With the 2021-22 NHL regular season nearing an end, the Washington Capitals will soon be looking forward to the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs. However, the collective beats of the Capital One Arena faithful skipped a beat in the third period of their game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, as captain Alex Ovechkin left the game with an upper-body injury.
With just a few minutes having passed in the final frame and the Capitals and Maple Leafs tied at 1-1, Ovechkin found himself all alone against Toronto netminder Erik Kallgren. As Ovechkin attempted to backhand the puck past Kallgren, the Leafs’ goalie stuck his stick out, tripping Ovechkin, who crashed shoulder-first into the end-boards.
The Capitals’ captain left for the dressing room and the Capitals announced that the nine-time 50-goal scorer would not return to the game due to an upper-body injury.
INJURY UPDATE: #Caps captain Alex Ovechkin sustained an upper body injury and will not return to tonight’s game.
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 25, 2022
After getting to his feet, Ovechkin was clearly unhappy that there was no tripping call on Kallgren and let the officials know his feelings before exiting; during the exchange, Ovechkin could be seen moving both arms.
#ALLCAPS https://t.co/fo4EdI8GuZ
— NoVa Caps (@NoVa_Caps) April 25, 2022
Peter Laviolette had no update following the game. T.J. Oshie was asked about Ovechkin following the game.
T.J. Oshie on Ovechkin: “I just talked to him and I think he’ll be all right. It’s always scary seeing Big 8 go down and lay on the ice. He’s a tough guy. But if there was anyone I would imagine wouldn’t miss any more time than he needs to, it’d be 8.”
— Samantha Pell (@SamanthaJPell) April 25, 2022
Ovechkin, who had 50 goals and 90 points in 76 Games Played entering tonight’s game, ranks fourth in the NHL in Goals, and recently became the oldest player in league history to score 50 goals in a single season.
By Michael Fleetwood
