Alex Ovechkin became the third player in NHL NHL history to score 20 goals in 19 consecutive seasons on Monday.
The experienced Washington forward scored two power-play goals in the second period to lead the Capitals to a 5-2 victory over the Calgary Flames.
“Consistency. Not just from the scoring part but also him being in the lineup and being durable and him being able to play game after game after game all these years,” said Washington coach Spencer Carbery.
“We needed every bit of those two goals tonight to get us in front and to be able to play from in front because you could tell early on we had zero legs and mentally some of the puck decisions, plays, it was uncharacteristic.”
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Gordie Howe (22 straight seasons) and Brendan Shanahan (19 straight seasons) are the only others to achieve the impressive scoring feat.
“There’s not many things that hasn’t been said about him, but he keeps doing it, even at age 38. It’s enjoyable to be a part of, fun to watch,” said Dylan Strome, who scored the opening goal.
Ovechkin’s 20th goal made it 2-0 at 5:58 of the second. Ovechkin went to the net where he neatly deflected in a hard centring pass from Max Pacioretty. After celebrating, Ovechkin immediately looked over at his teammate and pointed, acknowledging the terrific pass.
Just over three minutes later, Washington’s red-hot power play struck again, this time it was classic Ovechkin. Positioned at the top of the faceoff circle, stick cocked. When John Carlson passed the puck across, Ovechkin leaned into a one-time slapper that went off the stick of Rasmus Andersson and past rookie goaltender Dustin Wolf.
“That’s an excellent hockey player over there. He had a couple of good chances. But it’s pretty cool to say you stopped a few,” said Wolf.
Ovechkin has 12 goals in 20 games since the NHL all-star break after scoring just nine times in 44 games before that.
With 843 career goals, second all time, Ovechkin is now 51 behind Wayne Gretzky’s record.
“We’re all cheering for him,” said Hendrix Lapierre, who also had a goal for the visitors. “It was two really important goals tonight, too. We’re just super happy for him and we’re just trying to help him in this chase. He’s looking pretty good. He was the spark we needed tonight.”
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Tom Wilson (empty-netter) also scored for Washington (33-25-9). The Capitals, with their third straight win, moved into the second wild-card berth in the Eastern Conference, one point up on the idle Detroit Red Wings.
“We know it’s not going to be easy. We keep fighting, keep playing,” said Ovechkin. “We still can do it. We’re still in the battle. Every point counts.”
This is the first time the Capitals have been in a playoff position since January 2.
Goals from Kevin Rooney and MacKenzie Weegar helped Calgary (33-30-5) to a 2-2-0 record on their four-game home stand.
Rooney, who scored his first goal in 17 games, said that their special teams were outplayed, which was evident on the scoreboard. He mentioned the need to follow their game plan and execute it, particularly emphasizing the necessity for improvement on the penalty kill.
Washington had a 2-for-3 success rate with a man advantage, while Calgary failed to capitalize on all three opportunities.
Calgary coach Ryan Huska expressed his belief that their special teams' performance was not up to par, highlighting it as the deciding factor in the game. He pointed out that both their power play and penalty kill did not generate momentum for them.
Goalie Charlie Lindgren of Washington continued his strong recent form by making 34 saves, bringing his record to 18-11-5. Lindgren has won five of his last six games, boasting a save percentage of .956.
Wolf, in his third consecutive start, didn't perform as well as in his previous two outings, allowing four goals on 32 shots. His record dropped to 3-4-1.
The Capitals' power play has been revitalized, contributing to their playoff push. In mid-January, Washington ranked third-worst in the league in power play percentage at 13.3%. However, over the past two months, they have improved to the third-best at 29.1%.
Ovi, oh my
Ovechkin scored against Dustin Wolf for the first time, marking his goals against 174 different goalies, which places him third behind Jaromir Jagr (178) and Patrick Marleau (177). Additionally, Ovechkin has recorded multi-goal games against 94 different goalies, setting a historical record. Gretzky, with 89, holds the second position.
Markstrom recovering from a lower body injury, is back on the ice, and coach Huska mentioned that he could be back in action as early as this weekend. The experienced Flames goaltender has missed the last five games.
Capitals: Will start a four-game home stand on Wednesday against the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Up next
Flames: Will play against the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday.
On Monday, Alex Ovechkin became the third player in NHL history to achieve the feat of scoring 20 goals in 19 consecutive seasons.
