Alex Ovechkin has worn many jerseys for the Washington Capitals during his 21-year career with the club.
In an offseason promotional spot for FONBET, Ovechkin was asked to rank five of the team’s most recent alternate sweaters. The winner of the five jerseys presented to him should come as no surprise to anyone paying attention over the last few years.
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Transcript
As translated by Google Translate
Alex Ovechkin: “Fifth place goes to the blue jersey, the one that simply says ‘Caps.’ Fourth place is the “Sakura” (cherry blossom) jersey. Third place is today’s jersey; the Caps have been in Washington for 50 years now. And taking the top two spots are the white jersey, the one with the eagle, and the black one.
Interviewer: The black one, so that’s your number one pick overall?
Alex Ovechkin: Yes.
Interviewer: Do you recall any specific game where you wore a particular jersey and it just felt like everything clicked?
Alex Ovechkin: Well, we’ve had very few losses in any of the games where we wore it. It’s just… a genuinely lucky jersey.
[Editor’s Note: The Japanese word Sakura (桜) can mean either the tree or its flowers. The cherry blossom is considered the national flower of Japan. Sakura can be found in Russia, notably blooming in spring at the Moscow Botanical Garden.]
Ovechkin’s fifth-place jersey
Ovechkin’s least favorite of the five jerseys is the predominantly navy-blue sweater the Capitals wore for their 2018 Stadium Series game against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, in Annapolis, Maryland. The jersey’s logo crest was shortened to read just “Caps,” with three white stars emblazoned above the wordmark.
The Capitals wore the jerseys just twice: first in their 5-2 outdoor win over the Leafs on March 3, 2018, and then in a 4-3 win over the Dallas Stars at Capital One Arena on March 20, 2018.
Ovechkin’s fourth-place jersey
Earning fourth place from Ovechkin are the Capitals’ cherry blossom jerseys, designed for the team’s 50th anniversary season. The sweaters featured a floral-inspired version of the popular Screaming Eagle logo. The eagle, featuring five pink stars, holds onto a branch of cherry blossoms with its feet as some petals near the end fly off.
The numbers on the back of the jerseys also featured a cherry-blossom-and-stem pattern, while the shoulder patches were floral-inspired 50th-anniversary logos. The Capitals wore the jerseys once during warmups ahead of a March 18, 2025, game against the Detroit Red Wings, and they were then auctioned off.
Ovechkin’s third-place jersey
Ovechkin’s choice for third place was the red, white, and blue Screaming Eagle jerseys that the Capitals wore this season, a refresh from the team’s original Reverse Retro design from the 2020-21 season. The sweaters have Capitol Dome shoulder patches, with the “Washington Capitals” wordmark stitched in black, white, and bronze thread.
The Capitals wore the jerseys 15 different times throughout the season, first on October 17 against the Minnesota Wild and last against the Buffalo Sabres on April 4. They went 8-4-3 when wearing the jerseys, which will remain the club’s alternates for the next two seasons.
Ovechkin’s second-place jersey
Ovechkin’s choice for second place is actually a jersey he never wore in a game, the Capitals’ 2023 Stadium Series sweaters. The predominantly white jerseys, for the team’s road game at Carolina’s Carter-Finley Stadium, featured an oversized sublimated Weagle logo that stretched all the way onto the arms of the uniform.
The Capitals wore the jerseys just twice during the 2022-23 campaign, first against the Hurricanes outdoors on February 18, 2023, and then against the Detroit Red Wings at Capital One Arena on February 21, 2023. Ovechkin did not play in either game, flying home to Russia to be with his family after the passing of his father, Mikhail Ovechkin.
Ovechkin’s first-place jersey
Ovechkin’s top choice among the five jerseys was obvious: the Capitals’ black Screaming Eagle jerseys they originally wore as their Reverse Retro 2.0 design during the 2022-23 season and brought back for their 50th-anniversary 2024-25 campaign.
Ovechkin scored in every game he wore the Capitals’ black Reverse Retro 2.0 jersey during the 2022-23 season. The Capitals later polled 17 players from the 2024-25 team about their favorite jerseys in the team’s history, and 14 of those 17, including Ovechkin, chose the black Screaming Eagle design.
The Capitals wore the jerseys for six games during the 2024-25 season, going 4-1-1. The design seems to be retired for now, with the red, white, and blue Screaming Eagle taking over as the team’s main alternate.
Do you agree with Ovechkin’s rankings? If not, how would you rank the five jerseys?
