Alex Ovechkin's 20th NHL season was one of his best but it came to a crushing end in all too familiar fashion.
The Capitals have made the playoffs 16 times since Ovechkin entered the league in 2005-06, but the team has only advanced past the second round once, in 2017-18, when they went all the way to lift the Stanley Cup.
This season's early exit came at the hands of the Carolina Hurricanes, who won their second-round series in five games with a 3-1 victory Thursday night.
"We had our chances... luck was not on our side," Ovechkin said after the series-ending loss. "It's tough."
The loss to the Hurricanes especially stings after the Capitals surged back to first place in the Eastern Conference. Ovechkin led the way, scoring 44 goals, including his record-breaking 895th to cement himself as hockey's greatest scorer.
Now his season is over, and it's fair to wonder how many more chances Ovechkin will have to clear the second-round hurdle again. He will turn 40 in September and is entering the last year of his contract.
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