Ovechkin missed the final three games of the regular season but is good-to-go for Game 1 vs. the Panthers. Ovechkin's outstanding career continued in 2022, scoring 50+ goals for the ninth time and 90+ points for the sixth time.
Ovechkin was on the ice for the Capitals morning skate but will not play Thursday against the Islanders. With Ovechkin out, Conor Sheary and T.J Oshie will skate on the top line with Evgeny Kuznetsov.
Ovechkin left Sunday's game vs. Toronto with an upper-body injury after crashing into the boards. He was not on the ice for Tuesday's morning skate and will be a game-time decision vs. the Islanders. Connor McMichael is expected to replace him in the lineup if he can't play.
After recently testing positive for COVID-19, Ovechkin was not eligible to travel to Canada for Thursday's game against the Canadiens. Brett Leason was recalled from Hershey (AHL) and will likely take Ovechkin's spot in the lineup.
Ovechkin missed the final game before the All-Star break but has cleared COVID-19 protocol and is expected to play Tuesday vs. the Blue Jackets. However, he will not be eligible to travel to Montreal for Thursday's game.
Ovechkin will miss Wednesday's game vs. the Oilers and will also be forced to miss the All-Star Game this weekend. Aliaksei Protas will likely draw into the lineup to replace him.
Ovechkin has been dealing with a minor lower-body injury but was on the ice for Wednesday’s morning skate and it appears he will be available for the Capitals’ season opener. However, Ovechkin told reporters he did not know if he was playing tonight, so consider him a game-time decision.
Ovechkin's cap-hit doesn't change much, going from $9.539M AAV to $9.5M for the next five seasons. Ovechkin currently sits sixth on the all-time goal-scoring list, 164 goals behind Wayne Gretzky for first. A five-year contract will take Ovechkin to 40-years-old and he will need to average 32.8 goals per season to reach Gretzky's mark. He has averaged 52 goals per 82 games over the last three seasons.
Ovechkin has missed the last three games but was on the ice for Monday's practice and will be a game-time decision on Tuesday. The Capitals' are locked into second place in the East, so Tuesday's game does not matter. It will be interesting to see if Ovechkin draws in to get back up to speed or not.
Ovechkin tried to return to the lineup on Monday but only lasted one shift. He'll continue to sit out on Wednesday, potentially leaving the Capitals shorthanded upfront.
Ovechkin has missed the last four games with a lower-body injury but will be a game-time decision on Monday, so monitor his status as the Capitals hit the ice for warmups at 6:30 PM ET.
