Alex Ovechkin is officially back for one more year!
The Washington Capitals announced Thursday that Ovechkin has signed a one-year contract with an average annual value of $4.25 million. The new deal ends months of speculation about Ovechkin’s future and sets him up for the 22nd season of his legendary NHL career.
According to the team, Ovechkin will earn $1 million in salary and a $3.25 million signing bonus on the one-year contract, with a $4.75 million performance bonus for 10 games played. The Capitals have $975k in remaining available cap space.
“I’m back!” Ovechkin wrote in a press release. “Thank you to everyone for giving me and my family the time to make this decision. I’m healthy. I love playing hockey and competing to win. I’m excited to come back and join my teammates so we can fight for a playoff spot and have a chance to win. See you in September, DC!”
The Capitals also posted a video of Ovechkin signing the contract while still on vacation in Turkey.
“I’m back, babes,” Ovechkin announces before putting pen to paper.
Alex Ovechkin signs his one-year contract with the Washington Capitals
“Alex is back,” Capitals owner Ted Leonsis wrote on social media. “From the day we drafted him, Ovi has played with unmatched passion, relentless drive, and an unwavering commitment to his teammates, our fans, and our city. The greatest goal scorer in NHL history isn’t done writing his Capitals story. Neither are we. Let’s chase another Cup together.”
Ovechkin’s decision to return to the Capitals comes days after general manager Chris Patrick reshaped the roster with a series of trades and free-agent signings, adding marquee names like Jordan Kyrou, Alex Tuch, Vincent Desharnais, and Boone Jenner.
During his final media availability of the 2025-26 season in April, Ovechkin told reporters that the Capitals’ ability to compete for a championship next season was the most important factor in his decision between returning and retiring. Ovechkin told head coach Spencer Carbery last weekexpressed his happiness about the moves in a recent conversation with head coach Spencer Carbery.
“Our entire organization is thrilled that Alex has decided to continue playing,” Patrick said in his statement. “Alex has proven year after year that he can produce offensively and that he is still the driving force of our team. We are excited about the additions we made this offseason to bolster our lineup and make our group more competitive.
“We believe that our roster is well balanced and will help create more opportunities for Alex to create offense and score goals. In addition, his presence in our locker room – especially with our young players – will continue to be an enormous boost for our organization and will help shape our team culture for years to come.”
Ovechkin suited up in all 82 games for the Capitals last season, leading the team in both goals (32) and points (64) despite being 40 years old. He will head into the 2026-27 campaign 10 goals shy of overtaking Wayne Gretzky’s combined goals record, which includes tallies scored in both the regular season and playoffs. Ovechkin finished last season with 1,006 career combined goals — he scored his 1,000th against the Colorado Avalanche on March 22 — while Gretzky owns the record with 1,016.
The soon-to-be 41-year-old winger captained the Capitals to their first Stanley Cup championship in 2018 and is the franchise’s leader in games played (1,573), goals (929), points (1,687), playoff games played (161), playoff goals (77), and playoff points (147).
