Alex Ovechkin just made history against the St. Louis Blues, and in incredible fashion.
Ovechkin beat Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington to score his 900th career goal, becoming the first player in NHL history to reach the mark. Ovechkin did so in his 1,504th game played.
Ovechkin found paydirt after a Jakob Chychrun shot missed the net and hit the end boards, finding him near the goal line. At almost no angle, Ovechkin turned and fired a no-look backhanded chop shot at the net that went in.
The goal was scored 2:39 into the second period. Chychrun earned the only assist.
As Ovechkin celebrated along the glass, the entire Capitals bench emptied and congratulated him along the glass. The big circle of humanity then began excitedly jumping in unison.
Ovechkin’s wife, Nastya, and his son, Sergei, were in attendance and sitting in the lower bowl. Retired Hershey Bears player Garrett Roe sat in the row in front of them.
While the Capitals celebrated the goal with their captain, Binnington fished the goal puck out of the net and tried to steal it, putting the milestone marker down his pants. NHL linesman Michel Cormier, however, intervened, demanding the puck back so he could present it to the Capitals bench.
Ovechkin’s historic tally put the Capitals up 2-0 and would stand up as the game-winning goal in their 6-1 victory. The goal marked his third goal in just 13 games this season. The tally marked Ovechkin’s fourth career tally against Binnington.
The Capitals posted a tribute video for Ovechkin during the next TV timeout. The Capitals captain received a standing ovation from the crowd and received chants of “Ovi.”
“It’s hard to believe he has 900 goals,” Craig Laughlin said. “Now we want 1,000, Ovi. That’s what we want!”
