Gretzky will soon start following Ovechkin city to city to see his record get broken
Alexander Ovechkin is on the verge of breaking one of Wayne Gretzky’s most-storied records and The Great One plans on witnessing that historic moment.
The Washington Capitals sniper is sitting at 886 goals, which is just nine away from breaking Gretzky’s NHL record of 894. That means that Ovechkin will need to score that many in the last 18 games left on Washington’s schedule to hit the milestone this season.
Gretzky will be in attendance when that record-breaking goal is scored. To ensure that, the NHL legend will soon start following Ovechkin from city to city as soon as he gets within striking distance.
According to a CBC article by Chris Jones, Gretzky and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman will attend every Capitals game once Ovechkin is four or five goals away from breaking the record.
ALEX OVECHKIN IS NINE GOALS AWAY FROM HISTORY! š¦ #Gr8Chase pic.twitter.com/Ju9vnwWYdk
— NHL (@NHL) March 9, 2025
With the Russian superstar being so close, we can now try to project when exactly he will snag the record. The most ideal place for him to score the historic goal would be in Washington’s home rink, but there is just as good a possibility that it happens on the road.
If Ovechkin were to score a goal per game from this point forward, that would land goal #895 to be scored on the road against the Boston Bruins. However, if he can find a way to mix in a few multi-goal games before that, it could come on the road against the Minnesota Wild on March 27 or even against the Winnipeg Jets on March 25, which is Washington’s last matchup against a Canadian team this season.
For those hoping that Ovechkin will continue to defy Father Time and try for 1,000 career goals in the coming years, don’t hold your breath.
Ovechkin recently told Russian news outlet Izvestia that he will most likely leave the NHL after the 2025-26 season and potentially play in the KHL. He has one year left on his current contract with the Capitals.
“We’ll see. Most likely, yes, to Dynamo. If health allows. It’s hard to plan for such a long term now,” Ovechkin told a reporter in a translated version of the interview.