Ovechkin surpasses Howe as Caps roll into break with win vs. Jets originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
WASHINGTON — Five games after scoring a hat trick to reach 800 goals, Alex Ovechkin notched his 801st and 802nd career tallies against the Winnipeg Jets on Friday to move past Hall of Famer Gordie Howe for the second most in NHL history and help the Capitals pull off a 4-1 win.
Ovechkin, 37, scored his first goal on a snap shot from the right circle at the 18:22 mark of the first period, beating Jets goaltender David Rittich through the five-hole to reach the historic figure. Linemates Dylan Strome and Conor Sheary were credited with assists on the play.
After notching his second tally with an empty netter in the third period, Ovechkin trails only Wayne Gretzky (894) on the all-time list. He also added Rittich to his list of 166 goalies that have allowed a goal against him. Only Jaromir Jagr (178) and Patrick Marleau (177) have scored on more netminders in their NHL careers.
With the Capitals playing the second leg of a back-to-back, Charlie Lindgren got the start in the crease for the home team and continued his strong play of late. Lindgren flirted with his first shutout in a Washington uniform, stopping 25 of 26 shots with the only damage against him coming on a goal by Jets center Kevin Stenlund in the third. The win was his eighth in his last nine starts.
Sonny Milano joined Ovechkin in providing Lindgren with some run support on a goal in the second period, receiving a pass from Sheary on the doorstep and beating Rittich just after a power play expired.
The Capitals didn’t stop there. Nic Dowd, who was just two games removed from a two-goal night against the Detroit Red Wings, added an insurance goal in the third period to put the game out of reach for Winnipeg.
In beating the Jets, the Capitals picked up their fourth straight win heading into the NHL’s holiday break. They’ve won nine of their last 10 and carry an 11-3-1 record dating back to Nov. 23, raising their record to 19-13-4 with 42 points toward the standings.
Washington did get some bad news on the injury front as John Carlson was hit in the face with a puck early in the third period. Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon fired a shot from the point that caught Carlson in the right side of the face and left him bleeding. He exited the rink holding a towel and didn’t return. Marcus Johansson and Nick Jensen both left the game with injuries but later made it back to the ice.
The Capitals will take four days off to rest and recover before resuming their season Tuesday on the road against the New York Rangers, the team directly ahead of them in the Metropolitan Division.
