Ovechkin did not let a 4-2 loss to the Wild at Xcel Energy Center, Minnesota stop him from honoring the Wild star goalie, who is expected to retire at the end of the 2024-25 NHL season, as the 39-year-old Washington forward called his teammates to shake Fleury's hands.

Fleury, who’s in his 21st and assuredly final season in the league, was on the home bench all night while Filip Gustavsson manned the net.

Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin, who's closing in on the NHL's all-time goals record, stopped teammates from leaving the ice until they shook hands with Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, who ranks second all time in goalie wins and intends to retire after the season. The Capitals lined up everyone to shake Fleury's hand after the game.

Part of what makes Alex Ovechkin’s pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goal-scoring record so compelling is that the two players are polar opposites in some ways yet stunningly similar in others.

The NHL regular season wraps up in less than a month, and all eyes are on Alex Ovechkin as he continues to chase the NHL's all-time goals record, held by Wayne Gretzky since 1999. The Washington Capitals captain added to his career total on Tuesday evening with a game-tying snap shot in the third period of a 3-2 overtime loss to the Winnipeg Jets,

Raised in Moscow within the Soviet sports system by parents who were accomplished athletes, Alex Ovechkin was given every chance to succeed at hockey and along the way showed he didn’t need special treatment.