Whether Alex Ovechkin keeps playing in the NHL remains among the largest questions looming over Washington as the franchise settles into the opening weeks of its offseason.
Few people are positioned to read the situation better than TJ Oshie, the ex-Washington winger, and for a couple of reasons. The forward, who won the Stanley Cup in 2018, faced his own call about hanging up the skates only a year ago. On top of that, he counts Ovechkin among his closest friends and sat down privately with the star shortly before the club closed out its regular season in Columbus.
Appearing on a podcast titled "Home by 3," Oshie explained that his read had flipped in just seven days. A week earlier, he said, he would have told anyone the captain was finished. But after working the team’s season finale in Columbus, things changed. He recalled meeting up with the group the previous evening for a few drinks, and once everyone else cleared out, he and Ovechkin lingered for roughly an hour talking one-on-one. Oshie figured the captain had to ride out the year and gauge how his body held up. His prediction: Ovechkin likely returns for a genuine farewell campaign. He also sensed the star needed a break from the spotlight following the record chase.
Oshie added that he expects the deal to be a single season, and suspected the terms might tilt slightly in the player's favor rather than the organization's — something like a token of appreciation for all he has given. He stressed the take was entirely his own and that he hadn't run it past anybody, certainly not the front office. One factor behind his lean toward a comeback, he noted, was the captain's young children, who adore the sport and never miss watching their dad. The kids turn up for everything, he said, pressed against the glass even on a school-night game starting at 7:30. Oshie believed the captain wants another season skating while they watch from the stands, which is why he expects a return.
1 more year for Ovechkin?? @TJOshie77 weighs in pic.twitter.com/Mt0orL4nRS — Home by 3 (@HomeBy3Official) April 18, 2026
That nod to Sergei and Ilya, the captain's two hockey-mad boys, as a driving force behind a possible comeback lands with extra weight given that Ovechkin himself raised them when he met with reporters on Breakdown Day on Thursday.
Ovechkin told the media that his sons are pushing for him to return because of their love for the city, the franchise, and the players.
As for the price tag the captain would carry, Washington should be flush with room under the cap — PuckPedia pegs it at $36.6 million — leaving the club enough to look after the captain and still strengthen the lineup. That second piece carries real importance, since getting back to the postseason and chasing the organization's second title sit among the conditions the captain wants satisfied before agreeing to another campaign.
The captain earned $9.5 million over the campaign just finished, and per AFPAnalytics a one-year extension could carry a comparable $9.1 million cap charge. Washington stands to benefit from a crop of promising youngsters — Ryan Leonard, Cole Hutson, and Ilya Protas among them — all projected to play sizable roles while still attached to their entry-level deals.
When he met reporters on Breakdown Day, the captain signaled that a conversation with GM Chris Patrick had not happened yet. ESPN's Emily Kaplan has reported that the team hopes to learn his plans before this year's draft, slated for June 26-27.
Absent a fresh contract by that deadline, the captain would officially reach unrestricted free agency once July 1 arrives.