The Capitals are in Toronto on Wednesday night for their one and only visit to the city this season, and the timing carries more weight than a routine road game. Alex Ovechkin said he has not yet decided whether he will play next season and plans to make that call in the summer.
Asked directly about his future, Ovechkin answered, “Not yet,” then said he would need to talk with his family, Ted Leonsis, Chris Patrick and Brian MacLellan before making a decision. He also said, “Yeah, I still enjoy it, I still have fun,” and added, “I’m still happy to be with the boys in the locker room, yeah.”
The game is Washington’s first trip back to Toronto since Dec. 28, 2024, and it comes with a chance to complete a season sweep of the Maple Leafs for the first time since 2015-16. The Capitals have already beaten Toronto twice this season, and they enter the night with a 9-11-3 record against Atlantic Division opponents.
That record says something about the way Washington has handled the division overall, but Toronto has been one of the exceptions. Two of the Capitals’ nine wins against Atlantic Division teams this season have come against the Maple Leafs, which is why this matchup feels less like a formality than a test of whether they can finish the job against a club they have already solved twice.
Ovechkin’s own season gives the night another layer. He has scored 31 goals at age 40, with seven goals in his last 10 games, and he has now reached 30 or more goals for the 20th season of his NHL career. The only season in which he did not get to 30 was the 56-game 2020-21 campaign.
Since signing his five-year pact on July 27, 2021, Ovechkin has scored 198 goals, which ranks seventh in the NHL over that span. His 14.5% shooting percentage over those five seasons is a reminder that even in the later stage of his career, he has remained one of the league’s most efficient finishers.
The contract itself is part of the story now because it ends on June 30, and everyone around the team knows the calendar is moving toward a decision point. Spencer Carbery said the uncertainty around Ovechkin’s status has not been that big of a thing, and that the team will support him however he wants to go out.
Carbery said Ovechkin has earned the right to take his time and make the best possible decision for himself and his family, and he added that if he returns next season, he will be welcomed back with open arms. That leaves Washington in a familiar place for one more night: chasing points in the standings while its captain keeps scoring and its biggest question waits for summer.
