Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is back from his fractured left fibula and resuming his pursuit of Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goal record.
Ovechkin, 39, had missed 16 games after absorbing a leg-on-leg collision during a Nov. 18 game against the Utah Hockey Club. He returned on Dec. 28 and has scored goals in five of his first nine games back.
Ovechkin entered this season needing 42 goals to break Gretzky’s record of 894 career goals, which has stood since 1999. The Washington captain has 20 goals this season, with 39 games left.
If he doesn’t reach the record this season, he has one more season left on his contract.
Here’s where Ovechkin stands in his chase of Gretzky’s goal record:
How many career goals does Alex Ovechkin have?
Ovechkin has 873 career goals.
How many goals does Alex Ovechkin need to pass Wayne Gretzky?
Ovechkin needs 22 goals to break Gretzky’s record.
How many goals does Alex Ovechkin have this season?
Ovechkin has 20 goals and 12 assists in 27 games. Factoring in the 16 games he missed, that is a 49-goal pace, putting him on pace to break the record this season.
What did Alex Ovechkin do in his last game?
He had an empty-net goal, a power-play assist and two shots in a 4-1 victory against the Nashville Predators. That ended a three-game point drought and gave him his 20th 20-goal season. He’s tied for second all-time (with Ron Francis) behind Gordie Howe (22 seasons). His 20 consecutive 20-goal seasons place him second behind Howe (22).
When is Alex Ovechkin’s next game?
The Capitals play Tuesday, Jan. 14, at home against the Anaheim Ducks. Ovechkin has 12 goals in 25 regular-season games against the Ducks.
Alex Ovechkin goals in 2024-25
Oct. 19: 1 vs. New Jersey
Oct. 23: 1 vs. Philadelphia
Oct. 29: 2 vs. N.Y. Rangers
Oct. 31: 1 vs. Montreal
Nov. 2: 1 vs. Columbus
Nov. 3: 1 vs. Carolina
Nov. 6: 1 vs. Nashville
Nov. 9: 2 vs. St. Louis
Nov. 17: 3 vs. Vegas
Nov. 18: 2 vs. Utah
Dec. 28: 1 vs. Toronto
Dec. 29: 1 vs. Detroit
Jan. 2: 1 vs. Minnesota
Jan. 4: 1 vs. N.Y. Rangers
Jan. 11: 1 vs. Nashville
Alex Ovechkin career goal breakdown
Even strength: 551, third overall
Power play: 317, a record
Short-handed: 5
Empty net: 61, a record
Game winners: 133, second overall, two behind Jaromir Jagr’s record
Multi-goal games: 177, second overall
Goalies scored against: 178, tied with Jagr for record
Hat tricks: 31, sixth overall
20-goal seasons: 20, tied for second
30-goal seasons: 18, a record
40-goal seasons: 13, a record
Alex Ovechkin empty-net goals
Ovechkin has a record 61 empty-net goals, but Gretzky is up there, too, with 56. Ovechkin passed Gretzky in that category last season.
Alex Ovechkin goals per season
Season: Goals, career total
2005-06: 52, 52
2006-07: 46, 98
2007-08: 65*, 163
2008-09: 56*, 219
2009-10: 50, 269
2010-11: 32, 301
2011-12: 38, 339
2012-13: 32*, 371
2013-14: 51*, 422
2014-15: 53*, 475
2015-16: 50*, 525
2016-17: 33, 558
2017-18: 49*, 607
2018-19: 51*, 658
2019-20: 48*, 706
2020-21: 24, 730
2021-22: 50, 780
2022-23: 42, 822
2023-24: 31, 853
2024-25: 20, 873
*-led league in goals that season
NHL’s top goal scorers all-time
The top 21 NHL all-time goal scorers all have 600 or more goals. All of the players are in the Hockey Hall of Fame, except Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby and Jagr, who are still playing.
1. Wayne Gretzky, 894 goals in 1,487 games
2. Alex Ovechkin, 873 goals in 1,453 games
3. Gordie Howe, 801 goals in 1,767 games
4. Jaromir Jagr, 766 goals in 1,733 games
5. Brett Hull, 741 goals in 1,269 games
6. Marcel Dionne, 731 in 1,348 games
7. Phil Esposito, 717 goals in 1,282 games
8. Mike Gartner, 708 goals in 1,432 games
9. Mark Messier, 694 goals in 1,756 games
10. Steve Yzerman, 692 goals in 1,514 games
11. Mario Lemieux, 690 goals in 915 games
12. Teemu Selanne, 684 goals in 1,451 games
13. Luc Robitaille, 668 goals in 1,431 games
14. Brendan Shanahan, 656 goals in 1,524 games
15. Dave Andreychuk, 640 goals in 1,639 games
16. Jarome Iginla, 625 goals in 1,554 games
17. Joe Sakic, 625 goals in 1,378 games
18. Bobby Hull, 610 goals in 1,063 games
19. Dino Ciccarelli, 608 goals in 1,232 games
20. Sidney Crosby, 604 goals in 1,316 games
21. Jari Kurri, 601 goals in 1,251 games