History was made in the hockey world on Wednesday night. Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin became the first NHL player to reach 900 career goals.
The Capitals were leading the St. Louis Blues 1-0 in the second period when Ovechkin fired a backhanded shot. The puck went past St. Louis goalie Jordan Binnington to mark The Great 8’s 900th tally.
The milestone was even more special as it happened in a home game at Capital One Arena. The crowd went wild as Ovechkin’s teammates went over to celebrate with him.
One person who wasn’t happy about the goal was Binnington, who tried to hide the puck in his pants. Thankfully, linesperson Michael Cormier took the puck away from Binnington for Ovechkin to keep.
Ovechkin Already in the History Books
The 40-year-old Ovechkin already surpassed Wayne Gretzky to become the greatest goal scorer in NHL history. He scored his 895th goal against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on April 6.
Since making his NHL debut on Oct. 5, 2005, The Great 8 holds a 266-goal lead over the next closest player. That player is Pittsburgh Penguins legend Sidney Crosby with 634 career goals.
Ovechkin ranks first in multiple NHL categories, including goals, power-play goals (326), game-winning goals (137), overtime goals (27), road goals (458), game-opening goals (150), game-tying goals (150), go-ahead goals (292), and empty-net goals (65). He ranks second in even-strength goals (569) and multi-goal games (179).
The Moscow native was selected by the Capitals No. 1 overall in the 2004 NHL Draft and has become the face of the franchise. He has registered 1,631 points (900 goals, 731 assists) in 1,504 career games.
In terms of career achievements, Ovechkin has won a Stanley Cup, a Conn Smythe Trophy, a Calder Trophy, an Art Ross Trophy, three Hart Memorial Trophies, three Ted Lindsay Awards, and nine Maurice Richard Trophies.
