The Sheet with Jeff Marek - On the Sheet: Zach Leonsis on Alex Ovechkin's Record Breaking Goal

Episode Date: April 8, 2025

Zach Leonsis joins Jeff Marek on The Sheet. Discussing Alex Ovechkin's goal, what it means for the Washington Capitals organization, how special of a person and player Alex is, and much more...Shout out to our sponsors!👍🏼 Fan Duel: https://www.fanduel.com/👍🏼 Ninja Kitchen Canada: https://www.ninjakitchen.ca/products/ninja-crispi-4-in-1-portable-glass-air-fryer-cooking-system-zidFN101CGY?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=olv&utm_campaign=25Q2-Crispi&utm_content=enReach out to [e-mail] to connect with our Sales Team and discuss opportunities to partner with us!If you liked this, check out:🚨 OTT - Coming in Hot Sens | https://www.youtube.com/c/thewallyandmethotshow🚨 TOR - LeafsNation | https://www.youtube.com/@theleafsnation401🚨 EDM - OilersNation | https://www.youtube.com/@Oilersnationdotcom🚨 VAN - CanucksArmy | https://www.youtube.com/@Canucks_Army🚨 CGY - FlamesNation | https://www.youtube.com/@Flames_Nation🚨 Daily Faceoff Fantasy & Betting | www.youtube.com/@DFOFantasyandBetting____________________________________________________________________________________________Connect with us on ⬇️Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/daily_faceoff💻 Website: https://www.dailyfaceoff.com🐦 Follow on twitter: https://x.com/DailyFaceoff💻 Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dailyfaceoffDaily Faceoff Merch:https://nationgear.ca/collections/daily-faceoff Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We'll talk plenty about the great eight Alexander Ovechkin, where his place is in history, and we'll kick it all off with Zach Leonsis, who title is President of Media and New Enterprises for Monumental, but really when you think of the Leonsis family, we think about the Washington capital. Zach joins me now. Zach, thanks so much for stopping by today. I know it's a busy day. Let me ask maybe the most obvious question here for you. How much did you sleep last night,

if at all, after that celebration? That's a good question. I'm exhausted. Yeah. I got home at a little before 2 a.m. last night, but it was totally worth it. It's been a long day, but what a special moment. I mean, we just feel so proud right now, we feel so lucky. It's an incredible achievement on its own but to do it all with one team is stunning and so we're so appreciative with the opportunity to be part of this historic moment with Alex, just so special. You know I was trying before you came on to sort of give contacts to some players that mean more to an organization than what they do on the ice. And Ovechkin's in a really unique class.

I mean, there's only really a handful of people you can look at around the NHL and say, we all know what he does on the ice, but he means that much more to this organization. And listen, I remember 0304 and the tough times for the Capitals. And then the rise of a veteran and the Capitals and getting to the playoffs. I can still remember, I think it was a Sunday afternoon game against the Florida Panthers when you guys finally made it in. I think it was a three to one game. I built, I was at the Tampa airport.

We had to wait almost every single season. We won like 12 or 13 in a row. Yeah, it was great. It was so much fun to go along with. And the rise of the Capitals and the Stanley Cup and this incredible chase. And I've always made the point that Alex Ovechkin, and listen, no one's gonna belittle the money

that he has made in the NHL. This is significant, but I'll always say, how do you even come close to compensating someone like Alex Ovechkin for what he's actually meant to this organization? Let me bob this to you. I'm not asking you to put a decimal point to this, but like, can you give us a sort of sense, like internally, what this guy has meant to the Washington Capitals? I mean, it's immeasurable. Obviously, we always had intentions of building a winning team that could compete for a Stanley Cup, but you do have to have a little bit of luck to be drafting in a year where you have a generational player, a player who could ultimately become and did become the greatest

goal scorer of all time. When you scout a player, it typically don't say the potential is the greatest goal scorer of all time. I mean, so much has to go right and it is truly amazing. But I remember even during Alex's rookie year, there was just something different about Alex. You know, the first time he played golf in the area, he had a hole in one. The first time we took him to a baseball game, he caught a foul ball with his bare hand, you know? And you just have these moments with Alex where you just felt like this guy is touched by God. There's just something different about him.

Throughout the years, there have been highs and lows and we've always stuck together. I think that through it all, Alex has always maintained an incredible sense of authenticity. I think all the players feel that he's the first one to pick up the call and pick up the phone and welcome you to the team or ask you how you're doing or check in on you or call you about the FaceTime during the off season. I think fans see that in terms of his authenticity when he celebrates. People really got a sense of that. We won the Stanley Cup and he's the same guy today as the player that we drafted in 2004 in Carolina. So that's unique and I think that's a testament to Alex and his character.

