{"id":547754,"date":"2026-04-08T17:26:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T17:26:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/547754\/"},"modified":"2026-04-08T17:26:20","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T17:26:20","slug":"alex-ovechkin-defers-decision-on-return-to-nhl-next-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/547754\/","title":{"rendered":"Alex Ovechkin defers decision on return to NHL next season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alex Ovechkin needs more time. The NHL\u2019s all-time leading goal scorer has not made a final decision on his playing future and, instead, will share his plans for the 2026-27 season at a later date, Ovechkin said in an interview posted to the Washington Capitals\u2019 X account Wednesday morning.<\/p>\n

Asked by team broadcaster John Walton if he had made a decision about next season, Ovechkin said, \u201cNo, not yet. We\u2019re going to make a decision in the summer. I have to talk with Ted (Leonsis, team owner), with (general manager Chris Patrick), with Mac (president hockey operations Brian MacLellan), and I have to make a decision in the summer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked about the biggest factor in his decision, Ovechkin said, \u201cHealth-wise, I\u2019m going to be 41 in September, so you just have to be smart about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alex Ovechkin sat down with John Walton to discuss his plans to take time after the season to reflect and consult with his family before determining his future this summer.<\/p>\n

Catch their full conversation tonight on Caps Pregame Live on @MonSportsNet<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/J9jAKL5HJE<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Washington Capitals (@Capitals) April 8, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Ovechkin, 40, has four games remaining on the five-year, $47.5 million contract he signed in 2021. Speculation about his next step, especially as the Capitals\u2019 playoff hopes waxed and waned, has moved further to the foreground in recent days, though it has been something of a front-burner issue since the fall. The team, publicly and privately, has maintained that the decision is Ovechkin\u2019s to make.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to give him room as an organization to do what he wants to do. And we\u2019re going to be supportive of it,\u201d Capitals president of hockey operations Brian MacLellan told The Athletic in October. \u201cWhat he\u2019s done, the amount of respect we can give him, we\u2019re gonna give it to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ovechkin has three realistic courses of action. He could retire from hockey after 21 NHL seasons, all with Washington. He could sign a new contract with the Capitals. Or he could finish his career with Dynamo Moscow of Russia\u2019s KHL. Ovechkin spends his summers in his home country and played four seasons with Dynamo as a teenager before Washington drafted him with the No. 1 pick in 2004. He has said several times that he intends to play his final hockey in a Dynamo uniform \u2014 even if briefly.<\/p>\n

\u201cI grew up there. I played for Dynamo,\u201d Ovechkin told The Hockey Lifers podcast, hosted by Jeff Marek and former Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau, in November<\/a>. \u201cOf course, I want to play maybe one or two games. We\u2019ll see. You never know what\u2019s going to happen, right? Right now, I\u2019m here and I\u2019m enjoying my days here. We\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whatever choice Ovechkin makes regarding Dynamo, it will come after he officially concludes his time in Washington, where he was a franchise icon long before breaking Wayne Gretzky\u2019s career goals record last spring, in a chase that served as something of an early capstone on what was already one of the greatest careers in the history of the sport.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s a three-time winner of the Hart Trophy as the NHL\u2019s most valuable player, has led the league in scoring nine times and won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the 2018 postseason, during which the Capitals won the Stanley Cup for the only time in franchise history.<\/p>\n

This season, despite age and the deterioration of his 200-foot game, he still leads the team in goals, with 31. On March 31, he hit 30 for the 20th time in his career \u2014 another NHL record. The only time he missed that mark was in 2020-21, when the COVID-19 pandemic forced the NHL to play a 56-game schedule. That season, Ovechkin scored 24 times in 45 games.<\/p>\n

The Capitals, despite the disappointment of 2025-26, have successfully bridged Ovechkin\u2019s twilight with their next organizational phase, staying competitive during his record chase and positioning themselves to be relevant in the short- and medium-term, regardless of his decision. They\u2019re projected to have more than $35 million in salary-cap space this summer. Whether a chunk of that is dedicated in 2026-27 to a 41-year-old legend, though, remains an open question for at least a bit longer.<\/p>\n