Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin Out 4-6 Weeks With Fractured Fibula – Hockey Writers – NHL News

After suffering an injury early in the third period against the Utah Hockey Club on November 18, the Washington Capitals announced that forward Alex Ovechkin is out for four to six weeks with a fractured left fibula. If the timeline is accurate, this means he could miss about a dozen or more games in his 2024-25 campaign.

RT @CapitalsPR: Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin was re-examined by team doctors. It was confirmed that Ovechkin has a fracture in his left fibula and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

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— The Hockey Writers (@thehockeywriters.bsky.social) November 21, 2024 at 5:43 PM

The 39-year-old was having a season in DC, but his injury stopped that. Through 18 games, he has 15 goals (0.83 goals per game), 25 points, and an assist average of 15. His performance paved the way for the Capitals to become one of the best teams in the NHL at 13-4-1, third in the ranking. Despite the team's success, however, he had his own ambitions to pursue.

Sitting at 868 goals, Ovechkin needed just 27 over his team's last 64 games (0.42 goals per game, nearly half his current pace) to surpass Wayne Gretzky's all-time record of 894 this spring . He can still accomplish this in theory, but it will be the biggest battle for Washington's longtime captain.

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More importantly for the Capitals as a team, losing their most important player for up to six weeks could cause them to hit a wall. They have been coming to this point with a goal difference of plus-28, but their game may take a turn for the worse without their captain. Ovechkin is the leading scorer this season, after all.