Alexander Ovechkin continues to have performance problems. Although the Washington captain scored in the game against Montreal for the third time this season in two consecutive games, he currently only has 10 goals to his name. And we have already left more than half of the championship behind. Ovi himself played 45 games.
We find the reasons for Ovechkin’s decline:
“Search for Gretzky looks increasingly daunting”. Why did Ovechkin stop scoring?
This situation cannot but worry Ovechkin himself, the Capitals coach, his teammates, journalists and fans. However, the team does not shy away from questions. After the NHL All-Star break, Ovechkin and Capital coach Spencer Carbery responded to everything that worries the North American media.
Ovechkin began by telling how he spent the break. The 38-year-old forward dedicated time to family and relaxing.
“How did I spend the All-Star break? I saw my family, my wife saw her family. We had a great time with friends and enjoyed it. We weren’t thinking about hockey, we weren’t thinking about the system and things like that. It was a great week and now we see that everyone is fresh, happy to be back on the ice,” Ovechkin said.
Alexander Ovechkin
Photo: Nick Wass/AP Photo/TASS
Then the main question of the press conference was asked: what about the goals?
“Obviously it’s up to me to do better to make sure my shots become goals. Sometimes there may not be a 100 percent chance, but you have to take advantage of it. Then, when they score a goal, you feel much more comfortable and enjoy your own game much more,” explained the forward.
It is noteworthy that before the break Ovechkin fired 151 shots at other people’s goals, the best result on the team. His average, however, is lower this season compared to the previous campaign. The forward now averages 3.43 shots per game, compared to 4.03 last year.
At the same time, Ovechkin himself is also worried about the team’s results. He speaks directly to his desire to not only make the playoffs, but also compete for the Stanley Cup. Although now Washington is seven points out of eighth place.
“Obviously we want to make the playoffs. We want to fight for the Cup. It depends on us how we want to play. If you look at the team names, there are good hockey players there. Everything depends on us. We must take advantage of our opportunities. We have to be smart on defense, in the neutral zone, and not make stupid mistakes that cost us games,” said the Russian.
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Washington head coach Spencer Carbery also answered questions from reporters. The young mentor said the team is working to increase Ovi’s shooting percentage. The coach even lost sleep over the 38-year-old striker’s scoring problems.
“I’m trying to figure out why this is like this. Why is his shooting percentage low this season? This is how I spend my sleepless nights. How can I help it? We’re working on different things, including putting him in situations where he can score more at 5-on-5,” Carbery said.
The coach did not shy away from some of the most provocative questions: “Could we have had one or two more wins if Ovechkin had scored more goals? Potentially, but the same could be said for the other guys as well.”
It is noteworthy that now Ovechkin is not even among the top 3 snipers in Washington. The Russian is only fourth. Dylan Strome (19), Anthony Mantha (15) and Tom Wilson (12) scored more than him.
Tom Wilson and Alexander Ovechkin
Photo: Matt Slocum/AP Photo/TASS
Forward TJ Oshie, the Capitals’ fifth-leading scorer, also responded to questions about the captain’s poor scoring.
“He acts like the veteran he is. It doesn’t seem like Ovi is necessarily any more upset about the situation. I also had moments where I didn’t score at the pace I wanted. I think attention to detail is important in times like these. Alex’s mere presence is a factor for other teams. The goals will come. Not many people can score at the same rate as Ovechkin,” Oshie, 37, said.
It seems that the team is really worried about the decline of their leader. At the same time, they continue to work together on the problem.
The situation for Washington and Ovechkin is likely to become even more difficult after Evgeny Kuznetsov left the team and entered the NHL’s Player Assistance Program. And the “capitals”, for a minute, already have five losses in a row.
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Overall, Carbery is not to be envied. Not only does the team have serious problems on all fronts, but it also has to resolve issues related to Ovechkin’s decline.
However, perhaps these difficulties, on the contrary, will unite the “capital” team, allowing it to have a strong run and still make it to the playoffs. This will largely depend on Ovechkin himself: can he overcome his crisis and what will he put first: the search for Wayne Gretzky or the success of the team?
The main thing is to make a decision and follow it. Because in this situation, any decision will be correct in its own way, in contrast to the absence of at least some answer.
