Talk about amazing timing on Alex Ovechkin's latest goal!
It's only a matter of time before we witness National Hockey League history by Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin, who is on the cusp of breaking Wayne Gretzky's all-time record of 894 career goals.
Ovechkin inched closer to the record during Tuesday night's victory on home ice over the Florida Panthers; he scored into the vacated Panthers net as time ticked away in the third period, and the puck crossed the goal line with literally 0.1 seconds left.
Capitals coach Spencer Carbery gave a shout out to Ovechkin afterward, saying that the goal was in true fashion via ESPN.
“In true [Ovechkin] fashion, right, 0.01,” Carbery said in his postgame media availability. “We'll take it.”
Ovechkin and the Capitals are next in action against the rival Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night from Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia; game time is set for 7:00 PM EST.
Wayne Gretzky has openly supported Alex Ovechkin's quest to beat his goals record
Ovechkin has cemented himself as the best goal scorer of the NHL's modern era. The good news for himself and for the Capitals is that he's returned to his usual scoring prowess that was absent for much of the first half of last season which saw him score only nine goals in his first 44 games; he rebounded and finished with 31 on the season.
And in his pursuit of history, he has the full support of Gretzky, who said earlier in the season that he believes that the record will be broken before long, via NHL.com.
“Oh yeah, of course,” Gretzky said. “It's just a matter of time, whether it's late this year, early next year, whenever. I mean, he's a great player. He's a great goal scorer.”
Ovechkin also became the third player in League history to reach the 800-goal mark when he did so against the New Jersey Devils in December of 2022.
