Geoff Burke — Imagn ImagesARLINGTON, V.A. — After 20 years of NHL opening nights with the Washington Capitals, captain Alex Ovechkin still feels nerves as he goes into his 21st campaign.
"For me personally, I can’t wait until it starts," Ovechkin said, adding it'll be a "nervous night" as he and the team get back into the rhythm of regular season action.
While he admittedly doesn't feel much different, it's a pivotal season for the 40-year-old, who broke the all-time goals record last season and is in the final year of his contract.
Ovechkin still hasn't made any decisions when it comes to what's next, and said that as the season starts, he's not thinking much about the future.
"I don't know," Ovechkin said. "I just take it day by day. You have fun, you have to enjoy yourself and try to do the best that you can."
When asked if there's a specific time he wants to discuss his next steps with general manager Chris Patrick for planning purposes, Ovechkin shrugged.
“You should talk to him, not me," he said. "But how I said, I think this is the time of the year where you just have to get ready emotionally, physically, and we’ll see how it goes the whole year.”
Ovechkin, who dealt with injury through the start of training camp, said he's feeling "okay" physically and will try to use these opening games to get back in the swing of things. He'll start the season on the first line with Dylan Strome and Aliaksei Protas.
The Capitals kick off the season on Wednesday at home against the Boston Bruins.