Dylan Strome downplays his helper on Alex Ovechkin’s 895th goal: ‘I think it was great, but it was a chintzy secondary assist’
Dylan Strome was an active participant in hockey history last season. He assisted on Alex Ovechkin’s record-breaking 895th career goal, but he doesn’t like to overstate his role in that iconic moment — even if it made him a trivia answer for seemingly the rest of time.
“You would be surprised how many people just come up to you randomly and say, ‘Congratulations on that assist,'” Strome told Monumental Sports Network’s Alexa Landestoy during an interview at the start of training camp. “I think it was great, but it was a chintzy secondary assist on the power play where I passed it out to Tom [Wilson].”
During the second period power-play opportunity at UBS Arena against the New York Islanders, Strome skated out of the Capitals’ zone on the left side and wired a cross-ice pass to Wilson who was breaking into the offensive zone on the right. Wilson then found Ovechkin in his trademark office in the right faceoff circle where he ripped a wrist shot past Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin, triggering a massive celebration.
Strome said he is constantly reminded of the moment, but was adamant it’s not one he fears he’ll forget any time soon.
“Every day that goes by it gets brought up somehow whether you see a picture or you see a TikTok video of Ovi scoring, all the highlights or montages,” he told Landestoy. “Just to be a part of it and to be in the celebration and the aftermath of it and basically getting to celebrate twice because when he tied the record on Thursday… [We were] partying for two days and then Sunday in New York. I don’t think anyone remembers the score of that game, we just remember the fun that we had.”
The Caps lost 4-1 with Ovechkin’s history-making tally being the only offense generated by the Eastern Conference leaders. However, Strome believes his captain’s chase was the perfect crescendo to the season.
“The whole season was just kind of all leading up to that moment and it couldn’t have worked out any better,” he said. “Obviously everyone is so happy for him, definitely my friends and family enjoyed it, [it’s] something that you remember forever.”
Ovechkin still has many more career milestones Strome could contribute to this season. At 897 goals he’s just three short of becoming the first player in league history to record 900 and after that he will be closing in on Wayne Gretzky yet again for the most NHL goals regular season and playoffs combined (1,016).
Strome, a noted stat head, was in awe of some Ovechkin data he came across recently, specifically the 40-year-old’s goal breakdown by decade. Ovechkin scored 245 goals in the 2000s, 437 during the 2010s and 213 so far in the 2020s.
“That’s pretty crazy,” he said. “It’s just incredible what he’s been able to do over his whole career. And that’s one that stuck out to me.
“It’s also fun seeing how many goals he has against each team, because it feels like every time you go into a team, he’s got at least 60 goals against that team. So, [it’s] just crazy fun to be a part of. When you’re playing against certain teams, the way Ovi shoots against those teams, or certain goalies, you know he’s probably going to get a goal that night.”
Strome rounded up on Ovechkin’s goal scoring totals per team just a bit. He has victimized the Winnipeg Jets/Atlanta Thrashers organization the most, netting 57 pucks across 20 seasons. He’s also scored at least 50 times against an additional three clubs all-time (Carolina, Philadelphia and Tampa Bay).
Sturm’s Third-Line Experiment Fizzles in Preseason Shake-Up
The Boston Bruins' third line on Monday night against the Philadelphia Flyers made a ton of sense on paper. It featured Fraser Minten, who projects as the team's two-way center of the future, who brings defensive reliability and is still searching for his offensive upside. Minten's wingers should've been able to bring out that offensive upside, as Matej Blumel funnels shots at the net at a high volume, and Matt Poitras is the prototypical playmaker.
The line's experience should give fans and the coaching staff some caution about expecting the trio to be a line in the regular season. It'd be hard for them to comfortably play 82 games at the NHL level without expectations of some regression and nights where they struggle. However, in a season where there are few expectations for the Bruins, it could be the perfect year to feature this line and build it up as a potential third, and eventually second, line of the future.
Well, the line lasted only two periods. Poitras moved up to the second line with Casey Mittelstadt and Pavel Zacha, while Viktor Arvidsson moved down with Minten and Blumel. I don't disagree with that move either, as the concept of Arvidsson automatically getting a second-line spot didn't seem right. He brings a speed and tenacity that could fit alongside Minten and Blumel while also lending some veteran leadership.
Head coach Marco Sturm's comments post-game make me think that he really wants Monday night's third line to work. It's too late in the preseason for him to be throwing lines together just for the sake of doing it, and it feels like the coaching staff feels that this line could work on paper as well. The challenge will be for the trio to actually show it on the ice.
"“They practice so hard and so well the whole time, and I feel like in games, they think too much. So, I gotta get them out of that.”"Marco Sturm
It raises an interesting question. While everyone thinks that those three are vying for the final spots in camp, is there a chance that the trio will be Providence's first line to start the season? Considering the lack of expectations, an idea for the front office is to gel them as a line in the AHL and then recall them all to Boston at the same time at a later date. They wouldn't be the first team to implement that strategy.
