The Washington Capitals were the top teams in the Eastern Conference in 2024-25, and now look to make a run at the Cup. Still, there have been injury concerns around Alex Ovechkin. According to Tom Gulitti of NHL.com, Ovi is expected to be ready for the start of the season.
Ovi took the ice in practice, shedding the non-contact jersey today. “It feels good,” Ovechkin said. “Obviously, I need more touches, more ice time with the boys because, obviously, that week that I missed kind of hit me a little bit. But overall, I'll take it.”
Ovechkin is entering his 21st season in the NHL and is now the all-time leading goal scorer in the NHL. With another successful season, he will pass Wayne Gretzky as the all-time leader in goals for the playoffs and regular season combined. He is expected to be a major part of the Caps this season, as they hope to make a run for another Cup.
Will Ovi be ready for the regular season?
While Ovechkin shed the non-contact jersey today, there is still a question of whether he will be ready for the regular season. Spencer Carbery spoke on that, saying, “I think so. He's missed a significant amount of camp, but I know he's been training and skating and trying to do everything he possibly can at 40 years old to make sure that he's ready for opening night next Wednesday. So, I would expect (he'll be ready), but he's missed a lot, so hopefully, this last little nine days he can get as close to top form as possible.”
Ovechkin has missed more than normal in training camp, but it was also clearly precautionary. Ovi noted, “Obviously, sometimes you do some workout and you tweak something where you pull your muscle a little bit and you just have to be smart on it. Sometimes you come to the training camp, and you feel a little sore on your knee or your wrist or something, so you have to do like maybe an injection or maybe take some pills to feel better.”
Ovi should be ready to start the regular season when the Caps hit the ice on October 8th against the Boston Bruins. Now, he hopes to lead the Caps to another Cup victory.
