That's D.C. Hockey Pilot Making his highly-anticipated return from a broken leg on Saturday, Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin picked up right where he left off, scoring an empty-net goal for career tally No. 869 en route to a 5-2 win. Post-game, he was asked if it was one of the easiest goals he's scored in his career. And with a laugh, he immediately shut it down. "Every game, every goal is hard to score in this league," Ovechkin said. And the 39-year-old, who has 60 empty-netters in his career, is right. No goals are easy to score in the NHL. Critics are quick to assume that because there's no goaltender, scoring into an empty net is no problem. I mean, it makes sense, right? Ovechkin had this to add. "If you want to try, take your skates and go 6-on-5," Ovechkin joked. But the Russian makes a valid point. Playing 6-on-5 and shutting things down isn't easy by any means. Think of it this way. You're on the ice and tasked with shutting down six of your opponent's top stars who have a clear game plan to tie the game up. You have to be on your toes, defensively aware and playing a key role; you're not just cherry-picking and waiting for a pass, as some assume. That leaves your team playing 6-on-4 hockey, and more often than not, it won't work. Ovechkin's empty-netter against Toronto came when he sprinted up ice and called for a pass after Aliaksei Protas got hold of the puck. From there, he skated it in and safely sealed the victory; there was no waiting around. As a wing, he was up at the point, staying in position and working to read the play. "There are benefits to having maybe not a 'defensive specialist' but highly intelligent offensively players playing 5-on-6," head coach Spencer Carbery said postgame. "And (Ovechkin) is as good as it gets." That said, taking a goalie out of the equation doesn't mean goals are easy to come by in the NHL. There's less space to work with and more pressure, and it's harder than you think to skate the puck up ice, outrace everyone and put the final nail in the coffin. Just ask Ovechkin, who is now 26 goals shy of breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time NHL goals record.
