#20 Nicklas Backstrom will go down as Ovi's set up man of all time, here are the numbers
Two years after Ovechkin was drafted by the Capitals, Ovi was right there on stage to introduce his center Nicklas Backstrom and the Russian and Swede gelled together quickly.
Backstrom will be forever renowed for his playmaking abilities despite being on LTIR in the 2024-25 season. He'll always be known as the league's most skilled and elite passers.
Since 2013-14, Backstrom had a streak of six consecutive 50 assist seasons, one of only 26 players to ever accomplish the feat. He went on to become Washington's all time franchise leader in assists and is second in all time franchise points behind Ovi. He achieved the 1,000th point milestone on March 9, 2022.
If Backstrom indeed played his final game with the Caps he had 271 goals and 762 assists for 1,033 assists. In 2009-10, the Caps center recorded 33 goals and 68 assists for 101 points, helping Ovechkin, Alexander Semin, Mike Green and the young guns to their first ever Presidents' Trophy with the league's best record.
After the team missed the playoffs in 2013-14, Backstrom's league leading 60 assists to go along with his 18 goals and 78 points helped get the Caps back to the playoffs, officially launching the chase towards greatness and the current ALL CAPS era.