And people love watching great success, but they really fall in love with the people who they really adore. Alex is that kind of guy. We've got one of the fastest growing markets for youth hockey in DC. We've had basically a sellout streak for 20 years. When Alex was first drafted, people said Washington can't be a hockey town. Now this is undisputedly a hockey town and we think one of the best hockey markets in all of North America. You know, there's a silly little story that I like to share every now and then. Maybe you've heard this one, maybe you haven't. Once upon a time, a little boy went up to his mom and said,

Mom, when I grow up, I want to be a hockey player. His mom looked down at her child and said, son, that's great, but you can't do both. When you look at Ovechkin and you know, you mentioned the celebrations and I think this is why he resonates with a lot of people. Uh, even though he's, you know, deep into his thirties, you know, my kids love Ovechkin, like kids just love Ovechkin. Like there's still, and I don't know, sometimes it's just, I mean, you know what hockey's like.

I mean, he can, he can get cynical. You can get bitter. You know, the whole deal. One of the most impressive things to me is that as much as he has aged through this game and you see it with his hair, um, he's still a kid. Like he still looks like he's a kid playing hockey. You know what I mean, Zach? He still a kid. Like he still looks like he's a kid playing hockey. You know what I mean, Zach? He still enjoys it.

He still enjoys it. And you have to enjoy it if you're putting up the stats, but he does. I mean, for him to be in the top three of goal scoring at age 39 in the National Hockey League, and by the way, he broke his leg four months ago and came back from it. I mean, if you're not loving what you do,

that does not happen. So that unbridled joy is contagious in the best way possible. And it keeps the team loose. And I think it also gives our team great confidence. And we've had a lot of come from behind wins this season. And I think it comes from a place of mental fortitude and fun and wanting to compete because you love the game. The congratulations video. I mean, my favorite Phelps is there, all the decky Federer like Jordan.

It's a who's who, right? It's the murderer's row. To say nothing of all the hockey personalities. How did that one come together? Many hands make light work. My father and I actually were the ones who reached out to Michael Jordan to see if he would do it. We had somebody else who knew Tom Brady who reached out and got his. People were enthusiastic to do this though because they knew that this wasn't just a hockey record or a Washington Capitals moment. This was

an all-time sports moment. This is one of the hardest records in all sports ever. It's like the home run chase in Major League Baseball. And to be frank, I think everyone understands the likelihood of us seeing this again in our lifetimes is very, very, very low. This was a very special occasion and how could you not wanna be a part of this? So it wasn't hard to convince people to participate. And a lot of these folks have met Alex and I know, you know, in Alex's case,

he looks up to so many of these guys, MJ in particular. So I think it meant a lot to him too. You know, one of the questions now that we're all wondering about, okay, I don't think this is going to be the, uh, the example of the dog that finally caught the car and it's like, okay, what do I do now? I mean, there's still playoffs on the, on the horizon too, but like, so what's next? Well, what do you think's next?

He's only five away from 900. You never know. He could be the very first member of the 900 club. We'll have to see. Uh, maybe next, maybe, hang on, maybe, maybe next week when you play the Islanders, that'll be it again. Porcero can want to go in there. Um, it wasn't the other day, just like incredible how it was the same number of games that it took Gretzky to set the record.

It was the anniversary of us winning the draft lottery to pick Alex Avetskin first overall. And didn't Gretzky also break his record against the New York Islanders? I mean, like all those things coming to court, it felt like destiny. It felt like hockey destiny. How else can you explain it?

It's remarkable too. And before he came on, you know, one of the things, I have a soft spot in my heart for tough guys. I always have, it's the hardest way to make a living. And I think of the McSorley pass to Gretzky and I'll always think of the Tom Wilson pass to Alex Ovechkin. Do you have a word or two for Tom Wilson

through all of this? Because when we think about, listen, when you think about Ovechkin, we're always gonna think about, I mean, I will think about Mike Green, we'll think about John Carlson and Nick Baxter. Do you have a word about Tom Wilson through all of this? Oh, I mean, we love Tom Wilson.

He's a Washington capital through and through. We're so proud to have him on our team, but I saw all of our players yesterday. I would say the word that would describe the entire room and every single man to a tee was grateful. Everyone felt grateful to be a part of this moment. They just understood that this was something special that they would have with them for the rest of their lives that they'll be explaining to their grandkids one day. And the fact that they are sharing this moment with Ovi

and that Ovi just acts like one of the guys, it's awesome. And Alex didn't wait to break this record, right? This didn't drag along actually. We got there pretty quickly, and it allowed us to achieve this moment. They got a couple days off before their next game against Carolina on Thursday night. We'll host the pregame ceremony, and then we get 12 days, 10 days ahead of the playoffs. I think our team wants to make the most of the opportunity. It's a good opportunity to reset and we'll focus on the next big team goal.

