Alex Ovechkin gathered his Washington Capitals teammates to deliver the news himself: his 22nd NHL season, the one just getting underway, will be his last. The 41-year-old captain and the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer made the announcement before it went public, wanting his teammates to hear it directly from him rather than find out through a headline.
According to NHL.com, Ovechkin said he and his family had already settled on the decision months earlier. “My family and I decided this summer that this will be my final year in the NHL,” he said. The announcement came on Monday in Arlington, Virginia, closing a chapter on one of the longest tenures in American professional sports.
Per NBC Sports, it mattered to Ovechkin and his family that his fellow players learn the news first, before anyone else outside the locker room. He signed a one-year contract over the summer and is playing out this final campaign at age 41, the outlet reported.
A Farewell Season Already in Motion
Ovechkin has spent all 22 of his NHL seasons with Washington, compiling 1,688 career points — 929 goals and 759 assists — across 1,575 games, numbers confirmed by NHL.com. He is the league's all-time leading goal scorer, having broken Wayne Gretzky's career goals record in April 2025, as noted by the same NBC Sports report. He captained the Capitals to the franchise's first Stanley Cup championship in 2018.
He already made his season debut on Oct. 2 in Carolina, a game that, per NHL.com, made him the longest-tenured athlete in Washington, D.C., professional sports history. That milestone places him alongside a short list of NHL legends: NHL.com reports that Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby are now the only active players to join Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio, Stan Mikita and Steve Yzerman in playing 22 seasons with a single franchise.
The chase for history isn't over yet. Ovechkin enters his farewell season just 11 goals shy of Wayne Gretzky's combined regular-season and playoff record of 1,016, according to NHL.com. He already made headlines in March when, as ESPN reported, he became just the second player in league history to reach 1,000 combined regular-season and playoff goals — a mark Gretzky first hit with his 1,016 total.
A Message to a Rebuilt Roster
Ovechkin's message to teammates wasn't just about his own career arc. NBC Sports reports he told them, “Let's make the playoffs, let's have fun and enjoy the moment,” framing the farewell season as a shared goal rather than a victory lap. The Capitals narrowly missed the postseason in April, and the Washington Post has described the current roster as a young core that is locked in heading into this year.
The team's offseason moves suggest an organization built to chase one more run alongside its captain. Washington added pieces around that young core this summer in pursuit of a deep playoff push, and Ovechkin has said the team has what it takes to make the postseason and enjoy the ride.
Washington opens its home schedule on Wednesday, giving fans their first chance to see Ovechkin on home ice since the announcement. The Capitals captain, a three-time Hart Trophy winner, nine-time NHL scoring leader and 2018 Conn Smythe winner, has made clear this final lap is about more than personal milestones — even as he closes in on the most hallowed goal-scoring record in hockey history.
