Ovechkin beat fellow Russian Andrei Vasilevskiy of the Tampa Bay Lightning with four minutes left in the third period after getting stopped twice by him earlier.

With that goal, Ovechkin is now just 10 away from tying Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky for most all-time (894). It was his 31st goal of the season in a 3-1 loss, Washington's third straight, but with 22 games remaining in the regular season, it's a brighter spot than most think.

Mitchell Chaffee and Gage Goncalves scored, Andrei Vasilevskiy stopped 20 of the 21 shots he faced behind a remarkable tight-checking team effort and the Tampa Bay Lightning won their eighth consecutive game by beating the Eastern Conference-leading Washington Capitals 3-1 on Saturday.