Alex Ovechkin ties Wayne Gretzky’s goal scoring record

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On Friday, Alex Ovechkin made history. The Washington Capitals winger notched two goals against the Chicago Blackhawks, scoring his 893rd and 894th career goals to tie Wayne Gretzky for the all-time NHL scoring record.

Ovechkin's record-tying goal came off a power play in the third period, break a 3-3 tie with Chicago. Soon after the goal, Gretzky went on the broadcast to sing Ovechkin's praises.

”This is what the game is all about. Alex has been great for the game, great for Washington, great for his own country. It’s wonderful. I’m very proud of him. I’m proud of what I accomplished and that’s what makes our game so wonderful, the great athletes that we have and the wonderful people that they are," Gretzky said on the broadcast.

He’s special. You know, when (Mark) Messier retired and Gordie Howe retired and (Mario) Lemieux retired and Bobby Orr retired, we thought, ‘OK, what’s going to happen to our game now?’ And then along came Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin, and now we’ve got (Connor) McDavid, (Nathan) MacKinnon, Matthew (Tkachuk)," Gretzky added. "Our game just gets better all the time, and that’s why it’s so special."

Gretzky added that he hoped that Ovechkin would break the record that night: "I hope it happens tonight. It would be fun. He deserves it in front of the fans," he said.

Unfortunately, the game ended before Ovechkin could secure a hat trick. But the two goals alone was enough to fire up the crowd.

Ovechkin reached the milestone in front of an electric home crowd in Washington's Capital One Arena. After hitting the goal, Ovechkin celebrated with the rest of his teammates on the ice, with the entire Capitals bench clearing to cheer on their captain. Ovechkin also took a victory lap to celebrate with his family on the other side of the glass.

While celebrating, Ovechkin took a moment to bow to Gretzky in the stands. Gretzky has been attending the past few Capitals games as Ovechkin closes in on the record.

Washington Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin broke the longstanding NHL record for goals scored Sunday, eclipsing the mark set by legend Wayne Gretzky more than 25 years ago.

Ovechkin scored the record-setter, his 895th, against the New York Islanders in the second period. The matchup was immediately paused and a ceremony — with Gretzky on site — took place on the ice to commemorate the historic moment.

"What a day, huh?" Ovechkin said at center ice. "Like I always say, it’s a team sport. Without my boys, the fans, the trainers, coaches, I would never stand there and I would never pass the Great One. Fellas, thank you so much. I love you so much."

The No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, Ovechkin has been one of the NHL’s most feared offensive players since his rookie season, in which he scored 52 goals. Since then, he has scored at least 30 goals every year, excluding only the Covid-shortened 2020-21 season.

Ovechkin’s professional career began in Russia in 2001 with Dynamo Moscow. He was such a highly touted NHL prospect, the Florida Panthers even concocted a scheme to draft him in 2003, one year before he was officially eligible to be selected. (At the time, the Panthers argued Ovechkin was old enough to meet the league’s cutoff if his age were to include leap years.)

A tall, bruising forward with an incredibly strong shot, Ovechkin has since gone on to set several scoring records, including most power play goals, most overtime goals and most goals with a single team. He is also tied with Gretzky and Mike Bossy for most 50-goal seasons.

Ovechkin broke Gretzky’s record despite multiple obstacles that deflated whatever his final goal count ends up being. The 2004-05 NHL season, which would have been Ovechkin’s first, was canceled due to a lockout. The 2012-13 season was shortened because of another lockout, and both the 2020 and 2021 seasons were shortened because of the pandemic.

As far as his future in Washington, Ovechkin signed a five-year contract extension in 2021 that runs through next season. In the past, Ovechkin has hinted that 2025-26 could be his final year in the NHL before a possible return to Russia.

It may be a cylindrical target, but they're all still just ball chasers.