#NHLPeachy @NHL #NHLStats Pack: Alex Ovechkin Sets NHL Goals Record
For the first time in more than 31 years, there is a new name alone atop the NHL all-time goals list as Alex Ovechkin scored career goal No. 895 Sunday on Long Island to break the record held by Wayne Gretzky (894) – who was in attendance for the historic performance.
* Ovechkin is the 10th player all-time (since the first day of NHL play in 1917) to top the League in career goals (outright or tied) – and fittingly the eighth to do so in the 104 years since Feb. 23, 1921, when Joe Malone took a lead he would hold for nearly two years. Click here to view the full progression of the record.
* Ovechkin has averaged at least 0.60 goals per game (equivalent to his career rate) in 13 seasons (including 2024-25), which bests Mario Lemieux (12) for the most in NHL history (min. 20 GP). For Ovechkin, that includes an all-time high of six campaigns at 0.60 goals per game in his 30s.
* After beginning his career by scoring on 11 of the same goaltenders Gretzky had beat, Ovechkin managed to accelerate his scoring pace to break a record once thought insurmountable. He is guaranteed to finish his 39-year-old season with a goals-per-game rate of at least 0.64, which would match that of his 20-year-old rookie campaign.
* Ovechkin scored his record-tying 894th goal in his 1,487th game – the same game count Gretzky played in his NHL career (894 goals in 1,487 GP). “The Great 8” needed only 182 contests to jump from the 800-goal milestone (Dec. 13, 2022 at CHI) to his record-tying goal No. 894 (April 4, 2025 vs. CHI) – exactly half the games “The Great One” played from goal No. 800 to 894 (364 GP).
* Ovechkin jumped at least one spot on the NHL all-time goals list in each season from his rookie campaign of 2005-06 through 2022-23, when he overtook Gordie Howe (801) for second place behind Gretzky (894). In true Ovi fashion, he scored the record-breaking goal 895 on the 45th anniversary of when Howe tallied his 801st and final NHL goal (April 6, 1980) – which stood as the record until Gretzky surpassed him with 802 in 1994. Furthermore, Ovechkin tallied 895 against the Islanders – the same club Gretzky netted his 894th and final goal against in 1999.
* Skating in his 20th NHL season as the second-oldest forward in the League, Ovechkin has left the hockey world in awe by overcoming a broken leg – which sidelined him for a career-long 16 games – to set the NHL all-time goals record.
* More than half of assists on Ovechkin goals have been collected by a group of nine players, with two of his biggest helpers combining to set him up in his record-tying game Friday (John Carlson, 2x, and Dylan Strome) and longtime teammate Tom Wilson and Strome collecting helpers on the record-breaking marker Sunday. The group of Nicklas Backstrom (279; 4th most all-time), Carlson (158), Evgeny Kuznetsov (110), Mike Green (70), Marcus Johansson (58), Wilson (50), T.J. Oshie (48), Strome (47) and Alexander Semin (45) collectively have recorded 865 of 1,520 assists on goals by Ovechkin (57%). Strome has been Ovi’s biggest set-up man so far in 2024-25, dishing to him 21 times this season – the ninth time a teammate has set him up that much in one season and most since 2021-22 (Kuznetsov: 23).
* Ovechkin tops the Capitals with 42 goals this season and has led his team at the end of a season far more than any player in League history. He has been Washington’s outright leader in goals 18 times and has at least shared the team lead in all 19 completed seasons of his career (he tied Oshie in 2016-17). His 19 consecutive seasons (entering 2024-25) at least sharing the team lead in goals far exceeds the next closest players (Gordie Howe & Rick Nash w/ 11 each).
* In addition to posting the second-most goals in a season by a player at age 39-plus (behind Howe: 44 in 1968-69 at age 40), Ovechkin became the first player in NHL history with three 40-goal campaigns at age 35-plus. He is on track to become the fifth player in League history to lead his team in goals at age 39-plus, and to become the second player in that age range to finish among the top 10 in the NHL in goals.
* Ovechkin has scored against nearly half of all goaltenders that have played at least one NHL game since he entered the League (49%; 183 of 372). Only 34 goaltenders have managed to keep him out of the goal column (16% of the 217 he has faced), including 13 active goaltenders (min. 1 GP in 2024-25). In honor of that, an #NHLStats snapshot at some of the all-time lists topped by Ovechkin:
Most Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (895), Wayne Gretzky (894), Gordie Howe (801)
Games with a Goal (1st): Alex Ovechkin (680), Wayne Gretzky (638), Gordie Howe (635)
Goals in Wins (1st): Alex Ovechkin (642), Wayne Gretzky (635), Gordie Howe (542)
Road Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (456), Wayne Gretzky (402), Steve Yzerman (362)
Goals After Age 30 (1st): Alex Ovechkin (420), Gordie Howe (415), Phil Esposito (391)
Power-Play Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (325), Dave Andreychuk (274), Brett Hull (265)
Go-Ahead Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (291), Brett Hull (264), Jaromir Jagr (262)
First Period Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (242), Wayne Gretzky (241), Phil Esposito (240)
Most Goalies Scored Against (1st): Alex Ovechkin (183), Jaromir Jagr (178), Patrick Marleau (177)
Tying Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (150), Wayne Gretzky (139), Dave Andreychuk (137)
Game-Opening Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (149), Jaromir Jagr (135), Brett Hull (131)
Game-Winning Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (136), Jaromir Jagr (135), Gordie Howe (121)
Overtime Goals (1st): Alex Ovechkin (27), Sidney Crosby (24), Brad Marchand (21)
3-Game Goal Streaks (1st): Alex Ovechkin (83), Wayne Gretzky (80), Mario Lemieux (59)
4-Game Goal Streaks (1st): Alex Ovechkin (35), Mario Lemieux (34), Wayne Gretzky (30)
Goals in March (1st): Alex Ovechkin (161), Wayne Gretzky (144), Gordie Howe (141)
Goals in April (1st): Alex Ovechkin (76), Teemu Selanne (67), Sidney Crosby (54)
30-Goal Seasons, Career (1st): Alex Ovechkin (19), Mike Gartner (17), Jaromir Jagr (15)
30-Goal Seasons, Consecutive (t-1st): Alex Ovechkin, Mike Gartner, Jaromir Jagr (all 15)
40-Goal Seasons, Career (1st): Alex Ovechkin (14), Wayne Gretzky (12)
50-Goal Seasons, Career (t-1st): Alex Ovechkin, Wayne Gretzky, Mike Bossy (all 9)
Seasons as NHL Goals Leader (1st): Alex Ovechkin (9), Bobby Hull (7), Phil Esposito (6)
Seasons as Team Goals Leader (1st): Alex Ovechkin (19), Gordie Howe (15), Bobby Hull (12), Jarome Iginla (12)
*Outright or tied
While The Gr8 Chase is complete and Ovechkin stands alone as the NHL all-time goals leader, his impact on the community is everlasting and one of the initiatives he is most passionate about will benefit every time he lights the lamp through the balance of his career.
