Two future Hall of Famers renew their rivalry when Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals visit Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night.

Ovechkin comes in after scoring his 900th NHL goal and third of the season as the Capitals beat the visiting St. Louis Blues 6-1 on Wednesday night, snapping a four-game losing streak (0-3-1).

“I’m still playing, but when I’m going to be done playing, of course, I’m going to think about it,” Ovechkin said of the milestone. “And lots of guys on the bench said, ‘Nine hundred. That’s pretty special.’ But I’m still playing, still have lots of games left, so we’ll see what’s going to happen.”

His next game is against the Penguins, who return home after completing a four-game road trip with a 4-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Monday.

The Thursday game will be the 74th regular-season meeting between Ovechkin and Crosby. Ovechkin has 68 points (38 goals, 30 assists) in those contests and Crosby has 95 points (33 goals, 62 assists).

Anthony Beauvillier and Tom Wilson each had two goals against the Blues, and John Carlson had a goal and an assist for the Capitals, who set a season high for goals. Jakob Chychrun had three assists, and Logan Thompson made 23 saves.

“It’s been a long time coming for our guys,” Thompson said. “I think we’ve had a lot of chances. It was good to see them finally going in. Credit to the guys, it was overall one of our best games of the season and just build off it as we start this road trip.”

Washington killed off all three St. Louis power plays, extending its penalty-kill streak to 12 dating back to Oct. 28.

Charlie Lindgren starts in goal for the Capitals on Thursday. He is 1-3-0 with a 2.54 goals-against average and a .922 save percentage in his career vs. Pittsburgh.

On Monday night, the Penguins could not hold a 3-0 third-period lead against the Maple Leafs, leaving them with a 1-2-1 mark on their road trip.

“It has to be a full 60 minutes, though, and we got away from it there,” Pittsburgh coach Dan Muse said. “It was a number of different factors. When they took momentum, we weren’t able to at least pause the momentum. They kept coming and then we were back on our heels, and you can’t play the game that way.”

Rookie Ben Kindel scored twice for his first multi-goal NHL game for the Penguins, who have lost two in a row.

Kindel, an 18-year-old who was a first-round pick in this year’s draft, has five goals on the season.

“Just the sense, his ability to read space, the ability to attack space, to know where the next play is — those are the types of things that I think we’ve seen from him on a pretty consistent basis,” Muse said.

Penguins goalie Tristan Jarry got hurt in the Toronto game and will be out a minimum of three weeks with a lower-body injury. Sergei Murashov, 21, was called up from AHL Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

Arturs Silovs, the likely starter on Thursday, has never faced the Capitals.

The Penguins also will be without Noel Acciari, who left the Monday game with an upper-body injury and will be out at least three weeks.

–Field Level Media

The Buffalo Sabres keep working overtime to compile points.

During their last five outings, the Sabres won once in a shootout and earned an overtime-loss point in the other four games. They ran their overall point streak to seven games (3-0-4) in the process.

The Sabres will try to extend that run when they host the slumping St. Louis Blues on Thursday night. Buffalo would like to do it in regulation time after going into extra time in five straight games.

“It’s just how seasons go, and weird stuff happens,” Sabres goaltender Alex Lyon said. “It means that we’re competitive and we’re staying in there, and I almost hate to say that. But if we find a way to keep getting points, find a way to continue to stick around, that’s a good thing.

“I also think the next step is available for us where maybe we start to take over. But credit to guys, and (we) continued to battle all night (against Utah) with a tough lineup situation.”

Buffalo center Josh Norris will be sidelined for additional weeks with an upper-body injury, and playmaking winger Zach Benson is shelved by a lower-body injury. Forwards Jason Zucker (illness) landed on injured reserve, and Jiri Kulich (non-injury medical issue) also was out on Tuesday.

On the other hand, forward Tyson Kozak could return to action against the Blues. He has been sidelined since Oct. 24 due to a lower-body injury.

The Sabres’ health issues gave young forwards Noah Ostlund and Isak Rosen the opportunity to move up from AHL Rochester.

“We need their skill, we need their scoring ability that they’ve shown in the minors,” Sabres coach Lindy Ruff said. “This is the next step for them. This is the opportunity they’re waiting for. All of a sudden, they get 14, 15 minutes, and I think they’ve taken advantage of it. Both guys have played extremely well for us.”

The Sabres will catch St. Louis playing the second of back-to-back road games. The Blues fell 6-1 at Washington on Wednesday night, when Capitals star Alex Ovechkin scored his 900th career goal.

“Well, this is unacceptable, it’s just that simple,” Blues coach Jim Montgomery said after the loss.

The Blues believed they got back on track with a 3-2 home victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday, but the Capitals dominated them from start to finish.

