Alex Ovechkin etched his name in the NHL history books Tuesday when he scored his 30th goal of the 2023-24 season. In doing so, the Washington Capitals star tallied an NHL-record 18th 30-goal season as he passed Mike Gartner (17) for the honor.
Ovechkin registered the goal at the 19:52 mark of the second period, and it ultimately was the game-winner in a 2-1 victory against the Detroit Red Wings.
“Oshie [made] a tremendous play on the blue line, and I was kind of 2-on-1,” Ovechkin said after Tuesday’s game. “I knew there was maybe 15 or 20 seconds left in the period, and I tried to shoot the puck and hope it goes in. I’ll take it.”
Shortly after Ovechkin scored the record-setting goal, the Capitals posted a video of Gartner congratulating the Capitals winger on the tremendous achievement.
It’s quite an impressive feat considering Ovechkin had just nine goals over the first 44 games of the season. Since the All-Star break, the Capitals legend has scored 22 goals and is averaging 0.68 goals per contest.
This performance was exceptionally huge considering it snapped Washington’s six-game losing streak and put the Capitals back into the No. 2 Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference playoff race.
Ovechkin, who turns 39 years old on Sept. 17, is just 42 goals behind Wayne Gretzky for the NHL’s all-time goals record. Considering the Capitals star tallied 42 goals in 2022-23, it’s certainly possible Ovechkin could break the record during the 2024-25 campaign.
Ovechkin will have at least four more regular-season games to add to his grand total as the Capitals chase a playoff spot.
