Alex Ovechkin returns to the Capitals after missing 16 games and once again chases Wayne Gretzky’s NHL scoring record

Alex Ovechkin will return to the Washington Capitals lineup Saturday night against the Toronto Maple Leafs after missing 16 games with a broken fibula.

The Capitals captain has not played since being injured in a collision with Utah Hockey Club’s Jack McBain on Nov. 18. At the time, Ovechkin led the NHL with 15 goals. When he returns, he is nine goals behind league leader Leon Draisaitl of the Edmonton Oilers.

Ovechkin, 39, had a blistering start to the season, scoring five goals in his last two games before the injury. His 15 goals this season bring his career total to 868, 27 shy of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL record of 894.

Ovechkin resumed track training 14 days after the injury and participated in the team’s morning run on December 14 while wearing a non-contact jersey. A week later he was cleared to contact him. There was a chance he could return before the NHL holiday break, but the team decided a few extra days for his recovery would be best.

During his NHL career, it was rare for Ovechkin to be left out of the squad. This 16-game absence was the longest he had been away from the Capitals’ roster since entering the league in 2005. His longest previous layoff was six games after he suffered an upper-body injury in 2009.

Washington went 10-5-1 without Ovechkin and remains in second place in the Eastern Conference behind the New Jersey Devils. The Capitals are three points behind the Devils but still have four games left.

The hunt for Gretzky continues

Ovechkin returns to the Capitals with 868 NHL career goals, 26 fewer than Wayne Gretzky’s record, which he scored against the New York Islanders on March 29, 1999. The Capitals have 48 games left in the regular season, and if Ovechkin scores as many points as he did before his injury, history could be made before the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said in December that he would follow Ovechkin when he was within four or five goals of the record and Gretzky would accompany him.

“It’s just a matter of time whether it’s late this year, early next year or whenever,” Gretzky told NHL.com earlier this season about Ovechkin’s chances of breaking his record. “I mean, he’s a great player. He’s a great goalscorer.”