Alex Ovechkin is uncommitted to playing another NHL season after the current 2025-26 campaign. The Great 8’s contract with the Washington Capitals expires next summer, and he’s admitted that he plans to play out the entire year before deciding on his future.
Given the uncertainty, Ovechkin’s introduction at Capital One Arena ahead of what could be his final Home Opener as a member of the Capitals’ roster felt more special than usual. The memorable moment, significant to thousands of Caps fans, was also not lost on veteran winger and longtime close Ovechkin teammate, Tom Wilson.
“Yeah, I mean, it’s so cool,” Wilson said postgame on Wednesday. “The crowd starts chanting ‘Ovi,’ and those are the moments you just try and take in. You get the shivers and stuff. You stand there, and you just try and take it in and remember it forever, because you can’t take those moments for granted.”
Ovechkin’s introduction by Capitals PA announcer Wes Johnson was a little different this year for another reason, too. The legendary winger took to the ice to begin a season for the first time as the NHL’s new goals king after overtaking Wayne Gretzky in April.
After the rest of the Capitals, including Wilson, were introduced, it was Ovechkin’s turn to be greeted by Caps fans.
“And, finally, the NHL’s all-time goals leader and your captain, the Great 8, Alex Oooooovechkin,” Johnson yelled.
Wilson has played much of his 12-season NHL career as the right wing on a line with Ovechkin, including during the 2018 playoffs when the Capitals won the franchise’s first Stanley Cup. The two have become close friends, especially as Wilson’s role with the team has grown.
“He brings you in, takes you under his wing, and just a ton of fun to be around,” Wilson said in July. “You just never stop laughing around that guy. There’s never a dull moment. He doesn’t take himself too serious, that’s for sure. He’s just a lot of fun to go to work with every day.”
Ovechkin himself also appreciated the reaction he received from the Capitals faithful before the start of the 21st season of his historic career.
“Yeah, it’s great,” Ovechkin said. “It’s sold out. Fans give us lots of energy. So, it was pretty cool.”
While Ovechkin was kept off the scoresheet, remaining three goals away from 900 in his career, Wilson scored the lone Capitals goal in the team’s 3-1 loss to the Boston Bruins. The Caps will get their next chance to send fans home happy when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at Capital One Arena next Tuesday.
