Jets recognize Ovechkin's goal-scoring feat despite consecutive losses

Alex Ovechkin has made a habit of finding the net with regularity against the Winnipeg Jets, dating back to the days when they were still the Atlanta Thrashers.

Ovechkin has scored more goals against this franchise than any other, 53 to be exact. So it was only natural that the Washington Capitals captain first moved into a tie with Gordie Howe at 18:22 of the first period and then took sole possession of second place on the career goals list after scoring into an empty net with one minute left in regulation time.

No, it wasn’t a blistering one-timer from his office that was the historical marker, but that didn’t seem to matter to either Ovechkin or those in attendance for what turned out to be a 4-1 victory for the Capitals.

The Jets showed plenty of class, creating a handshake line for Ovechkin after the final buzzer had sounded.

“It’s just a sign of respect, right? He’s done so much for this league,” Jets centre Adam Lowry, who first met Ovechkin when he was in the seventh or eighth grade back in Calgary when his father Dave was an assistant coach with the Calgary Flames,  told reporters in D.C. “He’s been a great ambassador. He’s a great personality and it’s just a sign of respect to really let him know we appreciate all he’s done for the league, all he’s done for us as players. The milestone, it’s an incredible accomplishment.”

During his post-game session with reporters, Jets defenceman Josh Morrissey took some time to share some thoughts on Ovechkin’s accomplishment as well.

“It’s unbelievable. You could use every word possible to describe the career he’s had,” said Morrissey. “It’s crazy when I look back at being a kid growing up and watching Sid and Ovi come into the league and I’ve been in the league seven years and I know how hard it is to score goals. When you see a guy put up numbers like that, just the magnitude, he passed Gordie Howe.

“Gordie Howe is a legend of the game. He’s almost on the, potentially, the Mount Rushmore of hockey, and Ovi just passed him. It’s a moment that you’re not happy about, but at the same time you have to appreciate and show him the respect he deserves. It’s pretty remarkable what he’s done, to say the least. That’s a huge understatement.”

Ovechkin also drew an assist on the game-winner from Sonny Milano to cap a three-point night in what was the final game before the Christmas break for the Jets.

“You know what impresses me? It’s the goals, but he still loves to score goals. I love that,” Bowness said during a recent interview when asked about hitting 800. ”Some guys get a goal and (it’s) ‘yeah okay.’ This guy gets excited about every goal. He loves scoring goals, that’s why he’s got 800 and he’s clearly not done yet. It’s that passion to score that has driven him this far.

“And again, he’s not done yet. There’s a lot more goals coming. You love the compete and you love the fire in his eyes when he’s on that ice and how he lights up when he gets the puck and has a chance to score.”

The Jets lost consecutive games for just the third time this season and looked like a team suffering from fatigue after playing for the 10th time in 16 days.

For the second time in as many days, Jets centre Mark Scheifele expressed some frustration on the ice, this time slapping the puck after a whistle was blown on an icing call.

According to the replay, Scheifele had inside position in the race for the puck with Capitals defenceman Trevor van Riemsdyk.

Scheifele was immediately teed up for unsportsmanlike conduct by referee Kelly Sutherland, heading to the box to serve a minor penalty.

The Capitals didn’t convert on the power play, but Scheifele’s unhappiness with the men in stripes is something that’s going to require some massaging.

Two previous outbursts resulted in 10-minute misconducts and it’s clear right now that Scheifele might need to make an effort to try and smooth things over.

The Jets injury list added another member on Friday, as rookie forward Cole Perfetti was unavailable due to a suspect upper-body issue.

Perfetti was hurt while driving to the net with just over two minutes to go in Thursday’s 3-2 loss to the Boston Bruins after a collision with forward Jake DeBrusk.

Following the collision, the TV cameras caught Perfetti testing out his left shoulder.

Perfetti is having an excellent season, recording six goals and 20 points in 33 games, leaving him right in the thick of both the rookie points race — and the Calder Trophy discussion.

Perfetti suffered a season-ending shoulder injury on Feb. 17 when he was on the receiving end of a hard check from Seattle Kraken defenceman Jamie Oleksiak.

He joins Blake Wheeler, Nikolaj Ehlers, Mason Appleton, Saku Maenalanen, Nate Schmidt and Logan Stanley on the list of walking wounded, all of which are considered longer-term ailments.

“We can look down at the other bench, they’re missing (Nicklas) Backstrom, they’re missing (Tom) Wilson, they’re missing (T.J.) Oshie, (Martin) Fehervary and they lose (John) Carlson in the third and they find a way to go on the streak they have been,” said Lowry. “That’s kind of what we’re going to have to do. To find a way to get results, even though you’re missing some of your better players.

"No one feels sorry for you in this league. It’s about making the most of your situation. All year we’ve had guys step up when other guys have gone out of the lineup. This time needs to be no different.”

The loss of Perfetti, coupled with the other injuries, left the Jets with a mish-mash of line combinations which Bowness tried over the course of the game.

There were times when the Jets loaded up their most skilled forwards, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Kyle Connor and Scheifele on a trio together, but no matter who went over the boards, Winnipeg struggled to generate sustained offensive pressure.

When the Jets were able to create chances, Capitals goalie Charlie Lindgren stood tall, allowing just a single goal to Kevin Stenlund.

David Rittich made his third start in the past four games and finished with 23 saves.

With Perfetti out, that opened the door for Michael Eyssimont to return to the lineup for the first time in five games.

Kyle Capobianco drew back in for Dylan Samberg after sitting out the past three games as a healthy scratch.

“You can only take this next man up so far. The guys believe in themselves and they work,” Bowness said. “David made some big saves at the right time. Listen, it's a long season. And you have some stretches like this where the schedule works against you. So you fight through it, and our guys fought through it.

“We need the break. We haven't had a two-day break in a long time, so to have three days off, this group needs it, there's absolutely no question. Physically and mentally, they need a break. But again, you fall behind, 3-0, they could have just coasted through the end. They didn't. They kept fighting. And I love the fight in this group.”

The Jets are back in action on Tuesday when they host the Minnesota Wild in what should be an intense Central Division battle.

After a tremendous start to the season, the Jets have lost five of the past eight games, leaving the door open for the Wild to pull within three points in the standings, with Minnesota holding a game in hand.

"I don't think you can say we were tired. Our best period was the third period,” said Lowry. “It's a much-needed three-day break, rest mentally and reset, come back and really look forward to that second half push."