<p>A tremendous performance from Alexander Ovechkin Friday night saw him tie Wayne Gretzky&#8217;s <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/alex-ovechkin-only-13-goals-from-passing-of-wayne-gretzkys-all-time-record-after-hat-trick-against-oilers">all-time goal record</a>.</p>
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<p>With <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/oilers-allow-alex-ovechkin-to-try-on-wayne-gretzkys-glove-and-stick-pose-with-jersey">Gretzky</a> in the stands, it didn&#8217;t take long for The Great Eight to get on the board, as just 3:52 into the game he fired a shot past Chicago Blackhawks netminder Spencer Knight. Ovechkin continued to get looks throughout the game, including on power plays in the second and early third periods.</p>
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<p lang="qme" dir="ltr">8️⃣9️⃣3️⃣ <a href="https://t.co/OcJV50SDvg">pic.twitter.com/OcJV50SDvg</a></p>
<p>&mdash; x &#8211; Washington Capitals (@Capitals) <a href="https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1908301757089738936?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 4, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<p>It was on the Captials&#8217; third power play of the game, however, he would <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/is-alex-ovechkin-still-in-the-hunt-of-wayne-gretzkys-all-time-goals-record">tie the record</a> in fitting fashion, wiring a shot home from his office on the left side of the ice. His teammates poured over the bench and onto the ice crowding him, as the spotlight was on him at centre ice. At that moment Ovechkin would turn to the stands where Gretzky sat, bowing towards him.</p>
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<p>&mdash; x &#8211; Washington Capitals (@Capitals) <a href="https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1908330191916548566?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">An incredible moment in <a href="https://twitter.com/Capitals?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Capitals</a> history shared by the best duo in hockey.</p>
<p>👂 Listen in to <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeBpXp?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeBpXp</a> &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/Laughlin18?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Laughlin18</a> for <a href="https://twitter.com/ovi8?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ovi8</a>&#39;s record tying goal from the MNMT broadcast booth.<br /> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Gr8Chase?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Gr8Chase</a> by <a href="https://twitter.com/Venture_Global?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Venture_Global</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ALLCAPS?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ALLCAPS</a> <a href="https://t.co/V3ZvLlKdxL">pic.twitter.com/V3ZvLlKdxL</a></p>
<p>&mdash; Monumental Sports Network (@MonSportsNet) <a href="https://twitter.com/MonSportsNet/status/1908354554824995313?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 5, 2025</a></p></blockquote>
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<figure id="attachment_172783" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-172783" style="width: 2560px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-172783" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-scaled.jpg" alt="Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin Wayne Gretzky" width="2560" height="1772" srcset="https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-scaled.jpg 2560w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-300x208.jpg 300w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-1024x709.jpg 1024w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-768x532.jpg 768w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-1536x1063.jpg 1536w, https://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-2048x1418.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px" /><figcaption id="caption-attachment-172783" class="wp-caption-text">Apr 4, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (right) speaks at a press conference with Wayne Gretzky after the game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Capital One Arena. Ovechkin scored the 893rd and 894th goals of his career, tying Gretzky for most all-time goals in NHL history. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure>
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<p>The story took an interesting twist late in the game with Washington holding a one-goal lead and Ovechkin one goal away from the record.. Capitals head coach Spencer Carbury went to him on the ice, where it Ovechkin shook his head saying &#8220;no.&#8221;</p>
<p>After the game a post-game press conference alongside Gretzky, Ovechkin said he didn&#8217;t want to break Gretzky&#8217;s record on an empty net.</p>
<p>&#8220;I tell Carbury right away I don&#8217;t want to do it,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Stromer ask me, Carbury ask me, like &#8216;Do you want it? Do you want it?&#8217; I said &#8216;Let&#8217;s wait.'&#8221;</p>
<p>It will be appointment viewing for hockey fans around the world on Sunday morning when the Capitals visit the New York Islanders, with Ovechkin eying the record. While he&#8217;s racked up 44 goals in 71 games against the Islanders in his career — the eighth-most he&#8217;s scored against any team — he has never scored against Ilya Sorokin, projected for the start by <em><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/starting-goalies/2025-04-06">Daily Faceoff</a>,</em> in the two games he&#8217;s gone against him in his career.</p>
<hr />
<p><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QX_QCiZyIo&amp;list=PLRSWOpthKmdtmFOKQDd7TQdTU2KSKXYvX">DFO DFS Report</a>. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at</span></i> <em><a href="http://www.x.com/zjlaing"><span style="font-weight: 400;">@zjlaing</span></a></em><i><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>,</em> or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.</span></i></p>
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Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin Wayne Gretzky

