Could Alex Ovechkin move on from Capitals after John Carlson trade?

The Washington Capitals might not be a favorite to make the Stanley Cup Playoffs this year, but where does the future lie with one of the franchise’s cornerstones?

Leading up to the trade deadline, the Anaheim Ducks made a blockbuster move in trading for longtime Capitals defenseman John Carlson, with Nic Dowd being traded to the Vegas Golden Knights as well. The two moves involving longtime members of the Washington team have led many to wonder whether the great Alexander Ovechkin would be the next player on the move, despite having spent his entire career with the Caps.

Some are even wondering if the GR8 will come back to play at all next year. The man has accomplished more than 99% of NHLers have in their careers. Outside of stretching his career to go for 1,000 goals, there isn’t much for Ovechkin to prove.

On Thursday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, David Pagnotta joined Tyler Yaremchuk and Matt Larkin to explain whether the Caps would look at moving on from Ovechkin after the season.

David Pagnotta: I think for Ovi, it’s more the emotions that kicked in and, you know, 24 hours later, still didn’t sink in. It’s also the realization that you’re probably not making the playoffs if you’re moving [players] out. So, I think it was just a whirlwind for him. I don’t think he’s given any indication – and I tried poking as much as I could to guys on the team if they’ve been given any indication. … I don’t think anybody’s been given an answer as to what Ovi’s thinking right now. Start of the season, I thought he would try to push a couple more years. I’m not sure where that’s at, but I don’t think that it’s a point where he’s like, ‘I think this might be the end of the road.’ I don’t know if he’s there yet. I don’t think so. 

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…