Caps Host Jackets, Honor Ovechkin
Caps to honor Ovechkin passing Howe on goals list before homestand opener on Tuesday
Down to fewer than a dozen games remaining in the 2022-23 regular season, the Caps open up a two-game homestand on Tuesday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Washington will play six of its final 11 games of the season against Metropolitan Division opponents, starting with Tuesday's tilt against the Blue Jackets.
Prior to Tuesday's game with Columbus, the Caps will hold a ceremony to honor captain Alex Ovechkin for the achievement of surpassing Gordie Howe to move into second place on the NHL's all-time goals scored list. Howe finished his illustrious NHL career some 43 years ago with Hartford at the age of 52, racking up 801 goals in his 25 seasons in the League.
Among the dignitaries on hand for the event will be NHLPA director Marty Walsh, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly and Hockey Hall of Famer Mark Howe, Gordie's son and former teammate with the WHA Houston Aeros and New England/Hartford Whalers and the NHL's Hartford Whalers.
Ovechkin's teammates will arrive at the arena for Tuesday's game sporting special Ovi t-shirts, and all will sport a No. 8 sweater for pregame warmups. Those sweaters will then be signed and auctioned off to benefit the Monumental Sports and Entertainment Foundation at a later date.
A host of Caps' season ticket holders will greet players as they enter the arena for the game, and all fans in attendance will receive an Ovechkin goal counter bobble head doll courtesy of Capital One to commemorate the occasion.
During the ceremony itself, Ovechkin will be presented with a number of gifts from the organization, from the League, from the NHLPA and from his teammates as well. Caps' television play-by-play voice Joe Beninati will emcee the event on the ice, and Ovechkin's family members and Caps' majority owner Ted Leonsis and team president Dick Patrick will also be on the ice to join The Great Eight on his special night.
With two goals on Sunday against the Wild in Minnesota, Ovechkin has climbed to 819 goals for his NHL career, putting him 75 goals behind Wayne Gretzky (894) for the top spot all-time. He has scored 39 goals this season to move within one goal of what would be his 13th season with 40 or more goals. Currently, Ovechkin shares the all-time NHL record for most seasons with 40 or more goals with Gretzky (12).
Having the Blue Jackets in town on the night of Ovechkin's celebration is a bit of a full circle situation, too. He made his NHL debut here in D.C. against Columbus on Oct. 5, 2005, scoring the first two goals of his NHL career that evening against Blue Jackets' netminder Pascal Leclaire, the first of 169 different goaltenders he has solved on his way to those 819 career goals.
Washington will be seeking to shake off a two-game losing streak on Tuesday against Columbus and will also be aiming for a sweep of the season's series with the Blue Jackets. The Caps conducted a well-attended optional practice on Monday at MedStar Capitals Iceplex, and defenseman John Carlson took another step as he nears his eventual return to game action, sporting a "regular" sweater as opposed to the non-contact variety.
Defenseman Nick Jensen was also a full participant on Monday after missing each of the Caps' two previous games with an upper body injury. Jensen appeared in each of Washington's first 63 games this season before missing five of the last eight with an upper body injury.
By the end of the week, Washington's total of man-games lost to injury is likely to exceed 400 for the season, and that's assuming a Carlson return before then.
"There's a lot of that going on," says Caps' right wing Tom Wilson, who has missed 49 games this season with injuries. "But that's hockey. You look around the league, and that goes on. Maybe not as bad as we've had it, but you still try and find a way.
"There is no excuse. We've got a good group of players in here and we've got to find a way to get wins, no matter who is in the lineup. But you never want to see big pieces of your organization go down; it definitely makes it a little tougher, but that's hockey. It's a savage sport. It's a tough sport out there and things happen."
Columbus is another team that's been ravaged by injuries this season; the Blue Jackets are already well over 400 man-games lost on the season. The Jackets are concluding a five-game trip that started with a 6-5 overtime win over the Sharks in San Jose a week ago, on March 14. Since then, the Jackets have lost three straight in Los Angeles, Anaheim and Vegas, respectively.
