“A huge moment for the sport” – Fans HAIL Alex Ovechkin as Capitals star BREAKS Wayne Gretzky’s goal-scoring record with historic 895th goal

Alex Ovechkin of Sunday scripted history and broke the goal scoring record of Wayne Gretzky with his 895th goal in the NHL.

“A huge moment for the sport” – Fans HAIL Alex Ovechkin as Capitals star BREAKS Wayne Gretzky’s goal-scoring record with historic 895th goal

Alex Ovechkin and Wayne Gretzky (Image via X/@BR_OpenIce/Sky Sports)

On Sunday April 6, Alexander Ovechkin finally chased down Wayne Gretzky. The Washington Capitals captain scored his 895th goal breaking the record of “The Great One” that stood tall for more than two decades.

This past Friday, “The Great Eight” tied the record of Gretzky with two goals against the Chicago Blackhawks. This meant that the next time he would score, a new piece of history would be made in the NHL.

The magic moment came in the second period when the Capitals found themselves 2-0 down. Ovechkin would receive a pass from Tom Wilson and slammed a wrist shot from his power-play office which flew past Ilya Sorokin into the back of the net.

The UBS Arena would then explode to life as the Russian international finally broke the record of Gretzky, which at once, seemed unbeatable. Following the record breaking goal, the game was paused as Ovechkin’s incredible achievement was celebrated on the center ice.

During the ceremony, Gretzky recalled the promise he made with Ovechkin a few years back. The 4-time Stanley Cup champion claimed that he would be the first person to shake his hand with him once he broke the record. He would fulfill the promise and offered a handshake to him at the center stage.

They say records are made to be broken but I’m not sure who’s going to get more goals than that.

Wayne Gretzky said

Gretzky became the all-time scoring leader in the NHL in 1994 when he overtook Gordie Howe’s record of 801 goals. He eventually finished with 894 goals from 1,487 regular season games in 1999. A fun fact here is that his final goal also came against the New York Islanders — a moment that still gets referenced in discussions around historic matchups and even NHL odds when these teams face off today.

Social media reacts to Alex Ovechkin breaking the record of Wayne Gretzky

At the start of the season, a 39-year-old Alex Ovechkin sat at 853 goals, 41 away from tying the record of Wayne Gretzky. At that moment, there were some who wondered whether he could get the job done this season.

Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin
Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin (Image via Imago)

Ovechkin started off the season in strong fashion and started to turn back the clock. Even a broken leg, which caused him to miss 6-weeks of action, could not stop him from scoring.

As he broke the record on Sunday, social media would explode with joy. Several users congratulated him for finally passing Gretzky and creating a new NHL record. One fan on X wrote, “a huge moment for the sport” while reacting to it.

Check out that and some more reactions from X regarding this development below:

Ovechkin is now just five goals away from becoming the first player to score 900 goals in the NHL. Given the form he is in, he could became the first member of this club before the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs two weeks later.

Sidney Crosby congratulates Alex Ovechkin on making new NHL goal scoring record

Alex Ovechkin’s 895th goal on Sunday marked another historic moment in the NHL. As the league celebrated his incredible achievement, several NHL stars alongside Sidney Crosby shared a congratulation message to him.

Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin
Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin (Image via Bleacher Report)

Crosby and Ovechkin formed a huge rivalry in the NHL as the two of them started off at the same. The two forwards have lead their teams in several matchups against each other and scored some important goals. Their rivalry is often described as the one of the best in the NHL.

As his rival climbed the top of the mountain, the Pittsburgh Penguins shared a message from Crosby regarding his long-time rival. The Penguins skipper called it a “honor” to compete against him.

Ovi, it’s been an honor to compete against you for all these years. Over that time, you’ve accomplished so many milestones, but this one was probably thought to be impossible, and you found a way to do it. Congratulations on scoring the most goals in NHL history. Hope you have a great night celebrating with your friends and family. Congratulations.

Sidney Crosby said

Meanwhile, Ovechkin’s international teammate Evgeni Malkin shared a heartfelt message for him in Russian. The Penguins star wished him well for the future and hoped to see him to make them “proud“.

Speaking of the future, Ovechkin and his teammates will now turn their focus towards the Stanley Cup playoffs. While they are already qualified for the playoffs, they would be hoping to go in that stage with a positive record as they have lost 5 of their 7 games.