Alexander Ovechkin failed another goal-scoring attempt against his former teammate Ilya Samsonov. Russian goalkeeper “Toronto” did everything to neutralize the sniper “Washington Capitals”. Wayne Gretzky personally watched the duel between the two Russians.

Russian goalkeeper “Toronto” Ilya Samsonov has a special personal score with “Washington”. A native of Magnitogorsk gave the Capitals three years of his NHL career, but last summer the capital’s American club broke up with him, refusing to make the young goalkeeper a suitable offer for a new contract. Maple Leafs bosses threw a lifeline at the Russians, and Ilya became one of the best on the Canadian team.

Against the background of a successful game and a number of circumstances, such as the injury of Matt Murray, Samsonov no longer really went beyond the first number of “leaves” and seven championship games in a row. The last match fell just in time for a meeting with “Washington” – the Russians played three out of three matches against the old club. Two of them ended in a “Toronto” win, and Ilya missed eight goals after 77 shots on target. But none of Alexander Ovechkin.

And Samsonov’s words work. Confronting the “Maple Leaves”, the Russian leader of “Washington” Ilya did not get a single point!

At the same time, it cannot be said that Ovechkin experienced some kind of serious decline. Performance issues have been specifically addressed to him by Toronto this season, but in the vast majority of his other matches with other opponents, Alexander regularly differs. In the current championship draw, the Russian has already scored 32 goals. According to experts, Ovi will break the 50 goals record for the tenth time. 30 games left.

Along with all the hockey fans, Ovechkin’s campaign to record goals in NHL championships, which no longer seems so eternal, is watched especially closely by Wayne Gretzky, who is an outstanding success. At today’s match in Toronto, the famous Canadian was present in person and directly shared his comments on the match and Ovechkin’s performances. In his words on NBC Sports Washington, The Greatest once again paid tribute to the Russian forward and showed the world how much and sincerely worried he is for his future successor. Such behavior would be worth learning from some of Alexander’s compatriots.

And although today the Russian has not fired a single shot from six shots on target, in the next games he will clearly have more chances and will get closer to his beloved target. Meanwhile, “Toronto” and personally Ilya Samsonov celebrate success. The Russian goalkeeper this season is a big bad guy, not just for Ovechkin, but for many other NHL star shooters as well. Ilya took his 14th win in 16 home games and only suffered one loss in regular time.