Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin, like Hockey Hall of Famer Brett Hull, lived by the one-timer to move up the goal-scoring chart.
But Ovechkin passed Hull for sole possession of fourth place with a quick wrist shot from his “office” on Friday night for his 742nd career goal.
The goal was scored at 10:19 of the first period against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team against which Ovechkin had scored the first two goals of his career during his NHL debut on Oct. 5, 2005. The strike, which Ovechkin rifled past the Blue Jackets’ Joonas Korpisalo from the top of the right faceoff circle after a nice backhand feed from countryman Evgeny Kuznetsov, tied the game at 1.
Ovechkin had tied Hull on Monday against the Buffalo Sabres, a game in which he recorded his 600th career assist.
Ovechkin, who signed a five-year deal in the offseason, is surging this season. He has 12 goals in 14 games after being limited to a career-low 24 in the shortened 2021 season. He missed 11 games last season because of COVID-19 protocol and injuries and fell short of the 30-goal plateau for the first time.
But he passed fifth-place Marcel Dionne (731) with two goals in the opener this season and has been held without a point in only two games.
WINNERS, LOSERS: Ovechkin shows during first month he isn’t slowing down
He has a good chance to pass Jaromir Jagr (766) this season. Next after that is Gordie Howe at 801 at No. 2.
Ovechkin has a chance to pass Wayne Gretzky’s record 894 goals, a mark that was once thought to be unbreakable.
Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin, like Hockey Hall of Famer Brett Hull, lived by the one-timer to move up the goal-scoring chart.But Ovechkin passed Hull for sole possession of fourth place with a quick wrist shot from his “office” on Friday night for his 742nd career goal.The goal was scored at 10:19 of the first period against the Columbus Blue Jackets, the team against which Ovechkin had scored the first two goals of his career during his NHL debut on Oct. 5, 2005. The strike, which Ovechkin rifled past the Blue Jackets’ Joonas Korpisalo from the top of the right faceoff circle after a nice backhand feed from countryman Evgeny Kuznetsov, tied the game at 1. Ovechkin had tied Hull on Monday against the Buffalo Sabres, a game in which he recorded his 600th career assist.Ovechkin, who signed a five-year deal in the offseason, is surging this season. He has 12 goals in 14 games after being limited to a career-low 24 in the shortened 2021 season. He missed 11 games last season because of COVID-19 protocol and injuries and fell short of the 30-goal plateau for the first time. But he passed fifth-place Marcel Dionne (731) with two goals in the opener this season and has been held without a point in only two games. WINNERS, LOSERS: Ovechkin shows during first month he isn’t slowing downHe has a good chance to pass Jaromir Jagr (766) this season. Next after that is Gordie Howe at 801 at No. 2. Ovechkin has a chance to pass Wayne Gretzky’s record 894 goals, a mark that was once thought to be unbreakable.