NHL · Metropolitan · Est. 1974 · Capital One Arena
Updated March 16, 2026
Alex Ovechkin entered the season as the NHL's all-time goals leader with 897, having surpassed Wayne Gretzky's 894 last spring. He's added 24 more this season, pushing the record to 921 career goals. At 40, the Great 8 is still scoring at a pace most players half his age would envy.
Washington dealt John Carlson to Anaheim and Nic Dowd to Vegas at the deadline, signaling that the franchise is in transition even as Ovechkin continues to defy aging curves. The Capitals rank 21st in the power rankings and are fading from the playoff picture.
Ovechkin has one year remaining on his contract, and he's confirmed he'll play his 21st season. But the roster around him is thinning, and Washington's competitive window has been closing for years. Every goal he scores now is a monument to longevity, even if the team results no longer match the individual brilliance.