The Washington Capitals lost to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday, but Alex Ovechkin took time after the game to honor Marc-Andre Fleury in what likely marked their final regular-season matchup.
Ovechkin met Fleury at center ice for a handshake and gathered his teammates to give the retiring goaltender a proper sendoff. The two future Hall of Famers have faced each other 47 times over 20 seasons, with another meeting only possible if their teams reach the Stanley Cup Final.
“It’s almost 20 years that we play against each other,” Ovechkin said, per NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti. “Pittsburgh, Vegas, it’s been an honor to play against him.”
Ovechkin didn’t score Thursday, and Fleury served as backup for the Wild.
The Capitals captain has scored on Fleury more than any other goaltender he’s faced. His 27 goals against Fleury top the list of 182 goalies Ovechkin has scored against during his career.
Most of those goals came during Fleury’s 13-year stint with the Pittsburgh Penguins, which included three playoff series against Washington.
Ovechkin also defeated Fleury in the 2018 Stanley Cup Final after the goaltender had moved to the Vegas Golden Knights.
“I feel lucky I got to play so many games against him,” Fleury said prior to the game. “Maybe not getting scored on so much by him, but it was a good battle. It was good times. Fun. That’s what hockey’s all about.”
Fleury said earlier this week he believes Ovechkin will break the all-time goal record this season. The Capitals star is six goals away from passing Wayne Gretzky with 10 games remaining.
