Some nights in hockey feel less like a game and more like a history lesson unfolding in real time. On March 26, 2026, Alex Ovechkin turned a regular-season road trip in Salt Lake City into a showcase of pure greatness. He didn’t just lead his team to a 7-4 win. He broke records that hadn’t been touched in decades, reminding the NHL why no one quite compares to No. 8.
The Washington Capitals needed every goal on this night. They arrived trailing in form and fell behind 3-1 before their captain took over. What followed was a masterclass in clutch hockey from a 40-year-old legend who simply refuses to slow down or stop rewriting the record books.
Let’s break it all down.
The night Ovi made history again
Alex Ovechkin delivered his 34th career hat trick on a night Salt Lake City will remember. The Capitals arrived at Delta Center and fell behind 3-1 by the end of the first period, but Ovechkin scored twice in the second to pull Washington even. The momentum swung hard in Washington’s favor, and Ovechkin was at the center of it.
What followed was a masterclass in clutch hockey. Ovechkin scored three goals on just five shots across 18 minutes and 27 seconds of ice time. Every goal mattered, every shift had purpose, and by the time the empty-netter hit the back of the net, an arena full of Mammoth fans had just witnessed something rare.
How the three goals went down
Ovechkin’s hat trick unfolded in three completely different ways. His first came at 5:01 of the second period. Rasmus Sandin worked down into the left faceoff circle and fired a shot-pass directly onto Ovechkin’s tape. Ovi redirected it past former teammate Vitek Vanecek to cut the deficit to 3-2. It was a goal built on timing, chemistry, and instinct, three things Ovechkin has never lacked.
His second was pure power. After the Capitals hemmed Utah in their own zone for several shifts, Ovechkin jumped on the ice, set up at the point, took a pass from Dylan Strome, and fired a wrist shot into the top corner past a screened Vanecek. He then sealed the night with an empty-net goal with just 5.2 seconds remaining, sliding behind every player on the ice and calmly finishing from center ice.
Fun fact: Vanecek, the Mammoth goalie beaten twice by Ovechkin, was previously his teammate with the Washington Capitals. He was also the active goaltender with the most saves against Ovechkin without allowing a goal coming into this game. That streak ended Thursday night.
The records that fell
Ovechkin passed Brett Hull to claim sole possession of fourth place on the NHL’s all-time hat trick list. He now sits behind only Wayne Gretzky (50), Mario Lemieux (40), and Mike Bossy (39). Hull had held that fourth spot for years before Ovechkin took it away in Utah.
He also set a new NHL record by scoring a hat trick against his 21st different franchise. No player in league history had done it against more teams, with Brett Hull previously holding the mark at 20. Utah, playing its second NHL season in Salt Lake City and its first as the Mammoth, became the franchise that added another milestone to Ovechkin’s résumé.
A record that belongs to him alone
Ovechkin also extended a record that evening that only one other player in NHL history has ever approached. Thursday’s performance was Ovechkin’s 184th career multi-goal game. Only Wayne Gretzky (189) has more in NHL history. That is not a record most fans think about, but it speaks to the remarkable consistency Ovechkin has shown across two decades of professional hockey.
He also became the sixth-oldest player in NHL history to score a hat trick, at 40 years and 190 days old. Even more remarkably, he is now only the third player ever to record two hat tricks in the same season at age 40 or older. Gordie Howe (1968-69) and Johnny Bucyk (1975-76) are the only other players to share that distinction.
Fun fact: Despite being the greatest goal scorer in NHL history, Ovechkin has scored only five shorthanded goals in his entire career. His last one came all the way back in the 2021-22 season. For a man who owns virtually every offensive record in the book, that number surprises nearly everyone who hears it.
The supporting cast delivered
Anthony Beauvillier and Rasmus Sandin were not just passengers on this night. They drove the car. Beauvillier scored a power-play goal at 2:43 of the third period, tipping in a Cole Hutson shot to give Washington its first lead of the night at 4-3. It was a goal that changed everything. The Capitals had been chasing the game for nearly two full periods, and Beauvillier’s finish finally put them ahead for good.
Sandin added a goal and an assist, scoring at 6:02 of the third period to stretch Washington’s lead to 5-3. Goaltender Logan Thompson finished with 36 saves as the Capitals completed their comeback in a game Utah threatened throughout the night.
Utah’s side of the story
The Mammoth had stretches of strong play but could not hold off a Capitals team that kept pushing back. Dylan Guenther scored twice, while Clayton Keller and Mikhail Sergachev each had three assists, and Utah built a 3-1 lead before Washington turned the game around.
But the Mammoth also took 50 penalty minutes on the night, a stunning total that coach Andre Tourigny called out directly after the game. The undisciplined play gave Washington multiple power-play opportunities and allowed the Capitals to generate momentum in key moments. Utah’s emotional unraveling ultimately cost them what could have been a crucial home win.
Ovi’s season in context
Ovechkin now sits at 926 career regular-season goals, the most in NHL history. He reached 29 goals on the season with this hat trick, putting him one goal away from a 30-goal campaign. That would be his 20th such season, extending yet another record he already owns outright.
He also scored a hat trick against Montreal earlier this season on November 20. That means he now has two hat tricks in a single season at age 40, something only Gordie Howe and Johnny Bucyk ever achieved before him. For a player who broke Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record just last April, the records just keep coming.
TL;DR
- Alex Ovechkin scored his 34th career hat trick on March 26, 2026, as Washington defeated Utah 7-4.
- He passed Brett Hull for fourth place on the NHL’s all-time hat trick list, behind Gretzky, Lemieux, and Bossy.
- Ovechkin set a new NHL record by scoring a hat trick against his 21st different franchise.
- He now has 926 career regular-season goals, the most in NHL history.
This article was made with AI assistance and human editing.
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