Ovechkin scored his 871st NHL goal and cut the gap to Gretzky to 23 goals

Russian forward and captain of the Washington Capitals hockey club Alexander Ovechkin scored a puck in the regular season National Hockey League (NHL) match against the Minnesota Wild, thus reducing the gap to Wayne Gretzky to 23 goals.

However, Ovechkin's puck did not help Washington win. The hockey player did not realize his shootout, and the club suffered a defeat with a score of 3:4.

Minnesota scored goals from forwards Ryan Hartman, Jacob Trenin, Marco Rossi and Matt Boldy, while Washington scored goals from forwards Tom Wilson, Alexander Ovechkin and defenseman Martin Fehervari.

"Minnesota" has 52 points in 39 games and is in third place in the Western Conference. "Washington" leads the Eastern Conference with 53 points in 38 games.

Ovechkin is second on the list of top snipers in NHL history. His total number of goals in championships is now 871. This season, the hockey player took part in 22 games, scoring 18 pucks in them.

Earlier, January 2, Ovechkin was in second place in the list of the best hockey players of the XXI century according to the Canadian website Sportsnet. Pittsburgh Penguins forward Sidney Crosby took the first place in the list.

Before that, on December 2, Ovechkin resumed training on the ice after an injury sustained on November 19 in the third period of Washington's game against Utah. The hockey player injured his knee in a collision with opposing team forward Jack McBain and was forced to leave the ice with the help of another player.

Ovechkin's injury temporarily halted his pursuit of Gretzky's record. In a November game against Utah, Ovechkin increased his regular season goal total to 868.