* “THE GR8 CHASE for Victory Over Cancer,” an initiative to raise awareness and funds for pediatric cancer research, is a partnership between Ovechkin, the Capitals, Hockey Fights Cancer and The V Foundation For Cancer Research – with The Great 8 donating money for every goal he scores during the remainder of his NHL career. The campaign began with goal No. 885, scored March 5, and donations will be matched by Monumental Sports & Entertainment.
* Donations can be made at v.org/GR8chase.
* In addition to the on-ice accolades, which include 18 individual NHL awards and a Stanley Cup championship as captain, Ovechkin has let his personality shine through. Watch some of the funniest moments of the true Great 8 – who has had his “not going to be suck this year” mantra on full display during The Gr8 Chase.
* Visit NHL.com/Gr8Chase for highlights, stories and more video content on Ovechkin.
With another year on his contract and seemingly no intention of slowing down, a snapshot at some of the all-time lists on which Ovechkin ranks second or third:
Goals, Including Playoffs (2nd): Wayne Gretzky (1,016), Alex Ovechkin (967), Gordie Howe (869)
Goals at Home Venue (2nd): Gordie Howe (441), Alex Ovechkin (437), Mario Lemieux (373)
Third Period Goals (2nd): Wayne Gretzky (336), Alex Ovechkin (334), Gordie Howe (280)
Multi-Goal Games (2nd): Wayne Gretzky (189), Alex Ovechkin (179), Brett Hull (158)
5-Game Goal Streaks (t-2nd): Mario Lemieux (17), Alex Ovechkin (16), Wayne Gretzky (16)
20-Goal Seasons, Career (t-2nd): Gordie Howe (22), Alex Ovechkin (20), Ron Francis (20)
20-Goal Seasons, Consecutive (2nd): Gordie Howe (22), Alex Ovechkin (20; active streak)
Even-Strength Goals (3rd): Wayne Gretzky (617), Gordie Howe (566), Alex Ovechkin (565)
Home Goals (3rd): Wayne Gretzky (492), Gordie Howe (449), Alex Ovechkin (439)
Second Period Goals (t-2nd): Wayne Gretzky (315), Alex Ovechkin (292), Gordie Howe (292)
Goals in October (2nd): Wayne Gretzky (126), Alex Ovechkin (124), Mike Gartner (111)
Goals in November (2nd): Wayne Gretzky (154), Alex Ovechkin (141), Mark Messier (129)
Goals in January (3rd): Gordie Howe (154), Wayne Gretzky (152), Alex Ovechkin (141)
Goals in February (3rd): Gordie Howe (151), Wayne Gretzky (136), Alex Ovechkin (122)
#NHLStats has been tracking The Gr8 Chase with more than a dozen Stats Packs since 2019-20 focused on Alex Ovechkin, all included below to highlight the endless collections of stats and achievements tied to the greatest goal scorer in NHL history.
2024-25 – THE GR8 CHASE
894 – Alex Ovechkin Ties Wayne Gretzky for NHL Goals Record (April 4, 2025)
892 – A Hat Trick Away from the NHL Goals Record (April 2, 2025)
891 – The Final Four for Alex Ovechkin (April 1, 2025)
879 – The Gr8 Chase Continues (Feb. 21, 2025)
870 – The Gr8 Chase (Dec. 29, 2024)
853 – 20 Seasons of Sidney Crosby & Alex Ovechkin (Sept. 6, 2024)
2022-23 – THE ROAD TO 800
800 – Ovechkin Joins Howe, Gretzky in 800-Goal Club (Dec. 13, 2022)
2021-22 – ENTERING THE TOP 3
2019-20 – THE ROAD TO 700
700 – Alex Ovechkin: The Road to 700 Goals (Feb. 22, 2020)
695 – Alex Ovechkin: The Road to 700 Goals (8th Place) (Jan. 31, 2020)
693 – Alex Ovechkin: The Road to 700 Goals (9th Place) (Jan. 29, 2020)
692 – Alex Ovechkin: The Road to 700 Goals (10th Place) (Jan. 18, 2020)
686 – Alex Ovechkin: The Road to 700 Goals (11th Place) (Jan. 13, 2020)
658 – Chasing Milestones: Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby (Sept. 30, 2019)
