Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin hasn’t quite had the season that many expected through the first half of the 2023-24 campaign. In Thursday’s 3-2 overtime win against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Ovechkin was able to snap a 14-game goal drought and found the back of the net.
Ovechkin scored the goal in dramatic fashion as he tallied the game-winning goal in overtime off a feed from teammate Dylan Strome.
Ovechkin hadn’t scored since Nov. 18 in a game against the Blue Jackets. He recorded a goal and an assist against Columbus this time around, and it marked the third time in four games that the Capitals forward has tallied a point. He also earned a primary assist on forward Anthony Mantha’s power-play goal in the opening period.
“I think that whole situation, you just have to score one,” Ovechkin told Monumental Sports Network following Thursday’s win. “I feel that feeling again and just enjoy it.”
Ovechkin now has just 20 points (six goals & 14 assists) in 30 games during the 2023-24 season. The Capitals legend is currently on pace for just 16 goals this season.
Ovechkin now has 828 career goals after scoring on Thursday and sits 66 goals behind Wayne Gretzky for the NHL’s all-time goals record. The Capitals forward is 38 years old and is currently in the third season of a five-year contract that he signed back in July 2021.
It’s certainly going to be an uphill for Ovechkin to pass Gretzky. Ovechkin, who ended up passing Gordie Howe for second place on the all-time goals list in 2022, still needs 67 more goals to obtain the record. If Ovechkin plays out the remainder of his current deal, it’s possible that he could get there, but he would need to ramp up his goal-scoring efforts to do so.
