Alex Ovechkin is averaging under 18 minutes of ice time per game (17:52) for a second straight season under Washington Capitals head coach Spencer Carbery. He averaged just 17:43 per game during the 2024-25 campaign, which was the lowest total of his NHL career.
Before this season and last, Ovechkin had played more than 19 minutes per game for seven straight seasons and over 20 minutes in five of those campaigns. Monday, Carbery explained how he’s handling his 40-year-old captain’s playing time and the earnest communication between the two. The goal, as Carbery explains, is to maximize Ovechkin’s usage in the twilight of his legendary career.
“I monitor [his minutes] pretty closely,” Carbery said after practice at the Minnesota Wild’s Grand Casino Arena. “A lot of the time, it’s game flow dependent. Is there a lot of power plays? Is it more five-on-five play? I’m cognizant of it. And he’s always pushing. He wants to be on the ice. Even at 40, he continues to want to be out there in every situation as much as he possibly can. It’s my job to curb that at times. Sometimes he’s not going to go out there and not be happy about it.
“It’s important that at his age and where he’s at in his career, I think I said this early in the season, it’s not about quantity. It’s about quality with Alex. And sometimes, as someone who’s played so much his entire career and been on the ice in every situation, it’s not an easy pill to swallow. But that’s what we’re looking for from O, so I’ll try to always manage his minutes and pay attention to it.”
The most apparent way Carbery has prioritized quality over quantity this season with Ovechkin is by making him the only NHL regular not to start a single shift in the defensive zone. By limiting Ovechkin’s exposure in his own end, the Capitals can have the league’s all-time leading goal scorer spend more time in the offensive zone.
So far, through 32 games this season, the strategy has been impactful, as with Ovechkin on the ice at five-on-five, the Capitals have seen 51.9 percent of shot attempts, 53.5 percent of expected goals, 53.6 percent of scoring chances, and 50.7 percent of high-danger chances. The Caps have outscored their opposition 27-13 with Ovechkin on the ice, and they have not scored more five-on-five goals with any other forward over the boards.
Carbery has again matched Ovechkin up with his regular center since the 2022-23 campaign, Dylan Strome. While they’ve posted good overall results together this season, their play has seemingly been fading recently. In six December games with the two on the ice five-on-five, the Capitals have owned just 42.6 percent of shot attempts, 43.8 percent of expected goals, 42.2 percent of scoring chances, and 37.8 percent of high-danger chances.
“Felt like [his recent game has been] okay,” Carbery said. “I felt like their line, because I group them in as a line, had a really good run, and pucks started going in, and they were hot as a pistol. Every night, it was one or two on the board. Then, even when they were scoring, sort of them controlling play, them being on the right side of did we out-chance, out-shoot, out-spend o-zone time against the lines we were up against started to drop a little bit.
“I feel like it’s been like that over the last four or five games. But I will say that’s been for our whole team, so I don’t think that’s unique to their line. Hopefully, a couple days here to get a little bit of a reset here, and we can get back on track with our entire group, not just Stromer and O’s line.”
As Carbery indicates, the Capitals have been inconsistent as a team in December, posting a 3-1-2 record. With their 5-1 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday, they dropped two games in a row for the first time since November 13 and 15.
Ovechkin’s scoring hasn’t slumped, though, as he is still a point-per-game player in December with six points (2g, 4a). He is just one point behind Tom Wilson (32) for the team lead in scoring, and he (31) and Wilson are the only Capitals players with 30 or more points.
The Capitals’ next test comes against the Wild on Tuesday night, and Ovechkin has had great success against them in the past. In 26 career games against the club, he has recorded 40 points (21g, 19a). He had two points (1g, 1a) against the Wild at Capital One Arena earlier this season.
