Ovechkin scores 800th with hat trick for Capitals against Blackhawks

CHICAGO --Alex Ovechkin knew this milestone was a big one.

Ovechkin became the third player in NHL history to score 800 goals when he had a hat trick for the Washington Capitals in a
7-3 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks
at United Center on Tuesday.
The 37-year-old left wing also moved within one goal of tying Gordie Howe for second in League history. Howe, who died on June 10, 2016, at the age of 88, scored 801 goals in 1,767 regular-season games over 26 NHL seasons with the Detroit Red Wings and Hartford Whalers.
"It's a huge number," Ovechkin said. "It's the best company you ever can imagine since you start playing hockey to be connected to Gordie. Eight hundred, I'm the third person who ever scored that many goals. So without my teammates, without the organization, the fans, my family, I would never get that number and I would never talk to you right now about those numbers."
RELATED: [Alex Ovechkin career timeline: Draft to 800 NHL goals | Ovechkin stat pack: Road to 800 goals]
When Ovechkin passes Howe, only Wayne Gretzky will remain ahead of him on the NHL goals list with 894.
"Let's take it step by step," Ovechkin said. "We'll see. Right now, finally we go home and spend time with my wife and with the kids and next game (against the Dallas Stars on Thursday)."
Ovechkin scored his 798th goal 24 seconds into the game by swatting a bouncing puck in the left circle past Petr Mrazek to give Washington a 1-0 lead. He then scored No. 799 with a power-play goal near the left post to make it 2-0 at 8:14.
"For some reason, I feel like sometimes when he gets the goals around the net he is always by himself and nobody cover him," Capitals center Evgeny Kuznetsov said. "And for me, still it is something I have to probably learn one day … to see if he is doing something to isolate himself. But so many times he is just by himself with an empty net and that is probably something special inside of him."
Ovechkin's scored his 800th goal off a scramble in front of the Blackhawks' net at 6:34 of the third period to extend the lead to 5-2. Anthony Mantha stole the puck from Chicago defenseman Jack Johnson behind the net and passed to Kuznetsov in front. Kuznetsov got the puck back to Mantha to the right of the net, and Mantha quickly passed through the crease to Ovechkin for a shot into an open net.
"I kind of could've shot but I saw someone coming backdoor with a right-handed stick, and you don't assume it's Ovi, just because we're not playing together," Mantha said. "But it was right after the change, and he ended up putting it in the back of the net."

Ovechkin, who had jumped on the ice to replace Sonny Milano, controlled the puck on his stick blade before lifting it in over a scrambling Mrazek.
"It was great," Ovechkin said. "Obviously, the first couple goals was good bounces, and the third one, Mantha
after the game along with Patrick Kane. "In some sense, when we're out of this moment, it's one of those things you'll look back on. He's one of the great players of all time, so all due respect to him in scoring three goals to do it, getting himself an ovation and the 'Ovi' chant in our building."
Ovechkin is the first player to score 800 goals with one team, having previously passed Howe for the record by scoring his 787th against the Arizona Coyotes on Nov. 5. Howe scored 786 goals in 25 seasons with the Red Wings (1946-71) and 15 goals in one season with the Whalers (1979-80).
Ovechkin was playing in his 1,305th regular-season game. Howe scored his 800th goal in his 1,748th NHL game, beating Mike Liut at 1:27 of the third period of the Hartford Whalers' 3-0 win against the St. Louis Blues at Hartford Civic Center on Feb. 29, 1980. Gretzky scored his 800th goal in his 1,116th game, beating Arturs Irbe at 6:16 of the first period of the Los Angeles Kings' 6-6 tie with the San Jose Sharks at San Jose Arena on March 20, 1994.
After the game, Ovechkin's teammates greeted him with a beer shower when he returned to the locker room.
"Yeah, it was really cool right afterwards when he first walked into the room," Capitals coach Peter Laviolette said. "Listen, what he's done is unbelievable and a lot of those guys have been there for most of it, some a lot of it. For everybody to be a part of that inside of that room and to have that be about him for a second for what he's accomplished is pretty special.
"Yeah, we said it after the game. That's an incredible accomplishment. When somebody has a career where they can get 200 goals, that's a heck of a career. But 800 is something and I think everybody is just really happy for him."
After receiving the Capitals' player of the game firefighter rope, his teammates yelled for a "speech!"
Ovechkin paused to gather his thoughts and contain his emotions before saying: "How I always say, without you guys, obviously, I would never reach those kind of numbers. It's huge, good for hockey, great for the organization, and, obviously, happy to do that with you guys. It's special."