Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin met with assembled media after practice on Wednesday just hours after it was announced that his long-time running mate Nicklas Backstrom would be taking a leave of absence from the team due to ongoing injury issues.
Inside an emotional Capitals locker room, Backstrom’s teammate and close friend since 2007, spoke quietly and somberly about the situation. The Great Eight reflected on Backstrom’s tumultuous injury journey and what the legendary center has meant to the organization they’ve both called home for so many years.
The decision for Backstrom to step back came from the man himself, who spoke to the team’s trainers, head coach Spencer Carbery, and general manager Brian MacLellan on Monday. After a day off on Tuesday, Backstrom then addressed his teammates ahead of Wednesday’s practice.
Ovechkin was asked what it felt like to watch Backstrom deliver the news. “I think everybody knows what’s happening, so it’s kind of hard as a friend, as a player, but we’re going to support him and we’re going to be with him in this moment,” Ovechkin said. “To be honest with you, I was in shock when I heard it today. He’s my friend, he’s my teammate and to see how emotional he is, you know it’s a tough situation.”
Backstrom came into this season’s Training Camp and played in the preseason for the first time since 2019. The silky playmaker was able to train this past summer without complication and early returns appeared positive.
However, those positive feelings did not last into the regular season as Backstrom has seen his ice time sliced, a move off the top power play unit, and just one point in eight games. Ovechkin commented on how difficult that process has been to watch.
“I saw him in Training Camp, and I was like, ‘Thank God it’s over,’ but, yeah, it’s hard,” Ovechkin said. “I think for him he was trying to bounce back. He did surgery and I felt like he was feeling good, but for me as a player, I understand when you have something sore and you don’t feel 100 percent, it’s almost impossible to play. That why sometimes we miss a couple games because of injuries and, you know, it’s hard. But for him, he’s been a tough situation a couple years and right now it’s going to suck.”
As Ovechkin makes his climb up the NHL’s all-time goal leaderboard, Backstrom’s impact on that chase of Wayne Gretzky cannot be understated. 279 of Ovechkin’s 824 career goals have featured an assist from Backstrom.
That sort of impact is also felt on the franchise as a whole. Backstrom has played 1,105 career games for the Capitals’ and is the club’s all-time assists leader. He also ranks second in franchise history in points (1,033), games played, and power-play points (421). Alongside Ovechkin, he is one of just two players in franchise history to play 1,000 games with Washington and record 1,000 points.
“He’s a leader,” Ovechkin said. “He’s been in this organization all of his career. Me and him played together since day one and it’s kind of hard to see what’s happening right now. But we just support him and be with him.”
The Capitals will move forward in their schedule without Backstrom but there are no plans for official retirement and Backstrom plans to stick with the team as he tries to get back to feeling better. The general vibe of sadness but support was palpable in Ovechkin’s final response of the day.
“Well, we’re going to do as much as we can to help him,” Ovechkin said. “I think it’s just going to be mentally-wise, but what I can say? It’s a situation.”
Headline photo: Alan Dobbins/RMNB
