Maybe Philipp Grubauer is a good-luck charm for Alex Ovechkin. The backup goaltender has just happened to be the starter for Ovechkin’s two biggest moments of the season.
When Ovechkin scored his 484th career goal to be become the highest goal-scoring Russian player, Grubauer was in the Washington net. When Ovechkin scored his 500th career goal on Sunday, Grubauer was once again on the ice.
“It was amazing to see history made,” Grubauer said. “It’s not going to happen every day.”
Lost in the fanfare of Ovechkin’s milestone was the strong performance of Grubauer, who stopped 32 shots to make a special night for Ovechkin even better because it was Washington’s most convincing win of the season, 7-1 over the Ottawa Senators.