It's only a matter of time before Alex Ovechkin breaks Wayne Gretzky's record.
Washington Capitals star forward Alex Ovechkin is only 41 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's record — and The Great One wants him to do it. Not only has Gretzky been keeping a close eye on the Russian's progress over the last couple of years, he has been in touch with Ovechkin regarding the NHL goals record.
“It's great,” Ovechkin told NHL.com's Tom Gulitti last week regarding Gretzky's support. “Even when I have a slump, he will sometimes text me and say, ‘Don't worry about it. It will come.' He's on my side.”
No. 8 continued: “If that kind of person is rooting for me, it's pretty cool stuff. He's the best player out there and he's a great human. He supports me and it's a pretty cool thing. I hope when it's going to be close, he'll give me some advice. But not yet.”
Gretzky scored 894 goals over his incredible career, a milestone that many thought would never be broken. But Ovechkin has been as durable as they come over his career, and the 39-year-old is now up to 854 tallies of his own.
Ovechkin already has a goal to his name in 2024-25, scoring his first of the year in a 6-5 win overtime win over the New Jersey Devils on Saturday night. With only one tally in four games, he'll look to increase that pace when the Capitals visit Wells Fargo Arena to play the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday night.
Ovechkin scored 31 goals last season — his lowest total over a full 82-game slate in his career — but he finished strong, amassing 23 goals in his final 36 games. With a revamped roster in the nation's capital, he'll hope to continue that kind of production for Washington this season.
Wayne Gretzky is a big fan of Capitals' Alex Ovechkin
As for Gretzky, he owns a plethora of NHL records that will never be broken. Thus, the greatest hockey player of all time is not too worried about Ovechkin breaking one of them, which he says is inevitable.
“Oh yeah, of course,” Gretzky said last month about Ovechkin eventually scoring more goals than him. “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.”
For Gretzky, what sets Ovechkin apart in this generation is his lethal release.
“I mean, it's his shot,” The Great One said. “Look at guys like Brett Hull, Mario Lemieux, Mike Bossy. They get those opportunities. They don't miss the net. If you miss the net you can't score. Ovi. Bossy. Jari Kurri. Brett Hull. They never miss the net. And that separates a great goal scorer from good goal scorers, right? And he can be in any spot on the ice, he's going to hit the net.”
It's great to see that Gretzky is supporting Ovechkin as the latter looks to eventually become the greatest goal scorer in NHL history. It'll be interesting to see if Ovi is able to accomplish the feat in 2024-25, or if hockey fans will have to wait a little longer for the historic occasion.
