No need to toss more superlatives at Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin. At this point, he’s almost expected to send fans and teammates home shaking their heads in wonder. But the 24-year-old already is off to his best start as a pro.
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Ovechkin scored two more goals on Saturday night against Nashville and produced the eventual game-winner in the shootout. For his effort, Ovechkin was one of the NHL’s Three Stars for the week ending Sunday. He was named the league’s Third Star just one week after earning Top Star honors.
By scoring twice against the Predators, Ovechkin recorded his fourth two-goal game of the season. He has long struggled in shootouts during his young career, but Ovechkin embarrassed Nashville goalie Dan Ellis Saturday night.
“What a move in the shootout. That’s pretty tough to take if you’re a goaltender with all those things coming at you,” said Nashville coach Barry Trotz. “He’s a fantastic player and that’s why he’s exciting, that’s why [Verizon Center] rocks. He scored [two goals] and I still thought [defenseman] Shea Weber and the core did a good job against him.”
That’s why he’s so hard to stop. Ovechkin totaled six points during three home games last week as the Caps (4-2-2, 10 points) remained in first place in the Southeast Division. Overall, he has an NHL-best nine goals and another seven assists. He also leads the league in points with 16. Ovechkin’s previous best start through eight games? He had six goals and four assists as a rookie.
