The Capitals winger said he has to address chronic back issues before deciding whether or not to play again.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — The biggest question mark from the Washington Capitals' breakdown day had to do with the glue of their team: T.J. Oshie. For general manager Brian MacLellan, it's still unclear what the future holds for No. 77.
MacLellan said that he is not sure what is next for Oshie, but that he met with the winger and that the first step is for him to take the time to reflect and look for answers on his end.
"A lot of respect for what he did here, to get to 1,000 games, to get to 300 goals, to help us push into the playoffs, to finish out the year. I thought he played well as the end. To go through what he did physically was impressive to watch," MacLellan said. "I don't know how long you want to keep doing that. But he'll take some time here and see where he's at physically, possible solutions for that and see how it works out."
As for when Oshie needs to make a decision by, MacLellan is not rushing the process and said he will give the 37-year-old the time he needs.
"I'm not going to put a date on what he wants to do. I told him we'll support him in whatever he wants, seek solutions," MacLellan said. "If he determines at some point that he feels good, he wants to come back to play, let's go that way. If he doesn't, we'll work it out that way, too.
Oshie said on Tuesday that he would love to return and isn't ready to straight out say he is done playing, but that he needs to address his health and find a solution to lingering back issues.
"In my mind, it would be hard for me to ever for sure say that I'm stepping away from the game. I'd love to play next year, but I will need to come back with somewhat of a guarantee that my back won't be (giving out)," Oshie said, adding, "If I'm in a state where I can't play, I'm usually literally on the floor peeing in water bottles. It sucks when that happens and I can't pick up kids or do any of that until I go see Dr. (Kerry) Johnson out Minnesota and he gets me all aligned, then I seem to feel a lot better."