(WASHINGTON) - In his first season as a Stanley Cup champion, Alex Ovechkin is enjoying hockey as much as ever. It showed again Tuesday night, when he scored his 21st hat trick and first this season to lift the Washington Capitals over the Detroit Red Wings 6-2. The 33 year old Ovechkin has 25 goals following his hat trick, halfway to a potential eighth 50-goal season. His team has won three straight, and 10 out of 12. Nicklas Backstrom had four assists to help the Metropolitan Division leaders score six or more goals for the fourth time this season. T.J. Oshie added a goal in his return from an 11-game layoff due to a concussion, and Travis Boyd and Brett Connolly also scored early. Braden Holtby made 35 stops for Washington. Detroit's Dylan Larkin and Gustav Nyquist scored in the third period.