Ilya Sorokin will forever own the distinction of being the goaltender who Alex Ovechkin scored his record-breaking 895th career goal against. While that honor may be an all-time embarrassment for some, Sorokin appears to be handling it perfectly fine, even obliging with an interesting post-game request from his fellow countryman.
Ovechkin, an avid collector of game-used hockey sticks, immediately asked the 29-year-old netminder to part with the twig he used in Sunday’s game. Sorokin agreed, and the two, alongside Wayne Gretzky, posed for a photo inside UBS Arena with the stick and the puck that Ovechkin beat Sorokin with.
“Yeah, I tell him right away, ‘I need that stick,’” Ovechkin said post-game. “He don’t ask me [for anything in return].”
Ovechkin and Sorokin have been friends for several years, perhaps easing the blow to Sorokin’s ego. The two were teammates at the 2023 NHL All-Star Game for the Metropolitan Division, and Sorkin earned the honor from Ovechkin of being his son Sergei’s “best babysitter,” beating out Minnesota Wild forward Kirill Kaprizov.
At those All-Star festivities, Ovi Jr. became the first Ovechkin to score on Sorokin during warmups for the skills competition. His dad had not scored against Sorokin until Sunday afternoon, being blanked in three previous matchups.
“Before the game, me and Stromer talk about I never score against him,” Ovechkin said. “I think we played only like two games, but it’s kind of historical moment. Russian score against Russian [to] set the record. It’s pretty cool. He’s such a great kid, and my kids love him.”
Ovechkin also gave Sorokin a shout-out during his mid-game ceremonial speech, saying, “Thank you, Ilya Sorokin, to let me score 895 – love you, brother.”
“It’s okay, anytime,” Sorokin jokingly responded.
The two later embraced in the handshake line between Ovechkin and the whole Islanders team.
Sorokin did earn the last laugh in the end, earning his second victory in a row with a 28-save effort in New York’s 4-1 win.
“I feel a little bit pressure, but I feel just small part what Ovi feel all his life and much, much more,” Sorokin said. “It’s good experience for me.”
As for Sorokin’s stick, it will be the second of the goalie variety that Ovechkin recently added to his collection. He received teammate Charlie Lindgren’s infamous own-goal stick earlier this season. Ovechkin plans to build a museum in Moscow where his collection will go on display.
