Alex Ovechkin watches the start of the men’s semifinal ice hockey game between Canada and the United States in Sochi. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Star right wing Alex Ovechkin is on his way back to Washington after extending his stay in Sochi to be with his ailing father following Russia’s elimination in the quarterfinals of the Olympic hockey tournament.

Mikhail Ovechkin’s condition continues to improve after he underwent surgery for a heart condition last week. Mikhail Ovechkin, 62, is expected to head home to Moscow in the next few days, a Capitals spokesman said.

With positive reports from his father’s doctors, Ovechkin boarded a flight chartered by the NHL Players Association on Sunday. Ovechkin is expected to be back at the Capitals’ practice facility in Arlington on Tuesday, though Coach Adam Oates said the team’s Olympians might get the day off from practice. Nicklas Backstrom, John Carlson and Martin Erat are all scheduled to be back by Tuesday as well.

Marcus Johansson will arrive later than the others, however, because he must travel to Stockholm to resolve passport problems first reported by the Swedish news outlet Expressen. Even with the detour, the Capitals expect Johansson to rejoin the team in time for their first game after the break on Thursday at Florida.