Despite Alexander Ovechkin’s 49th and 50th goals of the season, the Golden Knights won a major playoff game when they beat the Washington Capitals 4-3 in overtime on Wednesday in Las Vegas.
Ovechkin, who has 780 career goals, had his ninth 50-goal season. He tied Mike Bossy and Wayne Gretzky for the biggest total. Bossy, however, made her successive.
At 36 years and 7 months, he also became the oldest player to record a 50-goal season.
Shea Theodore defeated two defenders before fooling goaltender Ilya Samsonov and ending the backhand maneuver to flash the red light in overtime.
The Golden Knights have 89 points, two shy of the Dallas Stars, in the last spot to qualify for the playoffs. They are three points behind the Los Angeles Kings and third in the Pacific Division.
Alec Martinez, Evgenii Dadonov and Chandler Stephenson completed the scoring for the Golden Knights. Robin Lehner allowed a goal on 13 shots, but replaced it after the second period. Logan Thompson blocked 13 shots as relief.
Evgeny Kuznetsov also found the back of the net for the Capitals as Samsonov made 26 saves.
McDavid leads again
Caught and caught by Jonathan Huberdeau on Tuesday at the top of the scoring standings, Connor McDavid reclaimed his throne with three points against the Stars.
With an empty net goal and two assists, he already has 113 points, two more than Quebecer. But the Florida Panthers forward has another game to play than his rival in Ontario.
The Edmonton Oilers won, 5-2. Evander Kane, Derek Ryan, Zach Hyman and Jesse Puljujarvi were the other scorers for the Alberta team.
Quickly chasing 0-2, Dallas was able to tie the game, thanks to goals by Jason Robertson (37th) and Roope Hintz (35th) both approaching the 40-goal mark this season.
Despite the loss, the Stars (91 points) remain in last place giving access to the playoffs in the West, while the Oilers (96 points) are almost guaranteed to participate.
Source: Radio-Canada
