Alex Ovechkin of Capitals Hits 700 Assists in 4-2 Win vs. Golden Knights – The Hockey Writers – Washington Capitals

On Tuesday, October 15, the Washington Capitals (1-1-0) defeated the Vegas Golden Knights (3-1-0). The 2018 Stanley Cup Final Rematch went to the team that won that time. Washington got its first win of the 2024-25 season, while Vegas was handed its first loss.

Jakub Vrana opened the scoring for the Capitals on a pass from Andrew Mangiapane. This was the first point of the season in both offseason episodes. A former Stanley Cup winner in 2018 with the Capitals, he worked in the nation’s capital for five seasons before being traded in 2021. He was also picked up through a professional tryout (PTO), but it seems the 28-year-old still has juice. . The latter was added in a trade in the 2024 offseason for a 2025 second-round pick.

Victor Olofsson, who is on a guaranteed contract ($1.075 million per season), scored his third goal of the season. The shortstop ended the game for Vegas, with assists from Tomas Hertl and Mark Stone.

The second half saw four goals put on the board. It started with Tom Wilson on the power play with assists from Dylan Strome and Alex Ovechkin. That was a huge milestone, as it was Ovechkin’s 700th career assist. He may be chasing Wayne Gretzky’s record of 894 goals (42 away from surpassing the total), but he can still finish the puck.

The Capitals extended their lead to 3-1 with a goal by Aliaksei Protas. Ovechkin dished out 701 assists in this one, more than two minutes after hitting 700.

Jakob Chychrun gave the Capitals a comfortable 4-1 lead with assists from Nic Dowd and John Carlson. This was Washington’s third goal at 3:07. Per CapitalsPR on X (formerly Twitter), this is the fastest time they’ve put so many stats on the board since Nov. 30, 2023.

The Capitals scored three consecutive goals in a 3:07 span of the second half. Marked fastest three goals scored by Washington since Nov. 30, 2023 at Anaheim (3 GF in 3:05 in P1).

– CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) October 16, 2024

The Golden Knights got an answer just over a minute later, but it would be either team’s last goal of the night. Jack Eichel got one past his old teammate, Logan Thompson, to make it 4-2. Getting the assists were Stone and Ivan Barbashev, but the Stones were more notable. With six apples in a season, he is tied with Eichel and Evgeni Malkin for the most in the NHL.

Overall, Thompson stopped 24 of 26 Capitals shots while Adin Hill didn’t have his best night for the Golden Knights, saving 18 of 22 shots he faced. The two were a tandem in Vegas from 2022-23 to 2023-24, but Hill’s old partner got the best of him.

Both clubs next play on October 17. The Golden Knights face the Tampa Bay Lightning on the road, while the Capitals continue their homestand with a formidable Dallas Stars team visiting their home base.