Uploaded December 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 hours ago
February 23, 2025 - When Alex Ovechkin broke his leg just 18 games into the 2024-25 season, it couldn't have come at a more inopportune time. With back-to-back multi-goal games, Ovi was somehow out to the best goal-scoring start of his career at 39 years of age with 15 goals in 18 games. The blow not only cost Ovechkin precious games, but set back the man known as the Russian Machine, as he now had to not only regain his conditioning but also his scoring form. While he was able to find the goal column at a decent rate upon his return, it wasn't quite the pace he was at earlier. When the Capitals returned from the Four Nations Faceoff break, the Capitals put an 8-spot on the Penguins, but the Great 8 was held off the scoresheet entirely. Caps fans wouldn't have to wait long for a breakthrough, however, as the very next day the team would score 7 against the Edmonton Oilers - and this time Ovi was able to dent the twine. After scoring twice in the second period for his first multi-goal game since the injury, Ovechkin completed the hat trick into an empty net to put him just 13 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's goal record with 25 games left in the season. Sure enough, Ovechkin would pass the Great One before season's end without even needing all 25 - youtu.be/JkdxFIuaGGM.
While the all-time record was still down the road, the night was not without several milestones and records for Ovechkin:
- Most hat tricks at 30+ years old (19)
- Tied Phil Esposito for 5th most hat tricks in NHL history (32)
- Became the first player in NHL history to score 200+ goals in three different decades (245 in the 2000s, 437 in the 2010s, 200+ in the 2020s)
Not a bad night for the guy.
- 1st Period -
0:00 - Intro
0:45 - Hit on Draisaitl
1:00 - Big hit on Nurse
1:15 - Tarik El Bashir breaks down the Gr8 Chase
1:47 - Chances
2:02 - Redirection chance
- 2nd Period -
2:19 - Goal 1
3:32 - Chance
3:55 - Goal 2
- 3rd Period -
5:55 - Whiffs on shot
6:21 - Chance
7:35 - Goal 3, 32nd career hat trick, 882nd career goal
9:54 - Final buzzer
More classic Ovechkin games - youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH8bFa0t7qpQfBYEXybnEr9NbAqFcPyyq
February 23, 2025 - When Alex Ovechkin broke his leg just 18 games into the 2024-25 season, it couldn't have come at a more inopportune time. With back-to-back multi-goal games, Ovi was somehow out to the best goal-scoring start of his career at 39 years of age with 15 goals in 18 games. The blow not only cost Ovechkin precious games, but set back the man known as the Russian Machine, as he now had to not only regain his conditioning but also his scoring form. While he was able to find the goal column at a decent rate upon his return, it wasn't quite the pace he was at earlier. When the Capitals returned from the Four Nations Faceoff break, the Capitals put an 8-spot on the Penguins, but the Great 8 was held off the scoresheet entirely. Caps fans wouldn't have to wait long for a breakthrough, however, as the very next day the team would score 7 against the Edmonton Oilers - and this time Ovi was able to dent the twine. After scoring twice in the second period for his first multi-goal game since the injury, Ovechkin completed the hat trick into an empty net to put him just 13 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's goal record with 25 games left in the season. Sure enough, Ovechkin would pass the Great One before season's end without even needing all 25 - youtu.be/JkdxFIuaGGM.
While the all-time record was still down the road, the night was not without several milestones and records for Ovechkin:
- Most hat tricks at 30+ years old (19)
- Tied Phil Esposito for 5th most hat tricks in NHL history (32)
- Became the first player in NHL history to score 200+ goals in three different decades (245 in the 2000s, 437 in the 2010s, 200+ in the 2020s)
Not a bad night for the guy.
- 1st Period -
0:00 - Intro
0:45 - Hit on Draisaitl
1:00 - Big hit on Nurse
1:15 - Tarik El Bashir breaks down the Gr8 Chase
1:47 - Chances
2:02 - Redirection chance
- 2nd Period -
2:19 - Goal 1
3:32 - Chance
3:55 - Goal 2
- 3rd Period -
5:55 - Whiffs on shot
6:21 - Chance
7:35 - Goal 3, 32nd career hat trick, 882nd career goal
9:54 - Final buzzer
More classic Ovechkin games - youtube.com/playlist?list=PLH8bFa0t7qpQfBYEXybnEr9NbAqFcPyyq
