WASHINGTON – Alex Ovechkin has ended his brief goal drought, and the countdown to another milestone in his career has begun again. On Friday night, Ovechkin scored his first goal of the season, leaving him only two away from reaching 900 in his career. This achievement contributed to the Washington Capitals’ victory over the Minnesota Wild with a score of 5-1. Ovechkin, renowned for his exceptional goal-scoring ability, had experienced an unusual scoreless streak in the first four games of the season. This drought, although not critical, was longer than any goal-less period he had last season, when he managed to score 44 times and surpassed Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record with his 895th goal. Currently, Ovechkin’s goal count stands at 898, a number displayed on a scoreboard in the corner of the ice in Washington.
In the third period, with the Capitals leading 2-1, Dylan Strome won a face-off against Ovechkin, who shot the puck that hit the left post before going into the net.The opportunities were there. Sometimes you just have to be patient.
Alex Ovechkin
After losing their first game, the Capitals have achieved four consecutive victories, and have conceded only three goals in 5-on-5 situations all season. On Friday, they outplayed Minnesota with a 45-14 advantage in shots on goal, demonstrating remarkable dominance. Despite a 24-7 advantage in shots after the first two periods, Washington only led 2-1 before Ovechkin extended the lead with his goal.Obviously, we try that play frequently, and when it works, it looks great. It doesn’t always work. It was one of those situations where it just fell into the right place.
Dylan Strome
Everything we did in the third period was exactly in line with how we want to play. The structure, the players made good decisions, rotating the lines. It was probably our most impressive period given the situation.
Spencer Carbery
