“Ovi was a missile,” that’s how Jeff Halpern remembers it, and honestly, how could anyone forget? Back when Alex Ovechkin was just the new kid on the NHL block, he didn’t tiptoe into the league—he crashed into it, literally. Halpern, who was centering on that rookie squad, said you could spot the talent right away, but it was the bone-rattling hits that turned heads first. First game, first shift, and boom—Ovi absolutely smashed Columbus defenseman Radoslav Suchy into the boards so hard, the glass shattered. Whole arena froze. “Ovi used to run guys over. He was a monster on a forecheck,” Halpern recalled. “Even with the puck, if a guy stood up on him, he’d almost go through him.” Fast forward to now, and guess what?

The Caps are back on their spicy streak. With a wild 5-4 shootout dub over the Hurricanes, they’ve snatched the No. 1 seed in the East like it’s no big deal. And even though Ovi didn’t light the lamp this time, he was still out there sprinkling assists and stretching that point streak to six. The pregame ceremony for that record-crushing 895th goal? Just the cherry on top of the legacy sundae. Missed the net this time—but trust, the legend’s echo is still shaking the rafters. But here’s where things start to feel a little different. Fans all over the league aren’t just celebrating the numbers—they’re catching onto a shift. Ever since Ovi broke that legendary record, his whole aura on the ice has changed, and folks online are in full detective mode.

Over on the Washington Capitals’ subreddit, one fan dropped a theory that got everybody talking. The post read, “It seemed to me that ever since Ovi came back from his broken leg, he has barely been hitting anyone, and then last night suddenly he was throwing himself at everybody on the ice.” The user didn’t stop there, though. They went on, “I feel like he must’ve been worried about the prospect of re-injuring himself in a more serious way, and perhaps not being able to play long enough to break the record?”

Which, let’s be real, with the recent injuries to Backstrom and Oshie, makes total sense. But then came the moment fans had missed—classic, fearless Alex Ovechkin back in beast mode. As the post perfectly summed it up, “I was at the game last night and it was really fun to see Ovi crunching guys into the boards again.” And yep, Caps Twitter, Reddit, and even some NHL forums lit up like a goal horn as Ovechkin tied for recording the second-highest number of hits (4) in the game. Fans were living for it.

One Reddit user hit fans right in the feels when they said, “I can imagine he felt somewhat guilty about all the record chasing distraction and the team slumping around that time.” And honestly? That tracks. They continued, “Maybe, but I feel like as he’s gotten older Ovi has picked his spots more with the big hits… Last night was definitely fun to watch though.” And fun it was—Alex Ovechkin was out there throwing his body around like it was 2010, setting the tone and bringing that gritty, playoff-type energy. And even if he didn’t notch a goal this time, let’s not forget—Ovechkin just made history.

A few days ago, Alex Ovechkin broke Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL goal record with No. 895. That magic moment came against the Islanders, when he took a slick pass from Tom Wilson and fired an absolute missile past Ilya Sorokin—his first-ever goal against him, with Jakob Chychrun setting the perfect screen. The Great 8’s still got it, and yeah—he might be chasing records, but he hasn’t forgotten how to lead with fire.

Fans chime in with their take on Alex Ovechkin theory!

Another fan jumped in with the kind of spicy take only Reddit can deliver: “The goal record is over, now he moves on the most hits record, he is around 150 away.” While the numbers may be a bit off, it’s true that Alex Ovechkin isn’t just stacking goals, he’s bulldozing his way through bodies too. With a wild 3,739 hits in the books, The Great 8 has quietly climbed his way into the top five all-time for NHL hits. Per the NHL’s official skater records, Ovechkin is sitting in third, just behind Matt Martin, who’s holding it down at second with 3,930. But the undisputed wrecking ball up top? Cal Clutterbuck with a jaw-dropping 4,029 hits.

And of course, the fans had thoughts—because when do they not? One user pretty much summed up the vibe, saying, “Had no idea the top two all time hits leaders were Clutterbuck and Matt Martin, that NYI 3rd line is actually pretty legendary.” Like, facts. That Islanders third line really was a bruiser’s dream team. And now, with Ovi charging up the leaderboard and tossing his weight around like it’s a contact sport (oh wait—it is), the idea of him going from sniping records to smashing them? Honestly, feels very on-brand.

Another fan jumped into the conversation with the kind of insight that hits just right, saying, “I think last night he wanted to get some morale boost for the team and that immediately started to get the rest of the team going. Ovi setting the tone in the second imo was the turning point of the game.” And honestly? That checks out. And let’s be real—he needed a bounce-back moment. Because yeah, April 6th was a rollercoaster.

While the UBS Arena saw the Russian veteran break the mother of all records, the Caps still took a rough 4-1 L to the Islanders that night. Bittersweet? You could say that. So now that he’s skating with that fire again, fans are reading into it and loving every second. As one perfectly put it, “I think he was trying to set the tone and it worked.” Yup—message received. Loud and clear.