Ovechkin goals-record celebration draws thousands of fans in Washington

WASHINGTON -- More than 3,000 fans braved pouring rain outside to shower Alex Ovechkin with adoration inside Capital One Arena on Friday, continuing the celebration of him passing Wayne Gretzky as the NHL’s all-time leader in goals.

The arena’s rink was covered for the GR8 City Celebration and converted into a fan fest with booths, stations and a stage at center ice where Ovechkin thanked the fans for their support and also reflected on scoring 895 goals and his tenure in Washington. The net that Ovechkin scored into against New York Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin for the historic goal on Sunday stood at a corner of the stage.

“It’s going to be a tremendous feeling when everything is going to be over and we’re going to meet up in five years or 10 years and we’re going to remember this moment because it’s obviously history,” said Ovechkin, the Capitals captain. “Right now, it’s been, like five days and it’s still crazy what we did. It’s all the organization, all the players. It’s hard to believe, like, history was made.

“It’s going to be forever. It’s nice to be part of it. It’s nice to be standing here and seeing all you guys. I’m pretty sure lots of fans, lots of people who were watching it, they’re going to remember, ‘Wow, I been there, I watched it on TV.’ It’s history, man.”

Ovechkin shared the moment onstage Friday with Capitals owner Ted Leonsis and longtime teammates Nicklas Backstrom and T.J. Oshie. Leonsis said it seemed like yesterday that Ovechkin signed a 13-year, $124 million contract ($9.54 million average annual value) in 2008.

“Ted said it’s going to be an extension, maybe?” Ovechkin said to a roar from the crowd.

Ovechkin’s five-year, $47 million contract ($9.5 million AAV) expires after next season.

“Alex played for us 20 years,” Leonsis said, “he’s going to play next year, and we should find ways to be creative when he finally decides he doesn’t want to play, and he obviously hasn’t made any of those decisions.

“I don’t see why the relationship should ever end. So we can find ways when he’s not a player to be part of the Capitals organization, we can do lots of interesting things because the culture that we created starts really with Alex all the way down.

“So this makes me optimistic and positive about the future. There’s a lot of reflection going on and I go, ‘Hey, he broke the record right on time, now we catch our breath, we go to the playoffs, try to win another Stanley Cup, right?’ What about next year? Let’s keep moving forward, let’s not stop. That what I want us to do in the most powerful city, most important city, great fan base, great player. Every time he scores a goal history gets further and further away.”

Ovechkin, 39, said Washington has and always will hold a special place in his heart. And Phil Mendelson, Chairman of the Council of the District of Columbia, said Ovechkin has captured the heart of the city. He read a city council proclamation honoring Ovechkin for his “lasting impact on the pride, spirit and identity of the District of Columbia.”

“I spend 20 years here and I grew up like a man,” Ovechkin said. “Like I grew up here and you know, like I grew up in Russia and I grew up right now here. My kids growing up here. This is my second home. I have unbelievable friends here. Family, it’s … yeah, I love this city.”

The celebration on Friday was moved from the Great Hall at Amtrak’s Union Station on Thursday to accommodate the crowd. Some fans traveled a long way to cheer and congratulate Ovechkin. Brie Chapman flew in from Charleston, South Carolina, at 3 a.m. on Thursday to be there. She’s a fan of the South Carolina Stingrays, the Capitals’ ECHL affiliate.

“I fell in love with the franchise, I fell in love with Ovi, I’ve been on 'The GR8 Chase,’ so I had to come celebrate,” she said. “To be a fan of a franchise that gives back, has a great captain like Ovi and then gets to break this record, it just means so much.”

Joe Washco drove from Philadelphia and wore a blue Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers jersey, a gift from his daughter and son-in-law, because he always maintained that Gretzky’s goals record would never be broken.

“It’s amazing to me because I saw Gretzky break the record, now I saw Ovechkin break it,” Washco said. “History.”

Jim and Jill Phillips arrived from nearby Potomac, Maryland, with several goats to share with Ovechkin. Backstrom, who has 279 assists on goals by Ovechkin, handed him one of the goats for a photo op.

“The greatest of all time, baby,” said Jill Phillips, who operates the Squeals on Wheels petting zoo. “We could have brought alpacas, but it doesn’t have the same ring to it.”