Ovechkin, who in April 2025 broke Wayne Gretzky’s career record for regular-season goals with his 895th, added 32 more last season for the Capitals, but his contract status and age-related decline in other areas of his game turned the prospect of another season in Washington into an open question.

A group of masked men gathered to march across Capitol Hill on Saturday with a mix of Confederate and American flags, some turned upside down. The group also carried flags and chanted phrases associated with white supremacist group Patriot Front.