Columbus, Ohio — Alex Ovechkin got his 742nd career goal, Conor Sheary scored with 1:22 left and the Washington Capitals beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-3 Friday night.
Garnet Hathaway scored twice to help Washington get its third straight win. Ilya Samsonov stopped 26 shots for his first win since Oct. 29.
Sean Kuraly had two goals for Columbus, and Gustav Nyquist also scored. Joonas Korpisalo had 24 saves.
Ovechkin’s laser shot from the right circle at 10:19 of the first period tied the score 1-1 with his league-leading 12th goal of the season. Ovechkin broke a tie with Bobby Hull for fourth on the NHL’s all-time goals.
Hathaway gave Washington a 2-1 lead 24 seconds into the second period off a pass from Axel Jonsson-Fjallby. He got his second second of the night and second of the season on a breakaway at 7:23.
Kuraly pulled the Blue Jackets within one with his second of the night at 8:11, over a sprawling Martin Fehervary. Jakub Voracek’s assist was his team-leading 11th of the season and extended his assist streak to four games.
Nyquist tied the score 22 seconds later with his second of the season and first since opening night. Assists from Oliver Bjorkstrand and Boone Jenner extended their point streaks to four games each.
Kuraly got Columbus on the scoreboard with his first with the Blue Jackets, burying a bouncing rebound from Alexandre Texier 2:33 into the game.