Well, of course he did.
Alex Ovechkin came into Saturday with 47 goals on the season, eyeing a rare full campaign in which he (and thus the rest of the NHL) might not hit that 50-goal mark. The St. Louis Blues certainly had every reason to stop him, too, being that they’re in a dogfight with the Dallas Stars for the Central Division crown.
The Washington Capitals, meanwhile, had little to play for beyond milestones (speaking of which, Braden Holtby’s likely to tie Martin Brodeur for the single-season wins record at 48).
So, those thoughts might swim in your head and make you believe that Ovechkin might not make it.
And then you remember just how automatic No. 8 really is.
He reached 50 on Saturday thanks to a hat trick, and he didn’t need an empty net to do it. Check out his third goal of the evening in GIF form, with video of the trio to be added soon enough:
Here it is... #CapsBlues #RockTheRed pic.twitter.com/LwJRZuxcHl
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) April 10, 2016
To little surprise, he’s made some history:
#Caps Alex Ovechkin is the third player in NHL history to score 50 goals in a season seven times (Mike Bossy: 9, Wayne Gretzky: 9).
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 10, 2016
#Caps Ovechkin is the first player in NHL history to score 50 goals in three consecutive seasons twice (2007-10, 2013-16).
— CapitalsPR (@CapitalsPR) April 10, 2016