Alex Ovechkin hit a major milestone on Saturday, and he has a realistic shot at Wayne Gretzky’s record.
Ovechkin scored in the third period of his Washington Capitals’ 3-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils to tie the game at two. The goal was his 42nd of the season and 700th of his career.
The Capitals mob Alex Ovechkin after he scores his 700th career goal pic.twitter.com/Ixnr3j0lCP
— Ian Oland (@ianoland) February 22, 2020
Ovechkin is now in rare company and has become just the eighth player in NHL history to score 700 career goals. Gretzky holds the record by far with 894 career goals.
Here’s the list:
1. Wayne Gretzky 894
2. Gordie Howe 801
3. Jaromir Jagr 766
4. Brett Hull 741
5. Marcel Dionne 731
6. Phil Esposito 717
7. Mike Gartner 708
8. Alex Ovechkin 700
Ovi should be able to pass Gartner this season, and he should be able to get up to fourth after next season. He’s actually the second-fastest to 700 goals after Gretzky.
While Gretzky got to 700 at age 29, The Great One didn’t score as much later in his career with Los Angeles Kings, and instead racked up assists. Comparatively, Ovechkin has averaged 48 goals per game the last six seasons and has been going strong as he ages.
Expecting Ovechkin to reach Gretzky’s mark is optimistic, but with how strong he looks at age 34, his chances should not be discounted.
