Alex Ovechkin’s record-breaking goal received more recognition from the NHL, Wednesday.
The league named Ovi’s 895th career goal, which gave him sole possession of the NHL’s goal record from Wayne Gretzky, as the league’s best of the 2024-25 season.
Ovechkin, via a wrist shot on a second-period power play, beat goaltender Ilya Sorokin to become the league’s new goals king on April 6 against the New York Islanders.
Ovechkin found the back of the net after Dylan Strome hit Tom Wilson with a pass down the right flank. After Wilson entered the zone, he sent a diagonal cross-ice pass to Ovechkin at the top of the left circle, who let’er rip.
“I just tried to find him on the entry there, and then when I was skating to the net and the puck went in the net, the next 15 seconds…I truly just kind of blacked out,” Wilson said then. “I’ve got to watch it back, because I don’t remember what happened. It was just chaos.”
An excited Ovechkin belly-flopped onto the ice, and when he got up, he was engulfed by his Capitals teammates in a huge hug.
The NHL stopped the game to celebrate Ovechkin’s accomplishment. During the ensuing 22-minute-long on-ice ceremony, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman presented Ovechkin with a gift, and Gretzky was the first to shake the Capitals captain’s hand, fulfilling a promise he made in the years prior.
Ovechkin finished his age-39 season with 44 goals — tied for third-most in the league — despite breaking his leg and missing a month of the season. As he enters the 2025-26 season, Ovechkin has 897 career goals and is three away from becoming the first player in NHL history to hit the 900 mark.