Alexander Ovechkin with the puck for 894 goals in the NHL. © APA / BRUCE BENNETT

Goalscorer Ovechkin takes the most coveted record

Many experts considered it a "record for the ages." When Canadian Wayne Gretzky ended his career in April 1999, his 894 goals in the NHL regular season seemed almost impossible to achieve again.

05 April 2025

From: apa/sn

Until Alexander Ovechkin came along. The Russian, wearing the Washington Capitals jersey, set out on a record hunt and now caught up with "The Great One," as Gretzky is known. It took the now 20-year-old striker 39 years to claim one of the most prestigious records in ice hockey.

Ovechkin, arguably the best pure goal scorer in NHL history, was already considered an outstanding talent in his youth at Dynamo Moscow and was selected number one overall by the Washington Capitals in the 2004 draft. With Dynamo, he triumphed in the strong Russian Super League before moving to North America in 2005 with a 15-year, $124 million contract in his pocket and producing goals on a regular basis in the world's best ice hockey league.

Numerous trophies, crowned with the Stanley Cup

Ovechkin was the league's top scorer nine times, and in his best season of 2007/08 (65 goals), he also received the Art Ross Trophy for the player who led the team in points (112). He was honored three times each with the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award (both for the league's top player/MVP), and once with the Conn Smythe Trophy. Above all, the award for Best Player in the 2017/18 playoffs was the fact that in June 2018, he achieved his ultimate career goal: as captain, he led the Washington Capitals to their only Stanley Cup to date.

Even the opponents, here goalkeeper Spencer Knight, paid tribute to Ovechkin for the record. © APA / BRUCE BENNETT

Ovechkin's name also tops the record lists several times. He broke the 50-goal mark nine times, including in 2021/22 at the age of 36, making him the oldest player to date. He has scored at least 14 goals in 20 of his 40 NHL seasons, and with 324 power-play goals, he's long since taken a different tally.

Five-year contract for the record hunt

In July 2021, Ovechkin signed a five-year contract extension with the Capitals for $9,5 million annually – and from then on, he had his sights set on the most important of Gretzky's 61 records. "That's why I wanted to extend for five years. To have a chance to catch up with The Great One. It will be difficult, but you never know," the then 35-year-old explained upon signing the contract. Since then, he has impressively refuted fears that he would no longer be able to compete at the top at such an advanced age for an athlete and has now completed his mission.