Alex Ovechkin decides to come back, signs 1-year deal with Capitals

With the Washington Capitals’ season wrapped up and some time to think, hockey legend Alex Ovechkin has decided he’s not done.

Ovechkin signed a one-year, $4.25 million contract for 2026-27, the team announced Thursday.

One of the greatest players of all time, Ovechkin broke records many thought were untouchable. In 2025, he passed Wayne Gretzky as the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer.

Ovechkin made his way to the top with flair, changing the game for generations to come with his enthusiasm and passion. His signature celebrations, from jumping into the boards to the arm pump from one knee, have been mimicked by youth hockey players who eventually made their way to the NHL.

The Capitals have spent recent weeks reloading the roster, presumably to give Ovechkin a chance to have another playoff run and chase a second Stanley Cup championship. They added top wingers Alex Tuch and Jordan Kyrou via trade, then signed center Boone Jenner and defenseman Vincent Desharnais in free agency.

Ovechkin’s NHL career has run parallel to Pittsburgh Penguin Sidney Crosby’s. In addition to playing for rival teams, they played with rival personalities and styles. While Crosby was a clean-cut, disciplined character who played with technique and skill, Ovechkin was a boisterous, hard-hitting power player who flouted convention.

Both have played their entire careers with the teams that drafted them. Together, they forced the other’s star to shine brighter, and as the years passed, disdain gave way to mutual respect. They are credited with saving the NHL by garnering interest when the league was floundering.

Now they both have teammates who were born after they started playing in the NHL.

While Crosby has one more year left on his contract, Ovechkin’s was up after the 2025-26 season.

At age 40, Ovechkin did not know if he was ready to move on from the NHL or if he wanted to come back.

In his final home game of the season, the team paid tribute to Ovechkin in case it was his last game in Washington. After the game, Ovechkin said he needed time to decide and would have an answer in the offseason.

The final game was against Crosby and the Penguins. The Pittsburgh captain had the team wait on the ice to shake Ovechkin’s hand, but he waved him off. That prompted Evgeni Malkin, another Penguins legend, Ovechkin contemporary and fellow Russian, to say he thought Ovechkin would return.

Malkin, who has gone through ups and downs with Ovechkin but is friends with him, was also at the end of his contract. He signed a one-year extension May 26.

Ovechkin holds the record for most goals in regular-season history and is the only player to have more than 900. He has the most goals with one team in NHL history and also leads in 30-goal seasons (19) and 40-goal seasons (14). He’s tied with Gretzky and Mike Bossy with nine 50-goal seasons.

He’s been awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy, which goes to the most valuable player in the regular season, three times and the Conn Smythe Trophy, which goes to the most valuable player in the playoffs, once.

In addition to all the records, Ovechkin has left a lasting impact on the hockey community and the D.C. region. He is heavily involved with the American Special Hockey Association and has contributed time and money. He has also taken time to talk to youth players when he encounters them.

Last season, Ovechkin was one of the oldest players in the league. He has stated he wants to play for his first professional team, the Moscow Dynamo, before he retires, so some fans have said they wouldn’t be surprised if he leaves the NHL while he can still play.

Others said they can’t ever imagine him retiring.

But fans made their desire known in the team’s home finale in April as they chanted “One! More! Year!”

Ovechkin decided to grant that wish.