1.  Alex Ovechkin needs 11 goals to surpass Wayne Gretzky for the most goals in NHL history, including playoffs. Gretzky scored 1,016 goals in 1,695 games while Ovechkin has 1,006 goals in 1,734 games. He will likely pass Gretzky before the end of 2026.

2. Sidney Crosby needs 39 points to become the fifth player with 1800 career regular-season points. Crosby is currently seventh in scoring with 1,761 points, and he will pass Marcel Dionne (1,771) and Ron Francis (1,798) on his way to 1,800. Then he will trail only Gordie Howe (1,850), Mark Messier (1,887), Jaromir Jagr (1,921) and Gretzky (2,857). If Crosby opts to play two more years after this season, he will finish second in scoring and has a chance to reach 2,000 points.

Crosby also needs 37 goals to pass Mario Lemieux for most goals as a Penguin. Crosby already has the franchise mark for most games played, assists and points.

3. Brent Burns is 58 games shy of passing Phil Kessel for most consecutive games played. Kessel played 1,064 and Burns is currently at 1,007. Burns is scheduled to play his 1,065th game on Feb. 13 in Colorado against Columbus. It would be an amazing feat for a defenceman. What is wild about Burns’s Ironman streak is that in his first eight NHL seasons, he missed 10, five, zero, 23, 35, two, one and 18 games. He started his ninth season playing eight games, got injured and missed 13 and then returned to the lineup on Nov. 21, 2013, and played the final 61 games. He hasn’t missed a game since. Outside of the 1,007 regular season games, he’s also played 121 playoff games without missing one. I hope he remains healthy until Feb. 13.

4.  Connor McDavid needs 100 points to become the second player in NHL history with seven consecutive seasons with 100-plus points. Gretzky had 13 in a row with 100-plus points. He got injured in his 14th season, and the streak ended. If COVID didn’t shut down the 2020 season, McDavid would have 10 consecutive seasons of 100 points. He had three seasons with 100-plus, then had 97 points in 64 games when COVID cancelled the Oilers’ final 11 games in 2020. McDavid reaching 100 points for a seventh time seems like a good wager.

5. Andrei Vasilevskiy needs 30 wins to become the 16th goalie with 400 wins, and if he reaches it this year, he will be the quickest (fewest games played) to reach 400 wins. Shootout wins help for sure, but Martin Brodeur needed 736 games to reach 400 wins. Vasilevskiy is currently at 598 games. If we remove Vasilevskiy’s 22 shootout victories, he will need 52 wins in his next 138 games to beat Brodeur to 400 wins (excluding shootout victories).

6.  Sergei Bobrovsky begins the season seventh all time with 456 career wins and should pass Henrik Lundqvist (459) early in the year. He would need 29 wins to pass Ryan Miller (484) and 34 wins to pass Roberto Luongo (489). Only eight goalies had 30 wins last season, and only three, Jake Oettinger (35), Karel Vejmelka (36) and Vasilevskiy (39), had more than 31. Bobrovsky and the Maple Leafs will need to be better than we expect for him to reach 34 wins.

7. Paul Maurice needs 44 wins to become the third coach in NHL history with 1,000 victories. Scotty Bowman had 1,244, and Joel Queneville reached 1,000 last season and starts this year with 1,012. Lindy Ruff needs 50 wins to reach 1.000. The Sabres were one of five teams with 50-plus wins last season, so it is possible, but he might have to wait until next season.

8. Patrick Kane is the highest-scoring American player of all time with 1,400 points, and he needs three assists to pass Phil Housley (894) for the most assists by an American. He is 233 goals shy of Brett Hull for most goals and won’t be catching him before retiring.

9. We could see seven players reach the 1.000th point plateau this season. Currently, only 103 players have scored 1,000 points, and the most in one season was six in 1997-98 when Adam Oates (Oct. 8), Phil Housley (Nov. 8), Dale Hunter (Jan. 9), Pat LaFontaine (Jan. 22), Luc Robitaille (Jan. 29) and Al MacInnis (April 7) did it.

Jamie Benn needs eight points.
Corey Perry needs 28.
Artemi Panarin needs 46.
Erik Karlsson and Matt Duchene are 64 points shy.
David Pastrnak needs 67.
Mark Scheifele needs 93. Scheifele scored 103 last season and 87 in 2025.

10. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is seven games shy of passing Kevin Lowe for the most games played in Oilers history. The Oilers’ seventh game is at home on Oct. 15 vs. Utah. That will be a hot ticket.

11. Nathan MacKinnon needs 50 games to become the third Avalanche/Nordiques to play 1,000 games for the franchise. Their 50th game is in Dallas on Jan. 22, and their next home game where they could give him his silver stick is Jan. 24 against Dallas. But sometimes you can’t get the stick made in two days.

12. Zach Werenski needs 83 points to pass Rick Nash (547) for most by a Columbus Blue Jacket.

13. Jamie Benn is second all-time in games played, goals and points for the Stars/North Stars organization. He needs 16 assists to pass Neal Broten (593) for second. He would trail Mike Modano in games played, goals, assists and points.

14. Jared Spurgeon is 17 games shy of passing Mikko Koivu (1,028) for most games played for the Wild. Their 17th game is on Nov. 3 in Philadelphia. If he plays all 17, they could honour him in their next game on Nov. 6 at home against San Jose.

15. Casey Cizikas needs 22 games to become the 4th player to skate in 1,000 games for the Islanders. He would join Josh Bailey (1,057 games), Denis Potvin (1,060) and Bryan Trottier (1.123). Their 22nd game is in Detroit on Nov. 21. Their next game is at home to Toronto on Nov. 23.

16. Sean Couturier needs 48 games to become the third Philadelphia Flyer to play 1,000 games for the organization. He will join Claude Giroux (1,000) and Bobby Clarke (1.144). Their 48th game is in Nashville on Jan. 12. Their next home game is Saturday the 16th v. Montreal.

17. Nikita Kucherov needs 14 points to pass Steven Stamkos (1.137) for most in Lightning history. He will reach that in October.

18. Morgan Reilly needs 49 games to become the sixth player to play 1,000 games for the Maple Leafs. They play game No. 49 at home on Jan. 16 v. Pittsburgh.

19. Mark Stone needs 22 points to pass Jonathan Marchessault (417) for most points by a Vegas Golden Knight. William Karlsson has 403 points, so it is possible he passes Marchessault first, but unlikely.

20. Alex Ovechkin needs five assists to pass Nicklas Backstrom (762) for most by a Capital. Then Ovechkin would own the games played, goals, assists, and points record for the Caps.

21. Mark Scheifele needs eight goals to pass Dale Hawerchuk (379) for the most by a Winnipeg Jet. Scheifele needs 19 assists to pass Hawerchuk and Blake Wheeler (550) and Thomas Steen (553) for most assists by a Jet.  And he needs 23 points to pass Hawerchuk (929) for most points by a Jet. He should reach all three this season.

He also needs 39 games to become the first Jet to play in 1,000 games. Their 39th game is in Nashville on Dec. 22, and their next home game is Dec. 28 against San Jose. Could be a good Christmas gift for a die-hard Jets fan.

22. The LA Kings need 28 wins to become the 12th franchise with 2,000 career victories. The Flyers have the most victories (2,249) amongst non-Original Six franchises.

23. Ovechkin needs 37 points to pass Mario Lemieux (1,723) for 9th on the NHL scoring list.

24. Evgeni Malkin (1,407 points) and Patrick Kane (1,400) begin this season 23rd and 24th in NHL scoring. If Malkin scores 61 points, he will pass Dale Hawerchuk (1,409), Doug Gilmour (1,414), Adam Oates (1,420), Bryan Trottier (1,425), Teemu Selanne (1,457) and Stan Mikita (1,467) and finish 17th all time. Kane would need 68 points to pass them.

25. Steven Stamkos (1,256) needs 44 points to become the 40th player with 1,300 career points, but McDavid might beat him to it. McDavid has 1,220 points and starts this season 47th in NHL scoring. If McDavid scores 120 points, he will jump to 33rd all-time and pass an array of Hall of Famers who have played significantly more games.

There’s a new chapter beginning at Derrick Dodge, and the momentum is real. Under new ownership, the dealership is bringing fresh energy, a renewed focus on customer experience, and a bold, forward-thinking approach to vehicle buying. This change marks the start of an exciting new era, built around transparency, trust, and putting customers first. To celebrate this transition, every vehicle purchase comes with a trip for two to Las Vegas. Whether you’re shopping for your next vehicle or simply curious about what’s changed, Derrick Dodge is moving forward with confidence, purpose, and a clear vision for the future.