Alex Ovechkin scored the Washington Capitals’ lone goal against Jet Greaves this weekend –consecutive losses on Saturday and Sunday. The NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer struck with his 896th career goal just 1:10 into the first period of Sunday’s matchup, pumping a one-time blast by Greaves from the slot.
The goal marked Ovechkin’s first against the 24-year-old netminder in their very first game against each other. Greaves became goaltender number 184 that Ovechkin has scored on during his 20-season career, extending his NHL record. The goalie prospect spoke about the “honor” shortly after earning a 4-1 win against the Caps.
“Yeah, I mean, obviously, it’s cool,” Greaves said. “I grew up watching him as a kid, and obviously, he’s the best goal-scorer of all time. So much respect for him, and his shot tonight was a great shot. It’s unreal to be able to compete against the best players in the world.”
Greaves was given the rare opportunity by Blue Jackets head coach Dean Evason to start on back-to-back days, made even rarer by the fact that both games came against the same team. Three of his nine NHL starts this season have come against the Capitals, but Ovechkin missed the first in December due to his broken leg and the second on Saturday for rest-related reasons.
In those three games against the Eastern Conference-best Capitals, Greaves has been dominant. He has a 2-0-1 record, allowing just three goals on 89 total shots for a .967 save percentage.
“Yeah, no, it’s fun,” Greaves said. “It’s fun to challenge yourself against the best guys in the world. It’s awesome to have those opportunities to be in that situation. Just trying to keep the puck out of the net as always.”
Greaves has played primarily in the AHL with the Cleveland Monsters this season. In 40 games for Cleveland, he is 21-11-6 with a 2.62 goals-against average and a .920 save percentage. During the 2024 Calder Cup Playoffs, Greaves played a large part in Cleveland being able to force the Hershey Bears to seven games in last year’s Eastern Conference Finals.
The Bears went up 3-0 in the series before Greaves allowed two goals or fewer in three straight games to force the Game 7 decider. Hershey ultimately moved on to a second straight Calder Cup Final after getting an overtime, series-winning goal from Garrett Roe.
With his 29-save effort on Sunday, the Cambridge, Ontario native kept the Blue Jackets’ slim NHL playoff hopes alive. If Columbus had lost in regulation to the Capitals, they would have been eliminated and sealed the second wild card position for the Montreal Canadiens.
The Canadiens can still eliminate the Blue Jackets with a single win against either the Chicago Blackhawks or Carolina Hurricanes in their final two games. Two losses in overtime or a shootout by Columbus would also be enough to send them packing.