A tremendous performance from Alexander Ovechkin Friday night saw him tie Wayne Gretzky's <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/alex-ovechkin-only-13-goals-from-passing-of-wayne-gretzkys-all-time-record-after-hat-trick-against-oilers">all-time goal record</a>.



With <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/oilers-allow-alex-ovechkin-to-try-on-wayne-gretzkys-glove-and-stick-pose-with-jersey">Gretzky</a> in the stands, it didn't take long for The Great Eight to get on the board, as just 3:52 into the game he fired a shot past Chicago Blackhawks netminder Spencer Knight. Ovechkin continued to get looks throughout the game, including on power plays in the second and early third periods.

https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1908301757089738936
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2107" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="325"></div>
It was on the Captials' third power play of the game, however, he would <a href="https://oilersnation.com/news/is-alex-ovechkin-still-in-the-hunt-of-wayne-gretzkys-all-time-goals-record">tie the record</a> in fitting fashion, wiring a shot home from his office on the left side of the ice. His teammates poured over the bench and onto the ice crowding him, as the spotlight was on him at centre ice. At that moment Ovechkin would turn to the stands where Gretzky sat, bowing towards him.

https://twitter.com/Capitals/status/1908330191916548566

https://twitter.com/MonSportsNet/status/1908354554824995313

<hr />

[caption id="attachment_172783" align="aligncenter" width="2560"]<img class="size-full wp-image-172783" src="http://publish.oilersnation.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/USATSI_25849073-scaled.jpg" alt="Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin Wayne Gretzky" width="2560" height="1772" /> Apr 4, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (right) speaks at a press conference with Wayne Gretzky after the game against the Chicago Blackhawks at Capital One Arena. Ovechkin scored the 893rd and 894th goals of his career, tying Gretzky for most all-time goals in NHL history. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images[/caption]

<hr />

The story took an interesting twist late in the game with Washington holding a one-goal lead and Ovechkin one goal away from the record.. Capitals head coach Spencer Carbury went to him on the ice, where it Ovechkin shook his head saying "no."

After the game a post-game press conference alongside Gretzky, Ovechkin said he didn't want to break Gretzky's record on an empty net.

"I tell Carbury right away I don't want to do it," he said. "Stromer ask me, Carbury ask me, like 'Do you want it? Do you want it?' I said 'Let's wait.'"

It will be appointment viewing for hockey fans around the world on Sunday morning when the Capitals visit the New York Islanders, with Ovechkin eying the record. While he's racked up 44 goals in 71 games against the Islanders in his career — the eighth-most he's scored against any team — he has never scored against Ilya Sorokin, projected for the start by <em><a href="https://www.dailyfaceoff.com/starting-goalies/2025-04-06">Daily Faceoff</a>,</em> in the two games he's gone against him in his career.

<hr />

<i><span style="font-weight: 400;">Zach Laing is Oilersnation’s associate editor, senior columnist, and The Nation Network’s news director. He also makes up one-half of the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QX_QCiZyIo&amp;list=PLRSWOpthKmdtmFOKQDd7TQdTU2KSKXYvX">DFO DFS Report</a>. He can be followed on Twitter, currently known as X, at</span></i> <em><a href="http://www.x.com/zjlaing"><span style="font-weight: 400;">@zjlaing</span></a></em><i><span style="font-weight: 400;"><em>,</em> or reached by email at zach.laing@bettercollective.com.</span></i>

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