Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin celebrates his goal. James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin makes history with 850th career goal

Originally posted on Daily Faceoff | By Mike Gould | Last updated 4/5/24

Washington Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin scored the 850th goal of his illustrious National Hockey League career to put his team up 1-0 in the first period of Friday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Ovechkin, 38, became the first player in NHL history to score 850 goals with the same team and moved one stop closer to breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record for the most career goals by one player.

Dylan Strome and Trevor van Riemsdyk picked up the assists on Ovechkin’s 28th goal of the 2023–24 regular season, which came at the 3:31 mark of the first period of the game at PNC Arena in Raleigh, NC.

Ovechkin added another goal later in the first period of Friday’s game and now has 21 goals in his last 30 games this year. The Moscow, Russia product scored just eight goals in his first 43 games of the season, which is his 19th in the NHL (all of which he’s spent with the Capitals).

The #Gr8 has 850 career goals.

EIGHT. HUNDRED. AND FIFTY.

lol pic.twitter.com/jWxbLYfeyA
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) April 5, 2024

The Capitals originally selected Ovechkin with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft. Through 1,420 games over his 19 seasons in D.C., Ovechkin has collected 851 goals and 1,546 points.

Ovechkin needed just 115 games after scoring his 800th goal to reach the 850 mark. For comparison’s sake, it took Gretzky 167 games to score goals 801 through 850 in his career.

In total, Ovechkin is up to 29 goals and 62 points in 73 games with the Capitals this season. He is now just one goal away from securing the 18th 30-goal season of his NHL career.

Gretzky retired in 1999 while holding the NHL’s single-season and career records in practically every statistical category. The Brantford, Ontario product racked up 894 goals and 2,857 points through 1,487 games in his own NHL career.

Ovechkin, Gretzky, and Gordie Howe are the only players in history to score more than 800 goals in the NHL. All three of those players also won the Stanley Cup, and Ovechkin will soon join the other two in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The Capitals entered the first intermission of Friday’s game up 2-0 over the Hurricanes. With a win, the Capitals would improve to 84 points in 76 games this season and solidify their standing in the Eastern Conference wild card race.

This article first appeared on Daily Faceoff and was syndicated with permission.

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