Alex Ovechkin accidentally crushes linesman with hit into the Devils bench
Alex Ovechkin accidentally hit a linesman today, sending him into the Devils bench as he was attempting to make a play on Tomas Tatar.
The great eight has been known to be a physical player throughout his career. Even in his old age now he still brings the physicality as he recorded 162 hits last season. This year he's off to another physical start as his Capitals host the New Jersey Devils for their season opener. The Devils of course, already started their season awhile ago as this is their fourth game of the season. They are coming off a 4-2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs after which head coach Sheldon Keefe called out his team for being soft. We will see how the team responds tonight but so far they look good as they lead the Caps 2-1 going into the second period.
One exciting moment in the first period came when Alexander Ovechkin attempted to make a hit on Devils forward Tomas Tatar. While he did make contact with Tatar, the play was along the boards in front of the Devils bench, precisely where linesman Bryan Pancich was sitting. As a result of the play, we was forced into the bench, landing on top of several Devils players.
Luckily, Pancich appeared to be okay as he got up and went back into position as the two forwards skated away from the boards following the collision. That being said, this will be another huge year for Ovi as he attempts to set a new all-time goal record. Currently, he sits just 42 goals behind Wayne Gretzky, putting him within striking distance of the record this season. Unfortunately though, he failed to record a single shot on goal during the first period. Hopefully that will change as this game plays out and with a little bit of luck, he may even find the back of the net in his season opener. Last season he appeared to take a step back though as he recorded just 31 goals, the lowest total in a full season since 2016-17. Most players would have a career season with that number, so that just goes to show how good Ovechkin was in his prime. At the age of 39 though, scoring is a lot harder to come by so we will just have to see if he can maintain that pace for another year.
