COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Alex Ovechkin had an assist on the go-ahead goal in what perhaps will be the final game of his record-breaking career and the Washington Capitals defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets 2-1 on Tuesday night in the season finale for both teams.
Ovechkin had the second assist on Jakob Chychrun's power-play goal with 4:07 remaining in the third period. He finished the season leading the Capitals with 32 goals and 64 points
Anthony Beauvillier also scored for Washington and Clay Stevenson stopped 27 shots.
Boone Jenner scored for Columbus and Jet Greaves made 19 saves.
Ovechkin — the league’s all-time leading goal scorer with 929 — is in the final season of his contract and said he is waiting until after the season before deciding on his future.
The Capitals have failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for just the fifth time since Ovechkin was drafted in 2004.
The 40-year-old Russian became the fifth player age 40 or older in NHL history to play in all 82 regular-season games. The last one to do it was Jaromir Jagr with the Florida Panthers in 2016-17.
It is the fifth time in 21 seasons Ovechkin has not missed a regular-season game.
The Blue Jackets were in last place in the Eastern Conference when Rick Bowness replaced Dean Evason as coach on Jan. 12.
Columbus went 18-2-4 in Bowness’ first 24 games and moved into a playoff spot after collecting a point in 12 straight games. The Blue Jackets went 3-9-1 down the stretch though and have missed the postseason for the sixth straight season.
Jenner snapped a shot from the slot that beat Stevenson on his blocker side 27 seconds into the second period.
Beauvillier evened it 10 minutes later when he got behind the Blue Jackets' defense, took a long pass from Trevor Van Riemsdyk and beat Greaves with a wrist shot on the breakaway.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
The Best Cymbidium and Orchid Show and Sale held in the San Francisco Peninsula will be the … Read moreAnnual Cymbidium & Orchid Show and Sale hosted by the Gold Coast Cymbidium Society & Peninsula Orchid Society
What is a fantasy in music—a form, or a freedom shared between performers? Read moreViolin Fantasie: Polina Sedukh, violin, Irina Behrendt, piano
CA Is Burning said:
The ideological blind sheep are editing & endorsing. When will integrity and honesty return to newspapers, large and small?
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.