Two of Alex Ovechkin’s primary linemates know where they stand on wanting the legendary winger to continue his NHL career beyond next season.
Dylan Strome and Tom Wilson both agreed that they want to see Ovechkin sign a contract extension with the Washington Capitals. The two high-scoring forwards let their feelings be known to NHL.com’s Mike Zeisberger after participating in the annual Smilezone Celebrity Golf Tournament at Lionhead Golf Club in Brampton, Ontario.
“Look, we don’t know if it’s going to be his final year,” Strome told Zeisberger. “You kind of see what he said a couple of days ago, that it’s preposterous that people would talk about that this will be his last year. I mean, obviously, it’s the final year of his contract, so anything can happen. It’s his decision, but I wouldn’t rule anything out. I certainly hope so.”
As Strome alludes to, Ovechkin has already commented on rumors about what could be the upcoming end of his NHL career several times this summer, with his latest words coming to RIA Novosti’s Andrey Senchenko last week. In that interview, The Great 8 indicates that he will play out the entirety of next season with the Capitals before deciding on his future.
Strome has set a new career high in points each of the last three seasons with the Capitals, playing as Ovechkin’s primary center. This past year, he recorded his first-ever 80-point campaign, notching 82 points (29g, 53a) in 82 games. He and Wilson also grabbed the two assists on Ovechkin’s record-breaking 895th career goal last April.
The 2025-26 campaign will be Ovechkin’s 21st in the NHL, and he will enter the year just three goals shy of becoming the first player ever to score 900 career goals. He is also just nine games away from becoming just the 23rd player to ever play in 1,500 career games.
“Who knows what he’s going to do?” Wilson said. “I mean, if it’s his last year, I don’t know. You can never doubt the guy. He could play two, three more years. He’s a guy who loves to score. He loves the game of hockey. We’ll see what happens. He’s going to knock down 900 [goals] and then start chipping away at the next milestone.”
Wilson has played much of his 12-season NHL career as the right wing on a line with Ovechkin, including during the 2018 playoffs when the Capitals won the franchise’s first Stanley Cup. Outside of helping Wilson’s stats on the ice, Ovechkin is also the Caps teammate he chose when asked which one makes him smile the most.
“It’s gotta be Ovi,” Wilson told TSN at the tournament. “He brings you in, takes you under his wing, and just a ton of fun to be around. You just never stop laughing around that guy.
“There’s never a dull moment. He doesn’t take himself too serious, that’s for sure. He’s just a lot of fun to go to work with every day.”
Ovechkin became eligible for an extension on July 1, as he’s heading into the final year of the five-year, $47.5 million ($9.5M AAV) contract he signed with the Capitals in 2021.
