Love him or hate him, Alex Ovechkin has already done the unthinkable: he’s scored more goals than any player in NHL history. Now, with 1,000 goals within reach, you’d think the Washington Capitals legend might be thinking about calling it a career. But not so fast. With a year left in his current contract and retirement chatter in the air, it seems only logical that there are some doubts about what will happen next: will Ovi retire after this season, or will he continue his pursuit of achieving more NHL milestones?
Well, it all started with a string of whispers, including a few off-hand remarks from Ovechkin’s wife, Anastasia Shubskaya, that got fans and media talking. Back in May, his wife said, “Alexander still has a contract for a year… So we will play the next season, and then fly back to live in Moscow, to our homeland. We will stay in Russia, yes.” Then came a major misstep by the Capitals organization: they sent out an email referring to next season as Ovechkin’s ‘last,’ which they quickly had to retract. The combination of those two moments created a firestorm of speculation that Ovi was about to announce his retirement at season’s end. But when asked directly, the 39-year-old made his stance clear.
According to RussianMachineNeverBreaks.com, Alex Ovechkin made it clear that he wasn’t thrilled with the growing retirement chatter. “Of course [there is no date set for his retirement],” Ovechkin said. “This is pure nonsense, which you (media) guys are starting to turn over and put Nastya in such a position. We’ll see.” Does that mean he is staying? Or he is leaving? The big question is that.
Alex Ovechkin shuts down all the rumors that next season will be his last in the NHL, calling the speculation “pure nonsense.”
The latest on the Capitals captain, who didn’t rule out continuing his career in D.C. in 2026-27. https://t.co/oJmFeFe3It
— Sammi Silber (@sammisilber) July 13, 2025
Ovechkin has not taken the step of signing a new NHL contract but he has not ruled out the possibility of playing for longer than 2025. And that is what has the Washington fans divided with some saying that the end is near whilst some saying that the Great Eight still has more to offer.
Alex Ovechkin’s uncertain future leaves some fans torn
Fans are torn as the 2025- 26 season is getting closer. Over the past two decades, Alex Ovechkin has become a record-breaker, a role model and a weight of the Washington Capitals. However, there are growing rumors of retirement and his contract is about to expire making emotions run high. “Love Ovi and all he’s done for the Caps… but hope this season is his last w/ Washington,” one fan commented online. Another added, “Let him have a great year, and then let him retire. Don’t hold him hostage.” Yet not everyone sees it that way: “Obviously… he’s only retiring once he can’t play anymore,” a fan replied, echoing what Ovechkin himself has hinted at. And there’s good reason to believe he’s not done just yet.
On July 1, Alex Ovechkin could have signed an extension to another contract, although at the moment he has not yet finalized any decisions or closed them. Nevertheless, he has kept an option of returning to Russia, perhaps to complete where he started: Dynamo Moscow. However, when Ovechkin was asked whether he intends to continue playing beyond the expiry of this contract, he was not categorical, and simply dropped a cool, open-ended reply: “Anything is possible.”
Do you remember? On April 6, 2025, he became the all-time leading goal scorer in his career, with 895 goals breaking the record of 894 by Wayne Gretzky. He also achieved his 700th assist mark last October and recorded a career 20 straight 20-goal seasons. By July 14, Alex Ovechkin has notched 897 NHL goals in his career, confidently ranking as the all-time goal leader in the league. This may or may not be his final tour but fans will be left with no doubt that they are witnessing greatness, shift by shift.
The frustration among fans is real, and raw. “F**k it…,” one fan vented online. Another wrote, “Just fell to my knees… why is he not retiring?” And perhaps most telling: “I take a back seat to nobody when it comes to being an Ovi fan… I wish he would retire now.” At 39 years old, the signs are there. Alex Ovechkin averaged just 17:47 of ice time per game during the 2024–25 season, a career low. Even his once-lethal power-play time dropped to just 4:10 per game, another personal low. Former Capitals coach Bruce Boudreau offered a warning that feels all too timely: “If the good outweighs the bad, don’t screw it up by trying to make the bad so much better…”
In other words: retire before the decline becomes the headline. Those signs of decline were clear in the 2025 playoffs. In Games 3-5 of the second-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes, Alex Ovechkin was held completely scoreless, zero goals or assists. In Game 5, he logged nearly 20 minutes of ice time, but finished with only three shots. And the slump wasn’t restricted to the postseason.
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