We’ve been going by order of jersey number in this Washington Capitals player preview series and we have now reached number 19. This is very awkward because it’s a preview of a player that will likely begin the regular season still injured. Still we gotta do everybody and it would be a crime to skip center Nicklas Backstrom.
Backstrom turns 34 in November and enters the second full season since signing his contract extension back in January. That was a five year deal. In 55 games last season, Backstrom scored 15 goals and added 38 assists for 53 points. In the playoffs he had just one assist in five games as the hip injury he was battling got worse. It worsened to the point to where he misses the start of training camp and possibly the entire preseason.
The Caps have him listed as week to week for now. That could also mean he misses the beginning of the regular season. But when Backstrom does finally return to the lineup he faces two big questions: can he defy Father Time and can he continue to be Alex Ovechkin‘s right hand man?
Ovechkin and Backstrom enter their 15th season together. While his teammate continues to chase milestone after milestone, Backstrom does have some impressive milestones of his own and is chasing a big one this season.
Last season, Backstrom reached 1,000 career games on April 15, 2021 and this season will be gunning fo this 1,000th career point. He has 258 goals and 722 assists in his career, good for 980 points. If and when he reaches 1,000 points he will join Ovechkin as the only other player in franchise history to reach that mark. Backstrom is aiming to become the seventh active player in the NHL to reach 1K points.
Backstrom and Ovechkin are just 23 games shy of playing in 1,000 games together. They would become the eighth set of teammates to play 1,000 career games with each other with the same team.
On the first day of training camp, general manager Brian MacLellan expressed confidence in his two stars chasing greatness. Via Barry Svrluga of The Washington Post (subscription required):
"“Nick was probably our best player last year; Ovi had a good year. … Nick’s been our most consistent player every year. His numbers stay the same; you don’t see a drop-off. Ovi, he’s chasing goal records. They do the right things. They play the right way. I think we can finish their careers up in the right way — as a winning organization.”"
When Backstrom returns to the ice, expect the Caps to remain a strong team and challenge for more regular season success. If they can stay healthy towards the end, it may be more than just milestones Ovechkin and Backstrom chase.