Washington Capitals honor Alex Ovechkin for passing Gordie Howe on NHL goals list

WASHINGTON - The Washington Capitals honored Alex Ovechkin Tuesday for passing Gordie Howe on the NHL's all-time goal scoring list.

Ovechkin scored his 801st and 802nd goals against the Winnipeg Jets on Dec. 23 to tie and pass Howe, who scored 801 goals in 26 NHL seasons.

Howe retired in 1980. He died in 2016.

Washington Capitals honor Alex Ovechkin (Washington Capitals)

Following the pregame ceremony, Ovechkin scored his 40th goal of the season against the Columbus Blue Jackets who rallied to beat the Capitals 7-6.

He has now scored 40 goals in a season 13 times - the most in league history, breaking a tie with Wayne Gretzky, who did it 12 times.

Ovechkin now has 820 in his career. He needs 75 to break Gretzky's record of 894.

The Associated press contributed to this report.