Your savory breakfast links:
- As the Caps gear up for a postseason run, the penalty kill is another bright spot for the team. [Rink]
- The Capitals have officially clinched the Metro Division title, courtesy of a Carolina Hurricanes shutout loss to James Reimer and the Sabres. Delightful. [NHL, Monumental, SI]
- Alex Ovechkin will be the first to tell you that you don’t get to 895 goals alone – and here are the perspectives of eight characters from his career, from coach to rival to trainers. [WaPo]
- How are basketball legends Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi connected to Alex Ovechkin? Find out! [@phoenixmercury (IG)]
- Breaking down 895 by the numbers, and (re)assessing where this incredible achievement puts him on a list of the greatest NHLers of all time. [Puck Prose, The Athletic]
- More people watched Alex Ovechkin make history on TNT than have ever watched hockey on TNT before. Which…okay, low bar, but still. Impressive. [Awful Announcing]
- Also impressive? The sheer amount of cash raked in by the NHL for Ovechkin-related merch on Day 1. Happy spending, y’all. [Daily Faceoff]
- The celebrations around 8 and 895 will continue for the rest of the week, including a celebration for the hometown crowd Thursday night and a party at Union Station on Friday. [Caps, Washingtonian]
- Funny how achieving something previously believed to be unachievable will warrant at least some grudging respect from even your fiercest rivals. [Post-Gazette]
- Welcome to the Guinness Book of World Records, Alex. [GWR]
- Check out this gorgeous mural of Ovechkin in Adams Morgan, painted by artist Brandon Hill [NHL]:
- Ovechkin isn’t the only Capital to hit a personal milestone this season. [Inside the Rink]
- Tom Wilson is one of those guys – and he’s also just a good guy, earning him recognition as the Capitals’ King Clancy Trophy pick for leadership and contributions to the community. [Caps, WaPo]
- While being a part of history and scoring his first NHL goal, Ryan Leonard has one more thing to add to his crazy first week as an NHLer: homework. [THN]
- Finally, happy 61st birthday to Rick Tocchet.