Alex Ovechkin took another step toward breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goals record by scoring his 871st goal against Marc-Andre Fleury on Thursday night.
The Washington Capitals captain beat Fleury on a power play in the second period during a game against the Minnesota Wild. However, Fleury got the last laugh by denying Ovechkin in the shootout, helping the Wild secure the win.
“He got a goal in the game already, so that was enough,” Fleury joked after the game.
Ovechkin has scored on Fleury 28 times in 47 games over the years, with most of those goals coming when Fleury was with the Pittsburgh Penguins. This makes Fleury the goalie Ovechkin has scored on the most, out of the 178 different goalies he has faced in his career.
“I don’t like getting scored on by him, but I love the battle over the years,” Fleury said, acknowledging that Ovechkin has scored on him more than any other goalie. “Yeah, I’ve heard that a few times.”
Fleury is also the goalie Ovechkin has faced the most, with 241 shots out of Ovechkin’s total of 6,708.
“It’s 20 years we play against each other,” Ovechkin said. “It’s always fun. It’s always a challenge. He’s one of the best goalies out there, and it’s a huge challenge for me to play against him.”
With 40.8 seconds left in the second period, Ovechkin skated over to Fleury after the whistle and joked, “I need one more.”
“You already get one,” Fleury responded, as the two shared a laugh.
Ovechkin’s goal put him 24 goals away from breaking Gretzky’s all-time record of 894. At 39 years old, Ovechkin has 18 goals this season and three in four games since returning from a broken left fibula. He is on pace to reach 895 and possibly beyond this spring.
“I feel fortunate I was able to play in this time,” Fleury said. “He probably owes me a few things for scoring so many goals on me. I helped it out pretty good. I’m glad I got to face him. He’s one of the best and always brings the best out of you.”
With Fleury playing in what may be his final season, this could be Ovechkin’s last goal against him. However, the Capitals are set to visit the Wild again on March 27.
“We still got one more game, so I don’t want to get too cocky too early,” Fleury added.
The only other active goalie close to Ovechkin’s list is fellow Russian Sergei Bobrovsky, with 16 goals allowed. Hall of Famer Henrik Lundqvist has allowed 24, while Carey Price has given up 22.
Despite giving up another goal to Ovechkin, Fleury secured his 28th career win against the Capitals. Washington’s Tom Wilson, who also scored and had another goal disallowed, praised Fleury’s legacy.
“When he’s gone, the game will miss him,” Wilson said. “He’s fun to have in the league. He’s a heck of a goalie. We’ve had a lot of battles against him. I think ‘O’ and him, you see them smiling back and forth. Game respects game. It’s fun to see two all-time legends going at it and having a front-row seat to that.”
The Wild were also happy to help Fleury end his U.S. capital game on a high note.
“I know with Flower, he’s played a lot of games in this building and against this team,” said forward Ryan Hartman, who scored for the first time since Nov. 19. “It always seems like it’s a good battle whenever he’s here, and I think sometimes games like this mean a lot to him.”
