You may have heard that Alex Ovechkin broke the NHL’s goal-scoring record.
It’s certainly not the type of feat that can sneak up on anyone. Twenty years of relentless lasers, clappers, rockets, snipes, blasts and tucks yielded a defining moment in hockey history on Sunday afternoon.
While some fans needed that 895th flashing red light to make it official, let’s be honest: Ovechkin has long been the greatest goal scorer in NHL history. With the Gr8 Chase completed and the torch officially passed from Wayne Gretzky, we’re putting the accomplishment in proper context and highlighting five reasons that Ovechkin occupies his own stratosphere of sniping.
Spoiler: No one is even close.
No. 1: Scoring climate
When a lucky goal is scored, it’s often said “they don’t ask how.” But they should ask when. Scoring climate is the overarching factor that puts Ovechkin’s goal scoring in another class. If you’re a regular to this space, we’ve explored Hockey-Reference’s era-adjusted scoring and a simple stat I created called Inflation Factor.
We know that scoring a goal in 1981 is not the same as scoring a goal in 2013. Or 2025. While it’s hardly his fault, Gretzky thrived when goals were much more frequent. This inherently makes those goals much less valuable at the time. Let’s explore eras through the 10 players with the most career NHL goals.
