Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin was having an hot start to his season. However, that hot start was cut short when the superstar suffered a knee injury after colliding with Jack McBain during last night's game against Utah. Not much is known about the nature of the injury, but the belief now is that Ovi is week-to-week. What does this mean for Washington and for Ovechkin as he chases the Great One's record?
Impact on Ovechkin's record breaking season
Ovechkin came into this season with 853 career goals, 41 goals short of Wayne Gretzky's career goals record of 894. With the pace that Ovechkin was on this season, he may well have broken it. After last year, I believed that it would take No. 8 two more seasons to break the record. That was until he scored 15 goals in 18 games. Now, with his injury, the record could have to wait until next season. However, Ovechkin is not injured often. Ovi has been a tank his whole career, and rarely misses a lot of games. The fewest games Ovechkin has played in a single regular season was 48 back in the 2012-2013 season.
I don't believe that Ovechkin will be out for an extended period, but that depends on the severity. Looking at the hit last night and how he reacted, he could be out for a decent length of time. I would be shocked if Ovechkin plays in the next two weeks, and even more shocked if he breaks the record this season, which would require him to score at an even higher pace. The momentous moment in history will most likely have to wait.
What does this mean for the Capitals?
Now for what I'm sure Washington fans are a little more worried about. What about our playoff chances? Is the team screwed until our best player comes back? Honestly, no I don't think so. The Capitals have had a good team for the last few years, and while losing Ovechkin will hurt, the rest of the team is playing well. Players such as center Dylan Strome, who leads the team in points with 28 in 18 games, will miss Ovi, but that doesn't mean they can't play without him.
Strome has been setting up a lot of Ovechkin's goals for most of the season. Who's to say he can't do that for the other forwards he'll be lined up with, or with fellow center Connor McMichael, who's second on the team in goals with 12, on the power play? Of course, there will be players that need to step up, but I see no reason why the Capitals can't keep up how they've played so far.
They will most likely not win games they would have won with Ovechkin against teams like the Carolina Hurricanes or the New Jersey Devils, but games that the team is supposed to win, they will win. Ovechkin is not the only reason for the Caps' success, and I think that the team will make that clear over the coming weeks. If Ovechkin can come back sooner rather than later, which career trends indicate is true, Washington should be right back to the team they were at the start of the season: competing for a high seed, and a chance at a deep playoff run.