WASHINGTON – Alex Ovechkin conquered exclusive possession of sixth place on the NHL career goals list in the most possible way by Alex Ovechkin: overtaking a goalkeeper at once within the power play confrontation circle in a big game for Washington Capitals.
Ovechkin scored his 718th goal after passing Phil Esposito and became the second active player to register 1,300 points, taking the Capitals to the first place in the Eastern Division by defeating the New York Islanders 3-1 on Tuesday night.
“A goal is a goal – it’s always a pleasant feeling to get there, ” said Ovechkin.” It was a very good game, with many points and, obviously, large numbers. ”
The capitals have won six consecutive games and 10 of the last 11, ahead of the islanders in the standings.
Ovechkin is a big reason for that. The longtime captain has scored goals in four consecutive games and five in six and is tied with running mate Nicklas Backstrom, who also scored, for the team’s lead with 12 this season.
“We saw him do it year after year,” said Backstrom of Ovechkin. “It is simply impressive. I think the way he shoots the disc, the way he scores, the way he plays the game is just fun to watch. As a teammate, you are just enjoying every moment. “
Goal 718 was also against former Capitals teammate and compatriot Semyon Varlamov, his supporting actor in the classic Russian spy This is SportsCenter ESPN commercial. Ovechkin hadn’t been able to make time with his trademark, but he didn’t lose this time.
“I just have to hit the net,” he said. “Finally.”
Ovechkin is 13 goals from a tie with Marcel Dionne in fifth place and needs 177 more to break Wayne Gretzky’s record.
“You are a fantastic hockey player,” said Esposito in a video message congratulating Ovechkin for overtaking him. “I don’t know how you score all those goals with the way these guys block shots with the great equipment they use. Good luck.”
With Ovechkin leading, the Capitals delivered the Islanders their first defeat since February 27th and the first in regulation since February 20th.
Ovechkin didn’t just score. He made a perfect pass to send Evgeny Kuznetsov into the offensive zone and took the secondary assist when TJ Oshie took the rebound and scored.
This was Ovechkin’s 1,300th career point, making him the 35th player in history to reach that milestone. Graybeard Joe Thornton is the only other active player on that list with 1,521.
With his 1,301th point in the power-play goal – his 264th, third of all time – Ovechkin also passed Jarome Iginla, recently elected from the Hockey Hall of Fame, in 33rd on the career scoring list. Barry Trotz, who coached the Capitals for the Stanley Cup in 2018 and moved to the Islanders, said he would like to not be in the building for another Ovechkin landmark.
“I recognize its greatness and its milestones,” said Trotz. “I’m rooting for him, no doubt. Just not when he plays against us. ”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.