Washington Capitals confirm Ovenchin's fate

However, in an unexpected twist, the team later issued an official statement claiming the email was sent in error. While Ovechkin is currently spending the summer in Russia, his wife has now confirmed that he does, in fact, plan to play out his final season.

The Washington Capitals said Thursday that no decision has been made on Alex Ovechkin's future in the NHL after an email was sent to season-ticket holders calling next season his last.

The team on social media said that the email was mistakenly sent by someone in the corporate sales department.

Ovechkin broke Wayne Gretzky's career goal-scoring record this spring and now has a total of 897. The upcoming 2025-26 season is his last on his current contract, signed in 2021, and he turns 40 in September.

Ovechkin has said he intends to play next season, which would be his 21st in the league.

Ovechkin is heading into the final year of his current contract with the Capitals, and with him having broken Wayne Gretzky's all-time goals record already this season, it wouldn't be that crazy for 2025-26 to be Ovechkin's last. Ovechkin will turn 40 in September.

Ovechkin broke the all-time goals record late this past season thanks to a 44 goal campaign which helped the Capitals win the Metro for the first time since the 2019-20 season. After winning their first round matchup against the Montreal Canadiens in five games, the Capitals were bounced by the Carolina Hurricanes in round two of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Will Ovechkin play longer than one more season? Time will tell.

More details to follow.