tuesday’s game in Columbus, former teammate and current ESPN analyst TJ Oshie handled the pregame interview. He showed up with a Subway sandwich and a bag of Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, a nod to Ovechkin’s famously unhealthy road trip ritual. Oshie also offered his honest take on where Ovechkin stands.
“He’s the greatest goal-scorer of all time,” Oshie said. “If he came back next year, probably, if he wanted to, he’d score 30 again.”
The numbers back that up. Ovechkin finished the season with 32 goals and 64 points while playing all 82 games. He was one of 44 players league-wide to crack 30 goals. At 40 years old. Only four other players in NHL history have played a full 82-game season at that age.
His career totals speak for themselves. 929 goals, the most in NHL history. 1,573 regular-season games, all with one franchise. A Stanley Cup in 2018. If this was it, there’s nothing left to prove.
NHL.com senior writer Dan Rosen noted that if Ovechkin walks away, it won’t be because he can’t play anymore. It’ll be because he wants to return to Russia, maybe play a season in the KHL, or simply doesn’t want to grind through another offseason of training.
Ovechkin turns 41 in September. He becomes an unrestricted free agent when his current deal expires on June 30. He said he’ll talk things over with Carbery, GM Chris Patrick, and his family before making any decisions.
If Tuesday was the end, there’s some poetry in it. His NHL debut came against these same Blue Jackets on October 5, 2005. Twenty-one years later, same opponent. But Ovechkin doesn’t seem like a guy who’s done. Not with the way he’s brushing off every farewell attempt thrown his way.
Summer will tell us everything.
