- Alex Ovechkin will sit out both of the Capitals’ final two preseason games with a lower-body injury
- Spencer Carbery said the captain is still on track to be ready for Washington’s Oct. 2 opener in Carolina
- Read below for what Carbery said about not rushing his 41-year-old captain back too soon
Alex Ovechkin won’t play again until the regular season.
Capitals coach Spencer Carbery confirmed Friday that the captain will sit out both of Washington’s remaining preseason games while he continues to work through a lower-body injury.
Carbery was asked about the move after Ovechkin took part in morning skate. “We’re just going to be cautious with it, so he’s not going to play tonight or tomorrow,” Carbery said.
Ovechkin was actually right there with his teammates for that morning skate ahead of Friday’s game against Boston, a day after going through his first full practice since the injury flared up. Watch him get some work in:
The plan looks a lot like last September. Ovechkin dealt with a similar lower-body issue at the start of training camp a year ago, missed the first four preseason games, then played the final two before suiting up for all 82 regular-season games and pushing his career total to an NHL-record 929 goals.
That’s the reasoning behind sitting him out entirely this time, according to Carbery. “I’m not going to sit here and say that it’s the best scenario possible him not playing any exhibition games, but we’re making sure without a doubt. Even if he’s 90-95, if he is not 100 percent there, what’s the sense in rushing him to play? No disrespect, we’d like to get him into a game, but it’s an exhibition game at the same time,” Carbery said.
None of this puts opening night in doubt, either. Carbery said Ovechkin is still on track for the Oct. 2 opener at Carolina despite skipping the entire exhibition slate. “I expect him to be ready,” Carbery said. “We would need a setback for him not to be ready for our opening game of the season in Carolina. We would need something to change. But I expect him to be ready.”
Friday’s game still doubles as a dress rehearsal for the projected Opening Night lineup, just without its captain in it. Check out the roster Washington posted for tonight:
Ryan Leonard moves up to Ovechkin’s spot on the left wing, with Ethen Frank taking the right side after replacing Ivan Miroshnichenko, who had been filling in during practice. Logan Thompson starts in goal, and Clay Stevenson backs him up so Charlie Lindgren can play Saturday’s finale without going over the two-game preseason limit for veteran goalies.
Washington opens the regular season Oct. 2 in Raleigh, and if Carbery’s read on this holds up, Ovechkin will be in the lineup for it after playing zero preseason games.
