Capitals open against Carolina on Friday. Ovechkin is expected to be there.

The organization said as much on September 25 — the NHL's all-time leading goal-scorer is trending toward a return from his lower-body injury for the October 2 opener. The coach had already called it "not too serious" two days before that. So the watch is winding down, and the answer looks like yes.

Still, "trending toward" is not "cleared." Washington enters the final week of the preseason with its most important player still listed day-to-day, and the opener is less than a week out. That's a narrow margin. Ovechkin played 48 games last season and posted 40 points — the kind of production that sets the tone for everything around Tom Wilson and Dylan Strome. A game-one absence would not sink the season, but it would be a strange way to begin a year Washington needs to start cleanly.

The rest of the roster is largely set. The extensions for Ryan Leonard and Justin Sourdif are done, Boone Jenner is in the fold at center, and the young pieces are in place. The Capitals have done the offseason work. At this point, they're just waiting on one man — which, for this franchise, is a familiar position to be in.