What did you make of, of Eskimo fusing to hit the ice with an unguarded net? It didn't surprise me. I knew he didn't want to score it on an empty net. So I was actually wondering if he'd be setting it. Of course he did. However, that was probably the one circumstance where I thought maybe he'd think about it, to end the game on a hat trick. And the two goals that he scored earlier in the game, and particularly the tying one, were unbelievably great goals. And so, you know, it's not like he has to prove that

score goals five on five or five on four. But I thought it was awesome that he wanted to wait. He is an ultimate competitor. He wanted to put it past the goal center and the record breaker. I thought it was perfect. I mean, a big sweeping wrist shot through multiple guys, and big sweeping wrist shot through multiple guys, the jumping in the air celebration. I mean, I felt like it was exactly the kind of goal that you want for a moment like that. It was perfect. I'm gonna totally throw a dart here.

I have no idea what the answer to this is. I don't even know if this conversation has been had, but is there any way that the Washington capitals could get special dispensation from the NHL to do something with the ovary spot on the home rank? The number eight. That's a good guess. I've heard someone say that. We haven't asked formally, but his office is big though.

I guess that's why it would make it special. If he had fixed a mile of the ice, he can score from anywhere. You know, the funny thing about that is as much as we focus on that one and those, all those one timers, to me, the thing that I still think about with Ovechkin, this goes back to the early years, the way that he would attack the blue line, cut to the middle and shoot through the defender's legs using that defender as a screen. And he would wait until that defender was right in front of the goaltender and then fire it. Like we make a lot about, obviously, you know, the power of one timers and all that.

But I don't know. That's that. When I think of Ovechkin goals, maybe it's weird. That's the one I think, those are the goals I think about. Maybe just because like that, the early days were so exciting for Ovechkin. We hadn't seen anything like this before. Yeah. A lot of goaltenders comment on how some of Alex's shots sort of knuckleball on him too. And so it's hard to track, even though you see it coming, you know he's shooting it from this one spot. You just can't quite catch it and the speed can change at times and whatnot. He's obviously known for his one-timer, but I think Alex's sort of shot de jour is maybe his wrist shot.

I think that's sort of your goal scorer's look. That's what he might prefer, frankly. So up until yesterday afternoon, whenever I thought about the Washington Capitals and the New York Islanders, I always thought about the Easter Epic. I always thought about the Easter Epic and Pat Lafontaine. I remember exactly where I was for that one. Um, in the, the West end of Toronto at a house party watching till like two o'clock in the morning, I was too scared to leave in case I would have missed it. And Pat LaFontaine spinning and scoring and scoring on Mason. And you know, now I'm going to say, hold on a second.

Maybe it's not the Easter epic. It's 895 against, uh, against Sorokin. You know, there was a big debate on our morning show here about like, would a and maybe it's not the Easter Epic, it's 895 against Sorokin. You know, there was a big debate on our morning show here about like, would a goaltender, you know, do you wanna be known as the goaltender that surrendered goal 895? I did like the way that Ovechkin

almost consoled Sorokin afterwards and after the game, like, hey, there was going to be someone buddy. Uh, do you have a thought on the Islanders as opponents and Sorokin as a victim will end there? Zach. You know, it didn't cross my mind that maybe the capital's Islanders drive or you will now we thought of because of this moment, which I prefer over the Easter Epic, frankly, the

capital's didn't end up victorious in that one, even despite it being a great game. over the Easter epic, frankly. The Capitals didn't end up victorious in that one, even despite it being a great game. You know, I think Sorokin, you know, from afar, it seemed like he was an incredible sportsman and just a great competitor. And, you know, it gave Alex a stick afterwards, and he came in the Capitals locker room

and greeted some of the guys, and I think he understood that this was bigger than him is just big for the game of hockey. He was incredibly gracious and humble. And, um, you know, the Islanders did win the game. And if you're going to get beat by a single shot, um, you know, getting beat by a shot by the best, you know, best goal scorer of all time through three or four guys into a slot that was like this big. I guess you got to give it to him.

I guess he gets a pass. Here on that one, sometimes you just got to tip your cap or tip your wick. Exactly. I think that's how he felt. Hope you get more sleep tonight, Zach, but I think everybody understands if everyone's got the Louis Vuitton under their eyes around the office today. It's well-earned and it's a, I was saying this yesterday to some people, it's great

for Alex Ovechkin, it's great for the Washington Capitals organization as well. I know you'll defer and say, no, this is Ovechkin, but this is a big moment for the Cap. So congratulations, Zach. Thank you so much. We feel so lucky. It's an amazing day for Alex. We're so happy to be part of it. Awesome. Thanks, Zach. Be well. See you guys. Thank you so much. We feel so lucky. It's an amazing day for Alex. We're so happy to be part of it.

Thanks Zach. Be well. I'm not against those methods but I knew It's me, myself and how this gon' be fixing I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music

I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music I turn around the music