Ovechkin will return for a 22nd NHL season after the Capitals on Thursday announced that the left wing signed a one-year contract. Ovechkin will earn $1 million in salary, a $4.75 million games-played bonus (10 games) and a $3.25 million signing bonus. The contract will carry an average annual value of $4.25 million.

More than two months have passed since Dylan Larkin requested the Detroit Red Wings trade him, and the lack of resolution is telling. Now NHL free agency 2026 is here, starting on July 1, and teams will further shape rosters for 2026-27 and beyond.