Sorry, Patrick Kane. There’s a new goal leader in town.
As a five-time winner of the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy given to the NHL’s top goal scorer, Washington Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin isn’t exactly a stranger to the scoresheet. But this season he, like everyone else, has been chasing Blackhawks winger Kane for the No. 1 spot in tallies.
But for now at least, there’s a new player at the head of the pack.
Ovechkin did what Ovechkin does best Thursday night, scoring goals and taking names against the Minnesota Wild. The Russian superstar tallied his 14th career hat trick in the tilt, his first in more than two years, and the most that any NHL player has scored since 2005-06, Ovechkin’s rookie season. It all happened in the second period and put him one goal ahead of Kane as the league’s leader with 34.
It hasn’t been that long since 2013 when Ovechkin last made hats rain down, but the drought didn’t go entirely unnoticed by some.
The markers lifted Ovi’s career goal total to 508, allowing him to leap-frog Montreal Canadiens legend, the late Jean Beliveau, into 39th on the all-time scoring list.
The Capitals held on to beat the Wild for a 4-3 road win.
