Ovechkin excited to begin 21st season with Capitals, 'I still love the game'

ARLINGTON, Va. -- Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals had the day off from practice Sunday, their last without skating before they open the season by hosting the Boston Bruins at Capital One Arena on Wednesday (7:30 p.m. ET; HBO MAX, TNT).

Ovechkin still spent part of the day at Washington's practice facility, though, rooting on his 7-year-old son, Sergei, in his youth league game. Although Ovechkin is the NHL all-time leader in goals after passing Wayne Gretzky last season, the 40-year-old left wing is not much different from any other hockey parent when he and wife, Nastya, watch Sergei play.

"It's nice, but I'm nervous," the Capitals captain said. "I want him to be the best, but I'm cool with that. If he wants to be a hockey player, yeah, that's nice. If not, that's OK too."

A lot has changed for forward in the 20 years since he scored the first two of his 897 goals to lead Washington to a 3-2 victory in his NHL debut against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Oct. 5, 2005. He points to Sergei and 5-year-old son Ilya as the biggest differences.

Ovechkin's joy in playing, which he's passed along to Sergei and Ilya, has been a constant through it all and has him eager to get started on his 21st NHL season.

"I still love coming here every day, have fun, talk to the boys, talk to the coaches, trainers," Ovechkin said. "I'm just enjoying everything."

As captain, Ovechkin sets the tone for Washington with his determination and fun-loving approach to the game. His chase of the NHL goal record, which culminated with No. 895 on April 6 against the New York Islanders to overtake Gretzky (894), galvanized the Capitals throughout last season, when they surprised many by finishing first in the Eastern Conference with 111 points (51-22-9).

"Right when he walks into the rink every day, he's smiling, he's cracking jokes, he's laughing," Washington forward Connor McMichael said. "He just loves being around the game, and obviously he still plays at a real high-end level. We'll welcome him with open arms for as long as he wants."

Ovechkin remains in no rush to decide if he will play in the NHL beyond this season, though this is the last of the five-year, $47.5 million contract ($9.5 million average annual value) he signed July 27, 2021. He said he has yet to talk about his future with Capitals general manager Chris Patrick or owner Ted Leonsis, who are content with giving him the space and time he needs to decide what he wants to do.

"I'm just going to enjoy it," Ovechkin said of the season. "I'm going to enjoy the season, and we'll see what’s going to happen."

Forward Tom Wilson, who is beginning his 13th season with the Capitals, said, "it wouldn't be a surprise for me" if Ovechkin is back next season. Wilson also has learned Ovechkin has a knack for proving wrong those who expect him to slow down because of his age.

"He's superhuman in a way and just keeps defying odds," Wilson said. "He's truly just achieved greatness all the time. There's other superstars, you watch documentaries and they get tired of it and they need a break mentally from it, [but] not him. He's just a great hockey player through and through, and he loves being a part of the team and leading the way.

"So as long as his body and his mind are good, I think he'll just keep going."

Ovechkin, who turned 40 on Sept. 17, acknowledged that getting ready for and getting through a season isn't as easy as it used to be. A lower-body injury caused him to miss about a week of practice during training camp, but he returned to play in Washington's final two preseason games and said, "Everything's fine" now.

He missed 16 games last season -- the longest layoff of his career -- because of a fractured left fibula, but he still tied for third in the NHL with 44 goals.

"Obviously it gets harder and harder because you're 40 years old and your body might not feel as good," Ovechkin said. "But thank God I'm feeling pretty good and I'm ready for the year. I'm excited, I still love the game, and the most important thing, I still have fun."

The No. 1 pick at the 2004 NHL Draft, Ovechkin has been invigorated in recent seasons by the infusion of younger players in the Capitals lineup, such as McMichael, 24, and fellow forwards Aliaksei Protas, 24; Hendrix Lapierre, 23; and Ryan Leonard, 20. Being around them brings back memories from the start of his career and pushes him to pay forward what he's learned the past two decades.

"I remember when I was a kid and I came here with the Caps and there were lots of experienced guys and they helped me out," he said. "So I'm going to do the same thing. I'm going to try to do my best on the ice and off the ice and show them what I can do."

Although the goal-record chase is behind Ovechkin, there are other individual milestones within his reach this season. He needs three goals to become the first player to score 900 and is nine games shy of 1,500 in his NHL career.

"I think 1,500 games is important, but 900 goals no one has scored," Ovechkin said. "So that's going to be very interesting and that's a going to be a big number."

With a Capitals-record 1,623 points entering this season, Ovechkin is 19 from passing Joe Sakic (1,641) for 10th in the League. He and longtime rival Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins (1,687) each have a chance to join the NHL's 1,700-point club, which currently includes only eight players.

"Obviously he's the greatest goal-scorer of all-time, but he's also one of the best players of all-time," Washington center Pierre-Luc Dubois said. "People will argue where he ranks, but even if it stopped today he would be among the best players of all-time. I'm not chasing any records; I'm not even close to chasing any. So for him to chase, it seems like, a new record every day is pretty special."

What motivates Ovechkin most, though, is having another chance to win the Stanley Cup. Before last season, the Capitals hadn't won a Stanley Cup Playoff series since winning the their lone championship in 2018. They defeated the Montreal Canadiens in five games in the Eastern Conference First Round before losing to the Carolina Hurricanes in five games, so they will have some work to do to advance farther this season.

That begins Wednesday.

"It's not going to be the same like last year," Ovechkin said. "We're going to try to do our best. Obviously last year was a tremendous year for us. Lots of young guys got experience to play in the playoffs, so I think it's going to help us a lot. The most important thing is we have to have luck. We have to have healthy players and everything will be fine."