Times Are Changing, And So Is Ovechkin's Role In Year 21 With The Capitals: 'It's Not Quantity, It's Quality Now With O'

Here's a closer look at how Alex Ovechkin's role is changing and how the Capitals are managing his minutes at this point in his career.

WASHINGTON — Alex Ovechkin’s not blind to the fact that times are changing.

With Ovechkin still getting back in the swing of things and feeling just “okay,” as he noted after a 3-1 season-opening loss to the Boston Bruins, the 40-year-old saw coach Spencer Carbery manage his minutes as he shook off some rust.

On a handful of the team’s power-play opportunities, Ovechkin didn’t linger for the full two minutes as he usually did, instead getting off when the rest of the first unit did. He ended up logging 18:16 minutes, while Aliaksei Protas managed one minute more and Tom Wilson led all forwards with 22:15 minutes.

“He had some good opportunities, some good looks, but some situations that you know he would like to do more with,” Carbery said. “It’ll take some time, and he’ll get back into it.”

“We’re gonna try different things and we’ll see what’s gonna work,” Ovechkin said.

Of course, that’s easier said than done; the Capitals captain still loves the game, and maintains the unrelenting drive to score and play shift after shift. At the same time, he can still rip the puck, and scoring prowess and vision don’t fade with time.

But after 21 seasons, things start to slow down, and top-line minutes aren’t always possible — or realistic. He and the Capitals aren’t hiding from that.

“It’s not quantity. It’s quality with ‘O’ now at this point in his career,” Carbery pointed out.

With no goal-scoring record left hanging over his head, the pressure is off in a big way for Ovechkin, who is in the final year of his contract and still has yet to decide whether this season will be his last.

What remains, though, is his desire to make a run for a second Stanley Cup. That said, he and Carbery are on the same page when it comes to his deployment, and both are embracing the start of a new chapter for No. 8.

“It’s my job to find him that quality, so I’ve got to make sure that his minutes are where they need to be and we’re utilizing him in the spots to use his strengths and what he does at an elite level at this point in his career,” Carbery said.