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Capitals' Alex Ovechkin passes Mark Messier for 8th all-time in goals
Alex Ovechkin continued his ascent of the NHL’s all-time goals leaderboard on Friday, potting two goals against the Ottawa Senators in the Washington Capitals’ 5-3 win. In the process, Ovechkin jumped over Mark Messier for eighth in all-time goals with 695.
His first tally of the contest came on an odd-man rush. The talented forward wisely held onto the puck and ripped a snapshot past Marcus Hogberg to make it 3-1.
.@ovi8 scoring never gets old pic.twitter.com/sypVAuc1xM
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) February 1, 2020
Later, Ovi put the game to bed, burying an empty-net goal to officially pass Messier on the prestigious list.
Career goal No. 695 for Alex Ovechkin (@ovi8). 👀 pic.twitter.com/Ynb8UruH1O
— NHL (@NHL) February 1, 2020
The 34-year-old is now just five goals away from reaching the exclusive 700-goal club. Currently, only seven players in the NHL’s history have been able to reach the mark. Next on the list of legends for Ovechkin to pass is Mike Gartner, who sits just 13 markers ahead of Ovi with 708 goals.
Friday’s effort places Ovechkin 199 tallies behind Wayne Gretzky’s gaudy total of 894 goals.
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