Alex Ovechkin took the biggest step in his return from a fractured fibula at the Capitals’ morning skate on Friday. The 39-year-old winger was cleared for contact and donned a regular, red practice jersey.
However, despite the good news, head coach Spencer Carbery ruled his captain out of games until after the upcoming holiday break. The update means Ovechkin will miss at least three more games due to injury.
“He’s been cleared for contact so he can resume regular activities with the main group,” Carbery said. “We won’t see him before the break. So, the target will become sometime after the break whether it’s that first game, but we won’t see him in these next three.”
The Capitals play the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday night, host the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday evening, and then travel to Boston to play the Bruins on Monday night.
“Just with the timing of everything and the next three games and what that looks like – for him to get these days plus the break,” Carbery said. “With where he’s at medically, that’s the best decision.”
Ovechkin can continue skating during the break, but under the CBA, everything he does must be an independent choice and not a team direction. With Carbery’s declaration on Friday, Ovechkin is set to miss at least 16 games due to his injury.
The Capitals have gone an impressive 8-4-1 in the 13 games they’ve played without him so far, but Ovechkin’s teammates are more than ready to see him back in the lineup. Ovechkin’s 15 goals are still tied for the team lead with Connor McMichael.
“He’s our captain, he’s our leader,” Tom Wilson said. “He plays with a ton of energy, he’s fun to have around. He’s carried this team for a long time, so it’ll be just that, and it’s always a spark for the group to have a guy of that magnitude and that energy in the lineup every night.”
Wilson remarked that he was surprised to see Ovechkin already out of his light blue, no-contact sweater.
“He came up to me, and I was like, ‘Oh, how you feeling?’ Good to see him in a red jersey where he belongs,” he said. “Hoping he continues to feel good and feel better and pick up where he left off. He looks good. He’s shooting a lot of pucks – not going to lose his shot, that’s for sure. He’s moving well. He’s a machine. He just continues to surprise everybody with how quickly he can bounce back from stuff like that.”
The Capitals’ first game after the four-day break comes against the Toronto Maple Leafs inside Scotiabank Arena on December 28.
Ovechkin returning against the Maple Leafs in Toronto would be a big boon for Washington. He regularly torches the Maple Leafs, recording 78 points (44g, 34a) in 60 career games against them. Toronto is the team he has scored the most goals against in his career that is not a former Southeast Division or current Metropolitan Division club.
