Alex Ovechkin: Power Ranking the Top 8 Filthiest Goals of His Career

For many fans, myself included, the offseason is already starting to drag.

Yes, the Stanley Cup Final is upon us, and of course every hockey fan will be watching, but for 28 other fanbases, the Final is simply fresh salt being thrown into a recently opened wound.

Especially if you are a Capitals fan, as I am. Until the Capitals bring Lord Stanley's Cup to DC, the wounds will remain deep in Washington.

Washington's season usually ends sometime during the last week of April, and I currently need something to keep me pumped up until the puck drops again for the 2011-12 season.

I am tired of writing about how Bruce Boudreau must be fired and Alexander Semin needs to be traded.

Call him what you want—the Great 8, Alexander the Great or simply Alex Ovechkin—but with him, a shot at winning the Stanley Cup never seems that far over the horizon.

In hopes of trying to close the wounds of a four-game sweep to end the season, I present to you the eight filthiest goals of the Great 8's career.

No. 8: vs. New York Islanders—March 1, 2011

Just as Joe Beninati says, this is a dazzling overtime winner from the Great 8.

Washington trailed the Islanders for 59 minutes and 48 seconds until Brooks Laich tied the game.

Ovechkin did not score many this past season. His 32 lamplighters were 18 below the 50 he has averaged throughout his first six years in the league.

This one was big for the Caps.

Washington was making its late-season surge towards the top of the Eastern Conference, as the Caps were 15-9-7 in their previous 31 games.

A loss to the Isles could have derailed the freight train of momentum the Caps were building.

Like he has on many occasions for his team, Ovie took over and brought home the win just 1:55 into the extra session.

Watch and enjoy as Ovechkin takes over!

No. 7: vs. Montreal Canadiens—Ovechkin Nose What the Fans Want to See

While this list is about the filthiest goals in his career, this was by far his filthiest single-game performance.

Consider what happened to Ovechkin during the course of this game. He was high-sticked by compatriot Alex Kovalev and took a few stitches on the inside of his cheek.

Next up, the legal shoulder hit of Francis Bouillon leveled the Great 8 and broke his nose.

For good measure, Ovechkin picked up a few more stitches when he was clipped in the lip by the puck.

With his best Dave "Killer" Carlson face, Ovechkin promptly notched four goals and one assist for the game. Oh yeah, Ovie's fourth goal of the night was the Caps' fifth, the game-winner for Washington in overtime.

Despite being a "mess," Ovechkin completed one of the greatest single games in the history of the sport—in fact, in any sport for that matter.

Be sure not to miss the hat trick goal, which he wristed between the legs of the Montreal defenseman and over the shoulder of Habs goalie Cristobal Huet.

During an interview with François Gagnon, a longtime hockey writer in Canada, Francis Bouillon was asked what he remembered most about the hit.

His response: "I thought I really hit him hard but when he got up, he came over to me smiling and asked me to do it again because he liked it.

Bouillon finished the quote by saying, “Instead of knocking him out of the game, I may have given him extra motivation."

Ya think?

No. 6: April 11, 2008 vs. Philadelphia Flyers—No. 8's No. 1 in Playoff Competition

Ovechkin did not wait long to deliver his first Stanley Cup Playoff goal.

The Flyers kept the NHL's leading scorer from scoring until it mattered most in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series.

With the game on the line, the Russian scoring machine delivered, and in dramatic fashion.

With just 4:32 to play, Ovechkin stripped the puck from Flyers defenseman Lasse Kukkonen in front of the net and lifted a shot past an amazed and out of position Martin Biron for the game-winning goal.

The Caps would go on to lose the series in seven games (surprise, surprise) to Philadelphia. However, Ovechkin would post nine points (4G, 5A) in his first playoff series.

In 37 career postseason games, Ovechkin has 25 goals and 25 assists for the Caps.

No. 5: April 24, 2009 vs. New York Rangers—Ovie Wears Rangers Inside-Out

Ovechkin’s Game 5 goal against the Rangers in the 2009 playoffs is simply sick.

At least that is how the Rangers and their fans felt following one of the best-looking goals in Caps history.

Besides the goal itself, my favorite part is when all else fails, the Rangers' Aaron Voros simply tackles Ovechkin and slides into the boards with him.

Ovechkin begins his celebration before Voros can let him go. 

Derrick "inside-out" Morris could do nothing as Ovechkin finished him, Voros and Chris Drury off for the Caps' fourth and final goal of the game.

In fact, Ovie also finished off Rangers goalie Henrik Lundqvist, as he was pulled following Alexander the Great's goal.

The Rangers never recovered from the Game 5 loss to Washington.

After heading into DC up three games to one that night, the Rangers would lose not only this game, but also the next two games.

Ovechkin and his Washington teammates completed the comeback and finished off the Rangers in seven games.

