#NHLPeachy @NHL @Ovi8 Alex Ovechkin: The Road to 700 Goals (9th Place)
OVECHKIN PASSES YZERMAN, NOW SEVEN GOALS SHY OF 700
Alex Ovechkin scored the 693rd regular-season goal of his NHL career to surpass Steve Yzerman (692) for sole possession of ninth place on the NHL’s all-time goals list.
* The only player between Ovechkin and the illustrious 700-goal club is Hockey Hall of Fame member Mark Messier, who netted 694 regular-season goals over the course of 25 NHL seasons.
* Ovechkin is on pace to go from 600 to 700 goals in only 156 games, which would mark the fewest games to make that leap for any member of the 700-goal club. It also would be the second-fewest games to get from one 100-goal milestone to another in his career.
* Ovechkin now is on track to reach the 700-goal mark in only 1,145 career games – which would be the second-fastest in League history. Wayne Gretzky (886 GP) and Brett Hull (1,157 GP) are the only players to hit the milestone in fewer than 1,200 games.
* Ovechkin now is on track to reach the 700-goal mark in only 1,145 career games – which would be the second-fastest in League history. Wayne Gretzky (886 GP) and Brett Hull (1,157 GP) are the only players to hit the milestone in fewer than 1,200 games.
* Ovechkin has averaged 0.61 goals-per-game to this point in his career – to rank fifth in NHL history (min. 300 GP) – including an NHL-best 0.58 rate since his 30th birthday on Sept. 17, 2015. Among players in the 700-goal club, only two scored at a rate of 0.50 G/GP or higher from age 30 onward.
MILESTONE REFLECTIONS: ALEX OVECHKIN
* Ovechkin scored his 100th career goal in his 167th career game. It was his first-ever goal at historic Madison Square Garden (5 GP) and fourth against Henrik Lundqvist. At the time, only Dany Heatley (105 G in 170 GP) had more goals since Ovechkin entered the League. The 22-year-old finished 2007-08 with a career-high 65 goals to capture the first of his NHL-record eight Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard trophies.
* Ovechkin netted his League-leading 37th goal of 2008-09 and 200th of his NHL career when he beat Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick in their first-ever meeting. The 23-year-old became the fourth player in NHL history to reach the 200-goal mark within his first four seasons, joining Wayne Gretzky, Mike Bossy and Mario Lemieux.
* Ovechkin (25 years, 200 days) netted a tying goal in Toronto to become the sixth-youngest player in NHL history at the time of their 300th career tally. He scored again the next night to finish 2010-11 with 32 goals (79 GP), tied for the lowest single-season total of his NHL career (2012-13: 32 G in 48 GP). Among players to contest at least 10 NHL seasons, only two have finished outside the top five in the League in goals fewer than four times: Ovechkin (2010-11 & 2016-17) and Mike Bossy (1983-84 & 1986-87).
* Ovechkin scored his 400th career goal in the third game of a four-game goal streak – the only “century mark” milestone goal on which Nicklas Backstrom recorded an assist. That marked one of 23 goal streaks of four or more games in Ovechkin’s career; Mario Lemieux (34), Wayne Gretzky (30), Brett Hull (26), Jaromir Jagr (26) and Marcel Dionne (25) are the only players with more.
* Playing in front of family and Capitals faithful at Verizon Center, Ovechkin became the fifth-fastest in NHL history to reach the 500-goal mark (801 GP) with his first of two tallies against Ottawa. It was his second multi-goal game in as many days, the fourth (and most recent) time he achieved that feat.
* Ovechkin registered one of his eight multi-goal games of 2017-18 – hitting the milestone with his second tally – as Washington edged Winnipeg in overtime. The fourth-fastest in NHL history to reach the 600-goal milestone, Ovechkin ended the season with four goals in his final three games to claim the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy with 49 goals. While the final game of the regular season saw him fall just shy of his eighth 50-goal season, his final playoff contest would see him hoist the Stanley Cup for the first time.
By the Numbers: Alex Ovechkin’s Road to 700 NHL Goals
A look at some of the numbers behind the highest-scoring left wing and Russian in NHL history:
5,463
Shots on goal by Alex Ovechkin to date; only Ray Bourque (6,209) and Jaromir Jagr (5,637) have more since the League began tracking in 1959-60.
5,230
Days from his first NHL goal (Oct. 5, 2005) to his 693th NHL goal (Jan. 29, 2020).
258
Assists by Nicklas Backstrom on regular-season goals by Alex Ovechkin. Only three players in NHL history have set up a teammate more: Wayne Gretzky (364; Jari Kurri), Bryan Trottier (310; Mike Bossy) and Henrik Sedin (280; Daniel Sedin).
75
Tiebreaking goals by Alex Ovechkin that have stood as the game-winner; tied with Jaromir Jagr (75) for the most such goals in NHL history.
280
The fewest games played required for any 200-goal span of Alex Ovechkin’s career – he scored career goals 61 to 261 from Nov. 6, 2006 to Feb. 7, 2010. Once Ovechkin passes Mark Messier (694) with goal 695, he will need 200 goals to overtake Wayne Gretzky (894).
140
Different goaltenders Alex Ovechkin has scored against during the regular season.
93
Different players to record an assist on an Alex Ovechkin goal during the regular season (Top 3: Nicklas Backstrom: 258; John Carlson: 110; Mike Green: 70).
48
Goals by Alex Ovechkin against the Lightning, his highest total against one franchise during the regular season (Top 5: TBL: 48, WPG/ATL: 47, CAR: 43, TOR: 41, NYI: 39; FLA: 39).
29
Age, in years, of Wayne Gretzky when he scored his 700th regular-season goal. He is the only player to reach the milestone before age 36.
21
Players who have exactly one assist on an Ovechkin goal, with Braden Holtby in that group.
7
Most regular-season games against a goalie versus whom he has never scored a goal (0 G in 7 GP vs. Mike Condon and Mathieu Garon).
5
Career regular-season goals scored by Alex Ovechkin against Pascal Leclaire – the goaltender against whom he scored his first NHL goal.
4
Shorthanded goals scored by Alex Ovechkin, with his last coming more than 11 years ago against the New York Rangers (Jan. 3, 2009).
0.94
Alex Ovechkin’s career goals-per-game against the Wild, his best against one franchise.
