TORONTO – Alex Ovechkin scored an unanswered goal in his comeback and the Washington Capitals defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 on Saturday night.

With his 869th career goal, Washington’s captain is now just 25 shy of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL all-time mark of 894. It was his 16th goal in 19 games this season.

Ovechkin, who often skated with the team and stayed in the locker room throughout his recovery, played his first game since breaking his left fibula on Nov. 18 against the Utah Hockey Club, a night in which he played with forward Jack McBain collided.

“It was fun, it was hard,” Ovechkin said of his return in a postgame interview during SportsNet’s “Hockey Night In Canada.” “Of course it was a different rhythm, a different tempo. But you know, I take it and we win.”

The 39-year-old, who had never missed more than six games in his career due to illness, had to miss four to six weeks after the injury. He resumed skating on December 2 and made steady progress until the NHL’s recent holiday break.

“It’s been a tough month,” Ovechkin said. “I tried to stay in shape as best as possible. … But I’m pretty happy to get back on my feet and get back to the game.”

By pursuing Gretzky, in a season in which the resurgent Capitals stormed back into the playoffs, Ovechkin kept everything in perspective.

“Just take it game by game,” Ovechkin said, “shift by shift and try to do my best.”

Washington went 10-5-1 without Ovechkin, but Washington coach Spencer Carbery now expects a significant “boost” for the Capitals as they look to maintain their position at the top of the Eastern Conference.

“He is our captain; “He’s the top goalscorer of all time,” Carbery said before the game. “You could feel it like you were just waiting for the day when he would get back in the lineup. You could feel his presence and he got involved a little bit more and now the day has come.”

Ovechkin — who played 14 minutes and 58 seconds and recorded three goals and three shots in addition to his goal — has a quick turnaround. The Capitals visit the Detroit Red Wings on Sunday.

Andrew Mangiapane, Jakob Chychrun, Nic Dowd and Tom Wilson also scored goals for the Capitals in the win. John Tavares and Bobby McMann scored for the Maple Leafs in the loss.

Logan Thompson stopped 35 shots in the win while Matt Murray made 27 saves for Toronto.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.