Alex Ovechkin got the best birthday present.
The Washington Capitals surprised their captain with a black Screaming Eagle jersey and posted the reveal on social media. While many in Caps fandom love the sweater, there may be no bigger supporter of the design than Ovechkin, who had begged the team to bring it back since it first went away as the team’s Reverse Retro 2.0 sweater.
“Yes! It’s good. It’s so good,” an excited Ovechkin said. “Love it. Thank you for surprise. It’s back, babes!”
Ovechkin also took time to recreate the iconic bubblegum picture he took as a 20-year-old rookie in the locker room of Piney Orchard in December 2005. The Capitals had the same photographer, Simon Bruty, snap the photo, but this time inside an alternate locker room at MedStar Capitals Iceplex.
The original photograph was taken on assignment for Sports Illustrated.
Ovechkin has been a loud supporter of the Screaming Eagle logo and the black jersey. He played his first NHL game and scored his first NHL goal while wearing the team’s black Capitol Dome jersey.
“I like the retro,” Ovechkin said in a social media video for the Capitals in February. “Always retro.”
Ovechkin first asked the team to bring back the Screaming Eagle on Instagram in 2020.
“@capitals the best one my 1st year 🙏🙏❤️️❤️️” Ovechkin wrote. In a second comment, he added, “lets make it happen… say yes pls… we all want it.”
Ovechkin scored in every game he wore the Capitals’ black Reverse Retro 2.0 jersey during the 2022-23 season. He later pleaded for it to be brought back for the 2023-24 campaign.
“Yeah, it sucks that it’s going to be our last game with this jersey,” Ovechkin said. “I hope they gonna think about it and put it back next year.”
They didn’t last season, but it’s back for six dates in 2024-25 — the Capitals’ 50th anniversary campaign.
Happy 39th birthday, Ovi!
