Alex Ovechkin is an all-time great and one of the best goal-scorers in hockey history. He’s undoubtedly a future Hall of Famer once he retires, but before he calls it a career, he hopes to pass Wayne Gretzky for most goals in NHL history.
Wayne Gretzky is No. 1 in goals scored in the NHL, but Ovechkin isn’t far away, and if he keeps up his pace from previous years, he’ll be sure to pass The Great One. The Great Eight is 72 goals shy of reaching Gretzky’s record of 894, but if we’re just judging how the Capitals have looked so far this season, many now claim that Gretzky’s record remains safe.
Ovechkin is 38 years old, but he still managed to score loads of goals last year. But his start to the season is nothing but alarming, and fans are starting to scratch their head over what’s going on. Sure, he’s past his prime, but nobody expected him to be this invisible to start the season. The Capitals have only played three games so far, so it’s perhaps a bit silly to jump to conclusions.
But here’s a fact: Alex Ovechkin has just reached a new career-low, and fans are starting to dismiss him from Gretzky’s goal race.
In the Capitals’ 6-1 loss to the Senators on Wednesday, Ovechkin did get on the score sheet with an assist on John Carlson’s goal. But the Capitals only had 24 shots against Senators’ Anton Forsberg, and Alex Ovechkin wasn’t really involved.
Ovechkin didn’t have a shot on goal throughout the whole game, and according to NHL’s Tom Gulitti, it’s the first time in Ovechkin’s career he failed to record one shot on goal in back-to-back games.
To be fair, it’s incredible it took so long, and it speaks volumes about the career he’s had. Ovechkin has played nearly 1,500 games in the regular and post-season combined, and just now, he’s had his first back-to-back games without a shot on goal. Per OptaSTATS, Ovechkin’s streak is the longest all-time since shots tracking started in the late ’50s.
READ MORE: Ryan Reaves absolutely rips veteran forward Corey Perry, explains why he’s ‘never really liked him’
