Alex Ovechkin retirement email controversy, explained
Alex Ovechkin will turn 40 years old before the 2025-26 NHL season begins. Already a Stanley Cup Champion and the league's record-holder for all-time goals scored, it's been clear for awhile now the Great 8's career wouldn't last much longer.
Advertisement
On Thursday, hockey fans everywhere were told Ovechkin had one season left in him. The Washington icon would hang up his skates for good after the 2025-26 campaign. It felt like a trustworthy report, too, since the news was anticlimactically announced with a single line in an email to season ticket holders.
But while the email was real, the contents were incorrect. Let us explain.
Wait, what? The Capitals sent out an email that Ovechkin was retiring after next season and then immediately walked it back?
Yep. That seems to be what happened here. An email went out to season ticket holders purporting October 2025 as the start of Ovechkin's final season. Many media outlets ran with the story, naturally, as the news came from the team itself.
Advertisement
However the announcement felt off.
Full disclosure: this was going to be a post about how weird it was that the news was broken via email to season ticket holders as opposed to say, the a big splash from the NHL, a major insider like Darren Dreger, Capitals owner Ted Leonsis or, obviously, Ovechkin himself.
We learned why shortly after. The email was apparently sent as a mistake.
A mistake!?
Hey, it happens!
DC Backcheck's Sammi Silber got to the bottom of this all rather quickly. Silber confirmed with the team the email was incorrect.
"An alleged marketing email went out to Capitals fans today saying this will be Alex Ovechkin's final NHL season. Got word from the team that this is NOT accurate and nothing was sent," Silber reported.
Advertisement
"Neither Washington nor Ovechkin has officially announced anything confirming this, though he intends to play out the final year of his contract. At breakdown day, president of hockey operations Brian MacLellan even said he wouldn't rule anything out when it came to No. 8 regarding a potential extension."
Have the Capitals said anything publically?
Yep. They quickly jumped online to confirm the email "mistakenly alluded to next year being Alex Ovechkin's final year".
Give it to us straight: Is Ovi retiring in 2025-26 or what?
Who knows!? At this point it truly seems no decision has been made.
Advertisement
"When he is ready to announce what's next, he will," Silber wrote. "He returned to Moscow, but that is routine for the 39-year-old every offseason. Still, as he pushes 40 and as the Capitals prepare for the next era without him, expect he and coach Spencer Carbery to discuss what exactly his role will be next year and if his minutes will start to cut back."
What we can say is that Ovechkin's contract expires at the end of next season. And while it seems impossible to imagine Ovi playing anywhere other than in Washington, surely hockey fans felt the same before seeing Gordie Howe playing for the Whalers, Ray Bourque playing for the Avalanche or Martin Broduer playing for the Blues.
Ovechkin has accomplished just about all he can on the ice throughout his career. He deserves to have the final say in how his time in the NHL ends. And when that time comes, fans should get to hear it from him — whether or not they have Caps season tickets.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Alex Ovechkin retirement email controversy, explained
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'My Heart Beat Faster': Sergei Fedorov Recaps Finding Out Of Jersey Retirement News
The iconic No. 91 jersey of former Detroit Red Wings forward Sergei Fedorov will soon be taking its rightful place in the rafters of Little Caesars Arena, and will be displayed alongside the eight previously retired numbers that include his teammates Steve Yzerman and Nicklas Lidstrom. Over 22 years after his departure from the franchise in a contentious free agency saga, Fedorov is being appropriately honored for his time in Detroit that included three Stanley Cup wins, a 1994 Hart Trophy win, multiple All-Star Game appearances, and several other personal accolades. Fedorov revealed how he found out about the news from Red Wings CEO Chris Ilitch, saying that his heart instantly began beating faster when he learned of the honor. 'The day before, I had been told to expect a call,' Fedorov said via 'I understood the general idea but didn't ask too many questions. I've always had a good, respectful relationship with the organization. The next day, I got a message saying that Chris Ilitch would be calling me. My heart immediately started beating faster." 'When we spoke, we first exchanged the usual questions about how things were going, how our families were doing, and then he shared the news with me. Honestly, in the first three or four minutes of the conversation, I wasn't 100 percent sure where it was headed." Fedorov explained that a wave of nostalgia overtook him as Ilitch began describing some of the amazing accomplishments that he helped the franchise achieve. "But then he started listing all of our victories, our achievements, and how long it took to get there," he said. "At that moment, it took my breath away. Memories rushed back—our struggles, our bumps along the road, and of course that unforgettable parade of emotions after winning our first Stanley Cup." Fedorov was one of the key elements in Detroit's 1997 Stanley Cup victory, which was the franchise's first title in 42 years. But his relationship with the team took a turn in the months that followed after he held out of Training Camp and the first several months of the regular season as part of a contract dispute. Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. Fedorov also signed a lucrative offer-sheet from the Carolina Hurricanes, owned at the time by bitter Mike Ilitch business adversary Peter Karmanos. The Red Wings matched the offer sheet and ended up paying Fedorov $28 million in 1998 alone, which included a $2 million base salary, a $14 million signing bonus, and a $12 million bonus for reaching the Conference Final, which they did en route to a second straight Stanley Cup win. Fedorov remained with the Red Wings through 2003, adding another Stanley Cup to his résumé in 2002. That offseason, in a controversial move, he signed a free-agent contract with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, the very team that had eliminated Detroit in the opening round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs just months earlier in a stunning four-game sweep. For many Red Wings fans, the decision felt like a betrayal after they had spent over a decade cheering him. When Fedorov returned to Hockeytown in December 2003 with the Mighty Ducks, he was met with relentless boos. Thankfully, the passage of time has mended the fences between not only Fedorov and the organization, but with the fans. Fedorov's No. 91 will raised to the rafters at Little Caesars Arena on January 12, and no doubt the cheers will be deafening - not only from fans who were fortunate enough to watch his Red Wings career in real time as it unfolded, but also from younger fans who know his brilliance only through highlight reels. Never miss a story by adding us to your Google News favorites.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Sabres Didn't Lose In Regulation Time Against Canucks Last Year -- Can Buffalo Play As Well Against Vancouver In 2025-26?
The Buffalo Sabres need to play well against just about every opponent next season in order to get back into the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time in a decade-and-a-half. And one team that could stand in their way against Buffalo is a team needing a rebound year -- the Vancouver Canucks. in our continuing series on Sabres site, we're looking at each of the Sabres' 31 opponents next year. And in this file, we're focused on the Canucks, whom Buffalo didn't lose to in regulation time last season. Vancouver made a notable addition in former Edmonton Oilers winger Evander Kane, but otherwise, the Canucks are mostly the same team as they were last season. That said, we want to know your opinion on the Sabres' rivalry against Vancouver. Do you think Buffalo will play at least as well against the Canucs as they did last year? Be sure to make your opinion known in the comment section below. And feel free to register as a community member on Your opinion matters, and we want to hear it.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Canadiens: Hutson's Big Payday Will Come
It's been a busy offseason for general manager Kent Hughes. The Montreal Canadiens GM stole the show at the NHL draft when he acquired Noah Dobson from the New York Islanders, before sending Cayden Primeau to the Carolina Hurricanes and Logan Mailloux to the St. Louis Blues for some much-needed help up front.
