Yup, he’s still got it.
Alex Ovechkin scored his first goal of the preseason against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday. The 39-year-old Capitals’ captain was the benefactor of some hard work by Andrew Mangiapane along the boards, forcing a turnover.
Mangiapane then sent a quick pass to Ovechkin in the right circle, who fired a one-timer past Blue Jackets’ goaltender Daniil Tarasov to the top corner of the net. The goal gave the Capitals a 1-0 lead 6:58 into the game.
Ovechkin’s goal came on his first shot of the preseason. It continues the first line’s strong play together in their first week together. (Let’s just ignore what happened on the Malatesta breakaway goal.)
In his debut against the New Jersey Devils on Wednesday, Ovechkin registered an assist and two shot attempts in 14:25 of ice time.
The goal marked the first line’s third 5v5 tally in four periods together. Dylan Strome also scored twice in their preseason debut, a 5-3 victory over the New Jersey Devils.
