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SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Alex Ovechkin shook off a tough begin to this three-game California swing by scoring his 887th profession objective Saturday towards the San Jose Sharks to maneuver inside eight of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record.
Ovechkin had failed to attain a objective within the first two video games of the journey and had no photographs on objective in a loss at Los Angeles on Thursday night time. He got here up empty on his first three photographs and couldn’t generate any prime probabilities on three energy performs earlier than scoring late towards the Sharks in a 5-1 victory.
“Hopefully that helps him,” coach Spencer Carbery stated. “You could possibly really feel he was gripping it a little bit bit. Energy play, he’s been struggling. He hasn’t been getting as many high quality seems to be along with his line. … For him to get that objective, hopefully that’s a superb increase for him and grabs him some momentum heading again residence and feeling good about his recreation going into our residence video games this week.”
Ovechkin deflected a shot from Martin Fehervary previous Georgi Romanov with 9:06 remaining within the third interval.
The objective led to loud cheers from the sellout crowd that featured many followers who got here hoping to see Ovechkin rating with chants of “Ovi! Ovi!” filling the constructing.
“It’s nice,” Ovechkin stated. “Numerous individuals are actually watching and plenty of consideration. It’s an ideal feeling.”
Romanov is the NHL-record 182nd goalie that Ovechkin has scored on out of the 217 goaltenders he has confronted in his 20-year profession.
The objective made positive Ovechkin didn’t match his longest objective drought of the season, having additionally gone with out one within the first three video games after which once more in early January.
He scored 14 targets within the subsequent 22 video games following that stretch to maneuver nearer to Gretzky’s mark of 894 that lengthy appeared unapproachable earlier than the tip of this season.
He now has 15 video games remaining to interrupt the document this season, beginning with a three-game homestand subsequent week.
Ovechkin did have three assists within the opener of the journey at Anaheim and assisted on Dylan Strome’s objective to open the scoring within the win over the Sharks.
“He’s been passing to me an excessive amount of,” Strome joked. “We acquired to get him the puck extra. He’s doing all of the little issues proper. Good for (Fehervary) to search out him within the slot there. You could possibly simply see the group. Not a lot left to say at this level. Hopefully he can get a pair on this homestand right here and inch nearer and nearer. We’re all excited clearly. It’s fairly cool.”
Ovechkin’s objective got here a couple of minutes after Trevor van Riemsdyk had given Washington a 4-1 lead when he scored to finish a 145-game objective drought relationship greater than two years to March 9, 2023.
“I undoubtedly perceive how laborious it’s to attain. To see O maintain doing this each night time it looks like, he’s proper there,” van Riemsdyk stated.
“It’s fairly cool. I believe everybody understands how wonderful this actually is. The standard of those goaltenders these days, how laborious it’s to attain on this league. Yearly individuals begin doubting him, ‘Is that this the yr he’ll fall off?’ They’re going to must maintain ready.”
The 39-year-old Russian star has 34 targets on the season, giving him no less than 30 in a document 19 of his 20 seasons. He solely fell quick within the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season when he scored 24 targets in a 56-game season.
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AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
