Like the changing of the seasons and the turning of the tide, you can depend on rumors of Alex Ovechkin returning to the KHL to pop up on a regular basis. You can set your watch to it, if you want your watch to be really unreliable.

On Thursday afternoon, we got our latest dose of Ovi-back-home panic, as quoted by Slava Malamud.

Dynamo Moscow boss Arkady Rotenberg has told Sportbox.ru "there is desire on (Ovechkin's) part" to return to the KHL. #Caps

— Slava Malamud (@SlavaMalamud) November 13, 2014

The full text of the interview isn’t quite so inflammatory.

Speaking with Sportbox.ru and later transcribed by Sovetsky Sport, Dynamo Moscow boss Arkady Rotenberg was asked if Ovechkin would return to Russia and play in the KHL.

KHL president Alexander Medvedev said that Ovechkin’s return from the NHL is possible. Is it true?

Arkady Rotenberg: Yes, of course. But the thing is that in the NHL, he’s recognizable, he’s a star. People go to see Ovechkin, wear Ovechkin jerseys. For the NHL he’s not just a great famous athlete, but he also fills the cash desk, he makes money. That’s why it’s difficult to get him out of there. But in principle, it’s possible. We have the desire to do it and he does too. When will it happen? I don’t want to spoil anything, let him just play while he does. He has a contract and the one that is so strict that’s it’s almost impossible to void. Everything has to be put on the line and there’s no need to do that for now. Let’s wait.

Translation by Fedor Fedin.