“If you don’t compete and battle, you’re going to get your butts kicked most nights,” Blues captain Brayden Schenn said. “It’s happened way too many nights, over and over again. … That was as disappointing a loss as you can have after finally getting a win.”

The Blues are 1-6-2 in their past nine games.

“At the end of the day, a quick turnaround, you have to have a short memory in this league,” Schenn said. “We have to go to Buffalo and play for each other first and foremost. Start with that and hope the results come from that.”

The Blues started Jordan Binnington in goal against the Capitals, but Montgomery pulled him midway through the game after the 32-year-old veteran allowed four goals on 15 shots.

Joel Hofer relieved Binnington and allowed two goals on 17 shots. Normally Hofer would start on the second night of back-to-back games, but Montgomery could come back to Binnington.

–Field Level Media

Alex Ovechkin scored his 900th career goal as the Washington Capitals defeated the visiting St. Louis Blues 6-1 on Wednesday.

Anthony Beauvillier and Tom Wilson each scored two goals and Jakob Chychrun recorded three assists as the Capitals snapped a four-game winless streak.

Alexey Toropchenko scored for the slumping Blues, who are 1-6-2 in their last nine games. Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington allowed four goals on 15 shots before giving way to Joel Hofer midway through the game.

Ovechkin set up his league-record 900th goal by knocking down an outlet attempt by Binnington early in the second period. When Chychrun’s ensuing shot caromed to him off the end boards, Ovechkin scored on a spinning backhand from a bad angle before Binnington could get to the post.

Sharks 6, Kraken 1

Macklin Celebrini logged a goal and two assists as San Jose handed Seattle its first regulation loss at home this season.

Will Smith, Tyler Toffoli and John Klingberg each added a goal for the Sharks, who improved to 4-1-1 over their past six games. Goaltender Yaroslav Askarov made 28 saves.

Ryan Winterton scored his first NHL goal for the Kraken, who entered the game with a 4-0-2 home record. Joey Daccord stopped 15 of 20 shots before being pulled at 3:24 of the third period. Matt Murray saved 2 of 3 attempts the rest of the way.

Flames 5, Blue Jackets 1

Nazem Kadri scored in his 1,000th game and Calgary got off to a lightning start and claimed a victory over visiting Columbus.

Morgan Frost and Blake Coleman gave Calgary a 2-0 lead after 92 seconds. Adam Klapka and Mikael Backlund also scored for the Flames, who have won two consecutive games for the first time this season.

Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf sparkled, making 42 saves, 22 of them in the third period alone while the Blue Jackets attempted a comeback that fell well short.
Kirill Marchenko scored for Columbus, which has dropped two games in a row.

Blackhawks 5, Canucks 2

Tyler Bertuzzi recorded a hat trick and Spencer Knight made 43 saves in Chicago’s road win over Vancouver.

The victory ended both Chicago’s three-game winless streak (0-2-1), and a longstanding drought against Vancouver. The Blackhawks were 0-10-1 in their previous 11 games with the Canucks, dating back to the 2021-22 season.

Vancouver outshot Chicago by a 45-28 margin and held a 35-19 shots edge through two periods. Aatu Raty and Evander Kane scored late in the third period to spoil Knight’s shutout bid

Maple Leafs 5, Mammoth 3

John Tavares scored in the third period to snap a 2-2 tie and Toronto went on to defeat visiting Utah.

Tavares, William Nylander, Matias Maccelli and Matthew Knies all had a goal and an assist and Auston Matthews also scored for the Maple Leafs, who have won three in a row. Jake McCabe added two assists and Anthony Stolarz made 21 saves.

Michael Carcone, Mikhail Sergachev and Dylan Guenther scored for the Mammoth, who split the first two matchups of a four-game road trip that started Tuesday with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres. Vitek Vanecek stopped 14 shots.

–Field Level Media

Macklin Celebrini logged a goal and two assists as the San Jose Sharks defeated Seattle 6-1 Wednesday night, handing the Kraken their first regulation loss at home this season.

Will Smith, Tyler Toffoli and John Klingberg each added a goal and an assist and Ethan Cardwell and Ty Dellandrea also tallied for the Sharks, who improved to 4-1-1 over their past six games. Goaltender Yaroslav Askarov made 28 saves.

Ryan Winterton scored his first NHL goal for the Kraken, who entered the game with a 4-0-2 home record. Joey Daccord stopped 15 of 20 shots before being pulled at 3:24 of the third period. Matt Murray saved 2 of 3 attempts the rest of the way.

The Sharks took a 2-1 lead after a back-and-forth first period, despite getting outshot 10-6.

Celebrini opened the scoring on the game’s first shot at 1:08 of the first. Klingberg won a battle for the puck along the right-wing boards and shoveled a pass to Toffoli, who quickly spotted Celebrini open in the slot for a wrist shot into the upper-left corner of the net.

