Ovechkin passes Howe with 802nd NHL goal, Capitals defeat Jets

WASHINGTON -- Alex Ovechkin passed Gordie Howe for second on the NHL goals list by scoring his 801st and 802nd in the Washington Capitals' 4-1 win against the Winnipeg Jets at Capital One Arena on Friday.

Ovechkin gave Washington a 1-0 lead at 18:22 of the first period when he took a drop pass from Dylan Strome and scored on a wrist shot from the top of the right face-off circle that beat goalie David Rittich between the pads.
He then passed Howe with an empty-net goal from along the left boards with 1:00 remaining in the third period. It was his 22nd goal in 36 games this season.
"Very emotional," Ovechkin said. "My parents watched it from home. My wife is here, kids here, friends. Doing it with the home crowd, it's special. They give me full support, and this is pretty big.
"It's a historic moment. It's nice to be in this category of players. It's pretty cool."

Ovechkin was swarmed by his teammates on the ice after he moved into second on the all-time list behind Wayne Gretzky, who scored 894. A video tribute from Howe's son, Mark Howe, was shown on the scoreboard.
"I don't want to say once in a lifetime, but moments like that in hockey rarely come up, and you pause the game to honor somebody for such a special achievement," Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. "What he has been able to accomplish here in Washington is truly unbelievable."
Ovechkin also had an assist, and Conor Sheary had two assists for Washington (19-13-4), which has won four straight and nine of its past 10 games. Charlie Lindgren made 25 saves.
Kevin Stenlund scored for Winnipeg (21-12-1), which has lost three of four. Rittich made 23 saves.
"Slow start," Jets coach Rick Bowness said. "Took some penalties in the second period, but when we got going, we had some good looks. "Kid in the net made a lot of big saves for them at the right time, so that's tough when you give up that first goal.
"But listen, there's no quit in these guys. They found a way to dig down deep in the third period."

Sonny Milano gave the Capitals a 2-0 lead at 12:48 of the second period, converting a Sheary pass at the right post just after a power play expired. Ovechkin had the secondary assist.
Nic Dowd made it 3-0 at 3:49 of the third, scoring on a one-timer from the slot off a return pass from Garnet Hathaway on the rush.
Stenlund cut it to 3-1 at 9:59 when he knocked in the rebound of Karson Kuhlman's shot.
"It's a 2-0 game in the third; if we make it 2-1 on a couple of good chances, the game probably looks a little different, [but] they get a little space at 3-0," Winnipeg defenseman Josh Morrissey said. "We battled back hard. Nice goal from 'Stens' and that line, but a little too late."
Lindgren made 15 saves in the third. He is 8-1-0 with a 1.89 goals-against-average and .933 save percentage in his past nine games.
"I think we're having a lot of fun," Lindgren said. "Winning is what it's all about, and when you do that, it makes everything a heck of a lot better. We're all playing really well, I think, and we're certainly all bought into the game plan."
The Jets lined up at center ice after the game to congratulate Ovechkin.
"It's just a sign of respect to let him know we appreciate all he's done for the League, all he's done for us as players, and the milestone is an incredible accomplishment," Winnipeg forward Adam Lowry said.

NOTES: It was Ovechkin's 409th NHL multipoint game, passing Paul Coffey for 12th all-time. Gretzky leads with 824. … Each team played the second of a back to back; the Capitals won 3-2 in overtime at the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, and the Jets lost 3-2 at the Boston Bruins. … Washington defenseman John Carlson left the game after being hit on the right side of the head by a shot from teammate Brenden Dillon 55 seconds into the third. Laviolette said Carlson, who was bleeding when he left the ice, was taken to the hospital for precautionary observation. … Capitals forward Marcus Johansson left at 11:21 of the third after crashing awkwardly into the boards. … Morrissey's 11-game assist streak ended. … Rittich became the 166th goalie Ovechkin has scored against. It was his first game against the Capitals. … Winnipeg hasn't won at Washington since a 4-2 victory on Jan. 22, 2013. It is 0-6-4 since then. … Jets forward Cole Perfetti, who sustained an undisclosed injury Thursday, did not play and will be evaluated when they return to Winnipeg.