Alex Ovechkin just broke another one of Wayne Gretzky’s records — thought it’s admittedly an obscure stat.
According to NHL PR, Ovechkin’s 839th career goal, coming in the second period against the Philadelphia Flyers, was the 145th career goal the Capitals captain has scored in the month of March.
Alex Ovechkin can become the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer in the month of March when the @Capitals and @NHLFlyers collide at 7 p.m. ET on @NHLNetwork and @TVASports.#NHLStats: https://t.co/iw5wMKga1A pic.twitter.com/ZCyD1LdrT1
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) March 1, 2024
Gretzky scored 144 different times in 260 March games. Ovechkin needed only 245 March games to tally 145 goals. The Great 8 can further put a dent into his new record as the Capitals play 14 more games this month.
All-time March goals
| Rank | Player | March Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Alex Ovechkin | 145 |
| 2. | Wayne Gretzky | 144 |
| 3. | Gordie Howe | 141 |
| 4. | Mario Lemieux | 138 |
| 5. | Jaromir Jagr | 137 |
| 6. | Phil Esposito | 136 |
| 7. | Jarome Iginla | 135 |
| 8. | Marcel Dionne | 130 |
| 9. | Mike Gartner | 129 |
| 10. | Dave Andreychuk | 126 |
While Ovechkin still trails Gretzky by 55 on the NHL’s all-time goals list (894), there are several records he’s already taken from The Great One over the last few years.
On February 10, Ovechkin took the empty-net goals record from Gretzky after tallying his 57th ENG in a game against the Boston Bruins.
Ovechkin passed Gretzky for the most 40-goal seasons (13) during the 2022-23 season. He also took the most road goals and most multi-goal road games records from Wayne during the 2021-22 season.
