The Boston Bruins will face the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night, with Washington chasing the top seed in the East—and Alex Ovechkin chasing history.
The 39-year-old winger enters the matchup just five goals away from passing Wayne Gretzky for the NHL’s all-time goals record, sitting at 890 career goals but navigating a worrying Capitals skid.
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Ovechkin is four goals behind Gretzky’s 894 and will eventually become the league’s all-time leading scorer, a milestone that Bruins forward David Pastrnak discussed after Monday’s practice.
“We all know how hard it is to score in this league, and you know he’s been doing it for over two decades,” Pastrnak said. “The way he finds a way, every year he scores different goals…
“You obviously see way less one-time goals from him and guys taking him away, and he still finds a way.
“It’s motivational to see him keep scoring all those goals. It’s impressive… It’s definitely a special goal scorer, and you know he’s going to break it soon.”
Ovechkin has scored 37 goals this season, helping lead the Capitals to a 47-17-9 record and 103 points through 73 games as the only team already in possession of a postseason berth in the Eastern Conference.
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Washington leads the East by nine points over the Carolina Hurricanes and the Toronto Maple Leafs, both having 94 points entering Tuesday’s slate of games.
Boston, by contrast, has dropped eight consecutive games and sits eight points outside the playoff picture with 69 points and a 30-35-9 record.
Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) reacts during a stoppage in play.Geoff Burke-Imagn Images
Bruins interim head coach Joe Sacco also praised Ovechkin’s ability to evolve his game ahead of Tuesday’s matchup, acknowledging the Russian’s ability to deal with opposing defenses targeting him nightly.
“I think that’s the one thing that jumps out to me—his consistency and the ability to still be able to produce after all these years, knowing that you put a game plan in place to try to stop that,” Sacco said. “The great ones still find a way to get it done.”
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Ovechkin has scored 33 goals in 81 regular-season and playoff games combined against the Bruins throughout his career, adding 35 assists for 68 total points against Boston.
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