Tom Wilson believes Alex Ovechkin's injury absence impacts more than just the Washington Capitals now that the sniper's historic chase for the all-time goals record has been put on pause.
"It was emotional at first, to be completely honest. ... He's the hottest guy in the league," Wilson said Wednesday about his teammate. "He's chasing something bigger than hockey. I think everyone in the hockey world just feels that little bit of letdown, that emotion, that you're just pulling for him.
"He's putting everything that he has into it. He feels all that pressure and the whole world of hockey is just rooting him on."
Ovechkin is considered week-to-week with a lower leg injury after a knee-on-knee collision with Utah's Jack McBain in the third period of Washington's 6-2 victory Monday.
The veteran forward scored two goals before going down, bringing his season total to a league-leading 15 tallies in 18 games. With 868 career goals, Ovechkin is only 27 away from passing Wayne Gretzky in the NHL record book.
The Capitals officially placed Ovechkin on injured reserve Wednesday and recalled forward Ivan Miroshnichenko from the AHL. Head coach Spencer Carbery said the team will know more about Ovechkin's recovery timeline Thursday, per NHL.com's Tom Gulitti.
Ovechkin has built a reputation thanks to his uncanny ability to stay healthy. He's missed less than 40 games because of injury in his 20-season career, so this absence has come as a surprise for Wilson.
"We were sitting there saying, 'This is just weird.' It's unbelievable that he's actually hurt," he said. "It's one of those things where (we're) like, 'He's going to miss games?' I've been here a long time, and it's new to me."
Wilson added, "I'm sure he's going to be back stronger than ever and flying around soon."
The Capitals sit atop the Eastern Conference with a 13-4-1 record, but their red-hot start will be difficult to maintain without Ovechkin in the mix.
Wilson thinks he and his teammates are well-equipped to pick up the slack.
"I think what's gotten us success this year is the team game and every line having an identity, the group playing really well together," he said. "This doesn't change that. I think it puts more of an emphasis on us just to continue doing what we're doing and working for the guy next to you.
"We want to play for (Ovechkin), too. ... When he's out, we've got to make sure we're playing to the standard that he would appreciate."
Washington will play host to the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday night.