The Kraken tied it at 16:30 of the first. Winterton was stopped by Askarov on a drive to the net, with Seattle keeping control of the puck and cycling it around the offensive zone. Ryan Lindgren’s shot from the blue line was knocked down out front, and the puck fell at the feet of Winterton in the slot. He put a wrist shot into the upper right corner.

The Sharks regained the lead at 18:42 of the first after a Seattle turnover just outside its own zone led to a short 3-on-2 rush. Former Kraken forward Alexander Wennberg carried the puck over the blue line and sent a cross-ice pass to Cardwell for a one-timer from low on the left wing.

The Sharks extended their advantage to 3-1 on the power play at 11:21 of the second. Klingberg converted a slap shot from just inside the blue line.

San Jose pulled away with three goals in the opening 3:54 of the third.

Smith made it 4-1 at 1:02 on a wrist shot from just outside the right faceoff dot that pinballed off a pair of Kraken defenders on its way into the net.

Dellandrea chased Daccord when he scored on a rebound after the goalie stopped Collin Graf on a short-handed breakaway.

Toffoli beat Murray on a breakaway at 3:54, just 30 seconds after the backup goalie entered the game.

–Field Level Media

Tyler Bertuzzi recorded a hat trick and Spencer Knight made 43 saves in the Chicago Blackhawks’ 5-2 road win over the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday.

The victory ended both Chicago’s three-game winless streak (0-2-1), and a longstanding drought against Vancouver. The Blackhawks were 0-10-1 in their previous 11 games with the Canucks, dating back to the 2021-22 season. The 11-game domination tied the Canucks’ franchise record for longest win streak against a single opponent.

Vancouver outshot Chicago by a 45-28 margin and held a 35-19 shots edge through two periods. Led by Knight’s outstanding performance, the Blackhawks withstood this early barrage to keep the game scoreless before the teams erupted for a seven-goal third period.

The Blackhawks had the first four of those tallies, led by Bertuzzi converting passes from the side of the net at both the 3:06 and 6:46 marks for a 2-0 lead.

After Ilya Mikheyev scored, Bertuzzi struck again 11:37 into the third period for his fourth hat trick in his 10 NHL seasons.

Knight stopped 43 shots to improve to 5-3-2 this season. The save total was the second highest of his career.

Chicago’s Connor Bedard had an empty-net goal and an assist. The forward has 11 points (five goals, six assists) over a six-game point streak. Ryan Donato assisted on two of the Blackhawks’ tallies.

Aatu Raty and Evander Kane scored late in the third period to spoil Knight’s shutout bid and give the Canucks some late hope prior to Bedard’s empty-net tally with one minute remaining.

Vancouver’s Drew O’Connor seemingly had the opening tally 8:34 into the second period, but the would-be goal was erased after a video review. O’Connor collided with Knight before jamming the puck into the net, leading to Chicago coach Jeff Blashill making a successful goaltender-interference challenge.

Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen stopped 23 of 27 shots.

–Field Level Media

Nazem Kadri scored in his 1,000th game and the Calgary Flames got off to a lightning start and claimed a 5-1 victory over the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets on Wednesday.

Morgan Frost and Blake Coleman gave Calgary a 2-0 lead after 92 seconds. Adam Klapka and Mikael Backlund also scored for the Flames, who have won two consecutive games for the first time this season but still sit in last spot in the league standings.

Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf sparkled, making 42 saves, 22 of them in the third period alone while the Blue Jackets attempted a comeback that fell well short.

Kirill Marchenko scored for Columbus, which has dropped two games in a row. Goalie Jet Greaves stopped 21 shots for the Blue Jackets, who opened a four-game road trip.

After a pregame ceremony to honor Kadri, Frost gave the hosts a huge early boost 56 seconds into the clash by deflecting Jonathan Huberdeau’s point shot. The helper extended Huberdeau’s point streak to six games (three goals, four assists).

Coleman doubled the lead 36 seconds later by converting a shot from the left circle during a scramble.

Marchenko put the Blue Jackets on the board at 6:57 of the opening frame by finishing a short-handed breakaway opportunity.

The Flames responded with another pair of goals 37 seconds apart before the midway point of the second period to build a three-goal edge.

Kadri made his milestone game more memorable when he finished a perfectly executed 2-on-1 rush with Joel Farabee at 7:47 of the middle frame. It was his 311st career goal and his fourth of the season.

Klapka extended Calgary’s edge by finding the mark when he elected to shoot during another odd-man rush. Yan Kuznetsov, a second-round pick in the 2020 draft playing his second NHL game and first of this season, collected his first point with an assist.

Backlund’s empty-net goal with 49 seconds remaining rounded out the scoring.

