The Capitals captain sits 73 goals away from Wayne Gretzky's all-time record and may use another stick from CCM to chase him down.
ARLINGTON, V.A. — Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin has a new stick he's trying out as he continues to chase down Wayne Gretzky, and it's another choice from CCM.
Ovechkin returned to MedStar Capitals Iceplex on Tuesday to join the team's informal skates ahead of training camp following a lengthy offseason in Russia. He had a Ribcor Trigger 8 Pro in hand for his first on-ice workout of the new season with Washington.
His main twig over the last few seasons has been the Ribcor Trigger ASY. He had experimented with the JetSpeed FT5 Pro at different points last year but always came back to the ASY. His stick flex is 100.
The Trigger 8 Pro has not been released yet and comes out on Sept. 15, per GearGeek.com.
CCM's Ribcor line features sticks with a low kick point, which allows for a quicker release. The newer Trigger sticks are lighter weight and promote a seemingly effortless shot. Ovechkin's signature ASY dates back to 2016 and weighs more than the current Ribcor Trigger sticks on the market.
In the "GR8NESS" documentary, Ovechkin told ESPN's Kevin Weekes that he likes the Ribcor line of sticks and also mentioned that he has only changed his curve twice over the course of his career.
Ovechkin, who turns 38 on Sept. 17, currently sits at 822 career goals and passed Gordie Howe last season for second on the NHL's all-time goals list while also posting his record-breaking 13th career 40-goal season. He sits 73 away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time goals record.
Also in attendance for informal skates: Nicklas Backstrom, T.J. Oshie, Dylan Strome, Evgeny Kuznetsov, Nic Dowd, Joel Edmundson, Nick Jensen, Vincent Iorio, Alex Alexeyev, Joe Snively, Alex Limoges and more.
The workout consisted of drills and a scrimmage before the facility was turned over to the NHL's top prospects for the NHLPA Rookie Showcase.