Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby faced off for the 100th time in their NHL careers in what could be Ovechkin’s final home game as he ponders retirement in the off-season.
WASHINGTON — Dylan Strome didn't mind.
After a suggestion from referee Chris Rooney, the 28-year-old center lined up for the opening draw against Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and did what he could to jump the gun, getting himself excused from the face-off dot.
He then tapped in Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin, so that the big man himself could take that opening draw against Crosby in their 100th — and potentially final — matchup.
Strome knew what the fans wanted, and the result: another standing ovation, one of several that filled the air at Capital One Arena on Sunday afternoon, turning the rivalry showdown from a must-win playoff game for Washington into a ceremony fit for a king. In this case, Ovechkin was the king.
King Alex, who owns the NHL's all-time goals record, has transformed a franchise and a city as a whole.
"If it's O's last game, you want to give him the right tribute," Strome said, adding, "I was all-in... I was obviously fine with it and just stepped aside and let the two big guys handle it."
That said, Ovechkin didn't necessarily want a sendoff in this game, because it might not mark the end of his storied NHL journey. He's saving that decision for the off-season, when he'll be able to get some rest and consult with family and friends on whether or not he has another year in him.
Even when the Penguins lingered on the ice after the final buzzer to shake his hand, Ovechkin waved them off.
"I don't decide yet," he clarified postgame, taking questions with his sons, Sergei and Ilya, on his flanks. "Thanks to them to wait out there."
Alex Ovechkin salutes the fans in what could be his final home game in a Washington Capitals uniform. (Geoff Burke-Imagn Images)But he also didn't want to say goodbye because, in the midst of D.C.'s playoff push, he didn't want the spotlight, no matter how much he's drawn himself into it over the last 21 years and change.
"One thing that you guys have come to know about O is he never wants to make it about him," coach Spencer Carbery said matter-of-factly, adding, "If I go in the (locker room) and talk about him and the gravity of this night and celebrating him, he'd pull me aside after that and say, 'What the hell are you doing?'"
Like it or not, though, he got the fanfare and the pedigree that comes with being one of the greats. Because if this is goodbye, at least the District could do it the right way.
That it did.
Before players could even take the ice, Washington played a video titled "GR8NESS" on the jumbotron, which, after celebrating all the team's milestones throughout the season, turned the spotlight on Ovechkin and his milestones, from his 900th career goal to his 1,000th combined tally.
Ovechkin then led his teammates out of the tunnel, where, after being announced as a starter, he received nearly a minute-long standing ovation that delayed the start of the national anthem. In response, the captain offered a smile and a wave, wanting to get down to business.
The Ovi chants broke out again after puck drop, and it took less than 30 seconds for fans to start calling for "one more year! One more year!" From there, every time Ovechkin touched the puck, made a hit or even blocked a shot, the chorus continued, shift after shift, en route to a 3-0 win that keeps Washington's playoff hopes alive.
"How I said on the bench, the fans always support me, support organization, team, boys. It was loud," Ovechkin said. "It was the energy, what we need."
Ovechkin himself finished the night with an assist, three shots and a team-leading five hits through 16:11 minutes of ice time.
"Guess he's going for the hits record still," Tom Wilson quipped. "He's a machine. I love the guy, so proud of the way that just every night, he steps up in a different way. It's been so fun to be a part of... we're all hoping he keeps going."
As the clock hit zero, Ovechkin celebrated with his team, and then, after lingering for a moment with his teammates and sending the Penguins to the room, he raised his stick to the crowd, then fist bumped his sons before leaving the ice sheet. He came out one last time as the first star, raising his hands in applause and saluting the crowd, then walked down the tunnel for what could be the final time.
"What he's done for this city, you can't really put into words. He's literally changed the game of hockey, he's changed everything in this city. What he's done, it may not ever be done again for a franchise," Wilson said. "He was so important to the league and so important to the game of hockey, so important to the city… There's hundreds of thousands of kids that play the game because of him and look up to him every day, and he's worn all that and just done it with class."
For Ovechkin, though, he wasn't thinking about the possibility of being done. Instead, he just relished sharing the night with the city he calls home.
"Thank you very much, guys," Ovechkin said to the fans after the game. "I love you so much."
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