Ovechkin trending toward Oct. 2, but camp closes with familiar loose ends

The Ovechkin watch is essentially over. The Capitals expect him back for the season opener against Carolina on October 2, and the coach's "not too serious" read from earlier in the week appears to have held. Good news, full stop.

What doesn't resolve with that clearance is everything I've been noting since camp opened. Rasmus Sandin's status on the blue line remains unsettled, and the drop-off behind Jakob Chychrun is steep — Matt Roy and Cole Hutson are the options, and neither has shown anything in camp that changes the math. The defense depth problem that cost Washington close games last season doesn't get fixed by Ovechkin skating in a morning skate.

The center situation is worth watching too. Boone Jenner is the new top-line pivot on paper, but he hasn't played meaningful minutes in this system yet, and the early returns from camp don't yet tell us what we need to know about whether he fills the McMichael void or just occupies the roster spot. Dylan Strome is a capable second option, but Washington went 13-18 in one-goal games last year — that's a team that needed more from its depth, not less.

The opener is a week out. Ovechkin playing is the right headline today. The questions underneath it are the ones that will matter in January.