Alex Ovechkin was back on the ice Thursday at Capitals' practice; however his return to the lineup does not appear to be imminent.
According to the Washington Post, Ovechkin appeared to be favouring his left shoulder at practice. After scoring a goal, Ovechkin attempted to raise his arm but could not. He was also wearing a differently coloured jersey and was not placed on a line with his teammates. It seems unlikely that he will be in the lineup for back-to-back games against the Panthers on Friday and Saturday night.
While Ovechkin told reporters that he was unsure when he was injured, Capitals head coach Bruce Boudreau stated that he believes it occurred during a scrum in the second period of last Sunday's loss to the Blue Jackets. During the scrum Ovechkin exchanged shots with Columbus' forward Jason Chimera.
The Russian dynamo has been listed as 'week-to-week', however Boudreau said that he did not expect his sniper to miss more than two weeks.
Ovechkin has only missed two man games due to injury in his four year career and will continue to travel with the team as he recovers.