No. 4: November 26, 2007 vs. Buffalo Sabres—Two-for-One Special

Here are two for the price of one, and I would like to thank the Buffalo Sabres for their cooperation in both.

Both goals against Buffalo are worthy of this list. The choice of video simply came down to quality.

In the first one shown above, Ovechkin speeds up the left wing as we have seen him do hundreds of times, but what he does next to Brian Campbell and Jaroslav Spacek is almost criminal.

He slips the puck between Campbell’s legs, beating him, and then after a semi-successful poke check by Spacek, Ovechkin shows his real concentration and skill.

After the poke check bounces off Sabres goalie Ryan Miller's pad, Ovechkin picks up the loose puck and fires it home.

Ovechkin delivers a day-late Christmas gift to the fans of DC on December 26, 2008 with this gem.

Ovie again takes off with the puck and speeds past Buffalo defenseman Toni Lydman as if he is standing still.

Then, after Ovechkin put his classic inside-out move on the Sabres' Henrik Tallinder, he was tripped by Tallinder, but to no avail.

From his skates, from his back, from his backside or, in this case, from his stomach, Ovechkin is deadly from anywhere on the ice.

Ovie and the puck end up past Buffalo goalie Patrick Lalime for another classic Ovechkin goal.

No. 3: vs. Detroit Red Wings—January 31, 2009

Scoring the first of two goals to secure a 4-2 victory, Ovechkin skates offside, gets back onside, over-skates the puck and then finally controls the puck by sliding it between his own leg to gain control.

In the process, he beats Ville Leino and the recently retired Brian Rafalski on his way to beating Red Wings goalie Ty Conklin for the game-winner.

This goal does not rate as high on many lists because people miss how much work Ovechkin put into the play.

He started the play in his own zone, and like many other goals the Great 8 scores, he simply out-hustled and outworked the opposition.

Outworking the opposition is never more evident than when you look at his numbers. Ovechkin has 51 career game-winning goals and four more in the playoffs.

After just six seasons, Ovechkin is already the Caps' all-time leader in this category. He led the NHL last season with 10 game-winning goals.

No. 1A: vs. Montreal Canadiens (again), February 18, 2009—The Pass to Himself

Ovechkin’s 205th career goal is, in my mind, his best ever. I put this goal at No. 1A simply because of Wayne Gretzky's reaction to No. 1 on this list.

Canadiens defenseman Roman Hamrlik left a description of his jock strap posted on the bulletin board in the visitors’ locker room at the Verizon Center after the game.

When Ovechkin banked a backhand pass to himself while spinning completely around, Hamrlik was more than beat. He was now a permanent part of Ovechkin’s career highlight reel.

The move on Hamrlik was just the start of this amazing play.

Once through the neutral zone, Ovechkin gained the offensive zone and began to move towards the Habs net with eyes focused on Montreal netminder Carey Price.

Montreal’s Kyle Chipchura did what he could and what everybody else seems to do in his position: tackle and pull Ovechkin down. 

Ovie never lost concentration and never took his eyes off Price as he was sliding on his right side. He managed to deposit the puck behind Price and even pulled it back first before scoring.

Said Carey Price, "He’s a premier hockey player and athlete in sports and he does that stuff for a living. He’s just got the natural talent. He’s an unreal athlete, and he seems to pull it off quite often.”

No. 1: vs. Phoenix Coyotes, January 15, 2006—Simply Known as "The Goal"

If there was any doubt in anyone’s mind about how dominant a player Alex Ovechkin was going to become in the NHL, then his 32nd marker of his rookie season removed any doubts.

In a 6-1 rout win over the Wayne Gretzky-coached Phoenix Coyotes, Ovechkin scored what has simply become known as "The Goal.”

"The best goal I ever scored," Ovechkin said. "I just went down and shot."

Ovechkin picked up the puck on the right wing and tried to beat Phoenix defenseman Paul Mara with a curl and drag move. Mara would not allow him by, and down to the ice Ovechkin went.

However, the 20-year-old Russian kept the net in focus as he slid through the right faceoff circle, still with the puck. His shot came over his head and upside down at a sharp angle, as Brian Boucher never had a shot.

Ovechkin sent the puck sliding just above the stick of Boucher as he realized he had been beat. Boucher dropped his head as he remained down on his knees shaking his head.

The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, watched the video replay on the scoreboard and shook his head as a collective "ahhhhh" could be heard as Coyotes fans watched the replays in amazement.

Following the game, Gretzky was asked what he thought of Ovechkin’s goal. "That was pretty sweet," the Great One said.

"You know, he's a phenomenal player, and he's been a tremendous influence in the game." Gretzky finished by saying, “It's great to see, because he is that good."

Whether Ovechkin can approach any of Gretzky's lifetime numbers remains to be seen. However, with his work ethic and determination, some of No. 99's records could end up in Soviet hands.