–Field Level Media

Alex Ovechkin scored his 900th career goal as the Washington Capitals defeated the visiting St. Louis Blues 6-1 on Wednesday.

Anthony Beauvillier and Tom Wilson each scored two goals, and John Carlson had a goal and an assist as the Capitals snapped a four-game winless streak.

Jakob Chychrun recorded three assists for Washington and goaltender Logan Thompson made 23 saves.

Alexey Toropchenko scored for the slumping Blues, who are 1-6-2 in their last nine games.

Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington allowed four goals on 15 shots before giving way to Joel Hofer midway through the game.

Ovechkin set up his league-record 900th goal by knocking down an outlet attempt by Binnington early in the second period. When Chychrun’s ensuing shot caromed to him off the end boards, Ovechkin scored on a spinning backhand from a bad angle before Binnington could get to the post.

Beauvillier increased Washington’s lead to 3-0 at the 4:33 mark of the period by cutting to his backhand and lifting a shot past Binnington.

Carlson made it 4-0 at 9:28 of the second by stealing the puck inside the St. Louis blue line and scoring with a turnaround shot from the slot.

Beauvillier pushed the lead to 5-0 at 16:20 by beating Hofer over his shoulder on the short side from the left circle.

Toropchenko got the Blues on the scoreboard by scoring short-handed 37 seconds into the third period.

But Wilson crashed the net for a rebound conversion at 9:00 to extend Washington’s lead to 6-1.

The Capitals controlled the first period while outshooting the Blues 12-5 and taking a 1-0 lead.

Washington pinned the exhausted Blues in their own zone during a three-shift sequence, firing away at Binnington until they finally drew a penalty. The Capitals converted their man advantage when Carlson fired a slap shot and Wilson deflected it past Binnington.

–Field Level Media

John Tavares scored in the third period to snap a 2-2 tie Wednesday and the Toronto Maple Leafs went on to defeat the visiting Utah Mammoth 5-3.

Tavares added an assist and William Nylander, Matias Maccelli and Matthew Knies also had a goal and an assist each. Auston Matthews scored for the Maple Leafs, who have won three in a row. Jake McCabe had two assists and Anthony Stolarz made 21 saves.

Michael Carcone, Mikhail Sergachev and Dylan Guenther scored for the Mammoth, who split the first two matchups of a four-game road trip that started Tuesday with a 2-1 overtime win over the Buffalo Sabres. Vitek Vanecek stopped 14 shots.

Most of the first period was tight-checking, although Tavares dinged a shot off a post. The teams opened up in the late stages and Carcone scored at 18:49 of the first from the edge of the crease after Lawson Crouse beat Toronto’s Brandon Carlo to the puck behind the net and dished it to the goalmouth.

Toronto has allowed the first goal in seven straight games.

Nylander tied the game when he fired an 11-foot wrister under the bar while dropping to one knee at 4:46 of the second period after Knies chipped the puck in front.

Matthews gave Toronto the lead at 8:56 of the second, snapping home a 32-footer from Maccelli’s pass.

Stolarz was nimble during a spell in the second when Utah had back-to-back power plays.

Utah tied the game on Sergachev’s long slap shot through the five-hole at 16:27 of the second. Dmitri Simashev made the pass to earn his first NHL point.

Toronto started the third period with an unsuccessful power play.

Tavares, who was honored before the game for scoring his 500th career goal last Wednesday, scored No. 501 on a backhand from close range at 8:06 of the third period.

Maccelli scored from the right circle at 15:40 of the third on a 22-foot wrist shot.

Knies scored into an empty net at 17:01 and Guenther scored at 18:53.

Toronto’s top rookie Easton Cowan was assigned to the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League and Scott Laughton (foot) was activated from injured reserve.

–Field Level Media

Alex Ovechkin scored his milestone 900th career goal on Wednesday night in the Washington Capitals’ home matchup with the St. Louis Blues.

Ovechkin increased his league-record total, becoming the first player to 900 goals by corralling a missed shot from teammate Jakob Chychrun and spinning to backhand the puck past Blues goaltender Jordan Binnington, who lunged but failed to glove it.

Ovechkin initiated the sequence by stealing Binnington’s attempted pass and feeding the puck to Chychrun at the point.

The goal at 2:39 of the second period was Washington’s second of the game. Capitals players streamed off the home bench to mob Ovechkin, their 40-year-old captain and a nine-time 50-goal scorer.

The scene was reminiscent of April 6 when Ovechkin blasted his 895th career goal past New York Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin to surpass Wayne Gretzky’s record of 894 goals towards the end of a marvelous regular season for him and the Capitals, who topped the Eastern Conference standings.

Ovechkin had scored twice this season and Washington owned a 6-5-1 record (13 points) entering Wednesday’s matchup with St. Louis.

–Field Level Media