Ovechkin just 13 goals from Gretzky’s all-time mark after hat trick

• Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is now just 13 goals away from Wayne Gretzky’s all-time mark. Ovechkin scored three times against the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday.
• Ovechkin has 24 games left in the regular season to break Gretzky’s record.
• He is on pace to set the record on April 4 against the Chicago Blackhawks.

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Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is inching ever closer to history. On Sunday, Feb. 23, Ovechkin scored a hat trick against the Edmonton Oilers and is now just 13 goals away from Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goal-scoring mark.

What’s the significance of the record?

It’s a record many thought would never be broken. “The Great One,” as Gretzky is known, has held the record of 894 goals since 1999. But Ovechkin, aka the “Great 8,” could break it later this season. 

Ovechkin has just 13 goals to go with 24 games left in the regular season, following his hat trick against Gretzky’s former team. His teammates continue to be in awe of what the 39-year-old has been able to do over two decades on the ice.  

“I’ve never seen a guy so hungry. Some guys score and they’re, ‘Okay, I had a good night,’” said Capitals forward Tom Wilson. “He comes back to the bench, asking if he can go out again, like right away. It’s pretty fun, and it’s been an amazing journey watching him do what he can do.”

What do Ovechkin’s teammates say?

Capitals goaltender Charlie Lindgren has a great view of everything that happens on the other end of the ice and marvels at what Ovechkin has been doing lately.

“I’m tellin’ you, it’s just, it continues to amaze me night in and night out. I mean, he truly is the best,” Lindgren said. “So thankful that he’s a Washington Capital and that I get to share a locker room with him. It’s just been incredible.”

Evidently, the 10-day break during the 4 Nations international hockey tournament was good for the Capitals and Ovechkin. None of them played in the tournament, and in the two games since the league returned to play, they scored 15 goals.

Can Ovechkin set the record this year?

On Sunday, Ovechkin scored his second hat trick of the season and 32nd of his career. He was asked afterward if he thinks he can get to Gretzky’s record this season. 

“We don’t look too far; we just take it game by game,” Ovechkin said, adding that there are “still like 20-something games left. We just have to play [the] same way and try to win games, and we see what happens.”

If he remains on his current tear, Ovechkin is on pace to get the record-breaking goal at home against the Chicago Blackhawks on April 4. But, as the Great 8 says, the next game is Tuesday, Feb. 25, against the Calgary Flames in Washington, D.C.