Ovechkin chases history as Islanders host the Caps in Sunday matinee at UBS Arena

All hockey eyes will be on Long Island this afternoon as Alexander Ovechkin chases history and attempts to move ahead of Wayne Gretzky and stand alone as the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. Face-off is set for 12:30 PM at what should be a buzz-charged UBS Arena, and the game will be televised nationally on TNT.

For the Islanders, they need a win against the NHL's top team to stay alive in the Eastern Conference playoff race, as they trail Montreal by seven points with seven games remaining. “We’re going to focus on us,” head coach Patrick Roy said. “I know it’s going to be hard, but that’s what we have to do. It’s an important game for our team.”

The Islanders snapped a six-game winless streak with a 3-1 win over the Minnesota Wild on Friday night. Casey Cizikas, Simon Holmstrom, and Noah Dobson (power-play goal, assist) led the scoring effort, while Ilya Sorokin turned aside 27 shots to secure the win. Washington also won Friday night, defeating the Chicago Blackhawks 5-3. But the biggest storyline was Ovechkin, who scored twice to tie Gretzky’s all-time NHL goals record with 894. After electing not to take the ice with Chicago's goaltender pulled, Ovechkin had several chances late in the game. Martin Fehérváry, Dylan Strome, and Ryan Leonard also tallied for the Capitals, and Charlie Lindgren made 19 saves.

The Isles and Caps will face off twice in the final weeks of the season at UBS Arena, with another tilt coming on April 15th. The two teams haven't played each other since Nov. 29, when Washington beat the Isles 5-4 in OT. With a win, the Caps can reach 50 wins for the sixth time in team history. Tony DeAngelo will skate in his 400th career game.