Hats off to Ovechkin who hits 800 goals with hat trick against Hawks

Once a year, Alex Ovechkin - the most prolific goal scorer of this generation - visits the United Center to battle the Blackhawks.

It's a must-see event for true hockey fans. And, really, it should be for any sports fan.

After all, it's not often we get to see someone march toward a record that many believed to be unreachable.

Pete Rose overtaking Ty Cobb for the all-time hits record comes to mind. As does Hank Aaron surpassing Babe Ruth to become the home run king. (Barry Bonds' journey was sadly tainted by steroids).

Another great choice is Emmitt Smith overtaking Walter Payton for the all-time rushing record. (Although maybe not as great as when Payton passed Jim Brown in 1984).

There are plenty of other examples, but in the hockey world not many milestones are more revered than Wayne Gretzky's mark of 894 career goals.

It's a record that is in serious jeopardy because, assuming he stays healthy and keeps scoring at his current pace, Ovechkin will be the new king of that mountain in about two years.

Ovechkin needed a hat trick during Washington's tilt with the Hawks at the United Center on Tuesday to become the third player in NHL history to reach 800.

And guess what?

He did it, scoring 24 seconds into the contest, then at 8:14 of the first period, then at 6:34 of the third period to give the Capitals a 5-2 lead in a game they would go on to win 7-3.

"It's a huge number," said Ovechkin, who is now 1 short of tying Gordie Howe for second all-time and 94 shy of the Great One. "It's the best company you ever can imagine since you start playing hockey to be connected to Gordie."

Hats soared to the ice after the goal and the crowd broke into an "Ovi, Ovi" chant to acknowledge the superstar's incredible achievement.

"It's like Tom Brady-ish in football. It's like Aaron Judge in baseball," said Hawks coach Luke Richardson. "You don't think you're every gonna see that again, but he's a guy that's been consistent.

"And it's not just the way he scores goals. He does everything. He'll run you over. He's a special player and the game is fortunate enough to have him over here and playing in the NHL for this long."

Jonathan Toews was understandably dejected about his team's 12th loss in 13 games, but the Hawks' captain understood the magnitude of the moment.

"It's mind-blowing," Toews said. "How many guys can score goals at his rate in (one) season, let alone year after year after year? He's one of a kind, for sure."

Ovechkin has nine seasons of 50-plus goals, with a high of 65 in 2007-08. Four times he's had 20 or more power play goals in a season, and he has 291 on the man advantage in his career.

These are otherworldly numbers when you consider that Patrick Kane - considered by some to be the greatest American-born offensive forward ever - has 434 goals and surpassed 40 "just" twice. Kane, who is 34, has 121 PP goals, going over 10 three times.

The 6-foot-2, 234-pound Ovechkin is built like a freight train and has a howitzer of a shot that is all but unstoppable for many goalies. The puck explodes off his stick and often reaches 90, 95 and even 100 mph.

Decades ago nobody thought anyone would pass Howe, who by the way also scored 174 goals in the World Hockey Association when he was 45-50 years old. The majority of Howe's NHL career spanned from 1946-71. He then scored 15 goals for Hartford in 1979-80 at age 51.

Then along came Gretzky. All the Great One did was score 51 goals as a rookie, 55 in his second year and an astounding 92 in Year 3. His most remarkable stretch came from 1981-85 when he poured in 323 goals in 314 games.

Toews "was obsessed with Wayne Gretzky" as a kid and vividly remembers him scoring Goal No. 802 to pass Howe.

"He was jumping around on his skates and the whole world just couldn't believe Wayne Gretzky passed Gordie Howe," Toews said. "Now, Alex is about to do that, too."

Ovechkin was the first overall pick in 2004 and burst onto the scene in 2005-06 by scoring 52 times. His 65-goal campaign came two years later, and he followed that up with 56 more in 2008-09.

Ovechkin has been the league's leading goal scorer nine times, most recently when he had 48 in the pandemic-shortened season of 2019-20.

"I was in the first game he played and he had 2 goals," said Blackhawks coach Luke Richardson. "I remember him running over a defenseman, he scored ... (and) they won 3-2. He's an impact player from Day One and he still is now.

"I remember then how excited he was when their team won and when he scored, but I see now (that) when someone takes him away (on) the power play (and someone else scores) ... I see him celebrate.

"He looks like he scored the goal. And that's a great captain. A great teammate."

And, possibly soon, the greatest goal-scorer ever. Enjoy it while it's happening.

If you missed Tuesday's game in person, mark next year's meeting with Washington on the calendar.

After all, this kind of history doesn't come along very often.

Top NHL goal scorers

Player Goals

1. Wayne Gretzky 894

2. Gordie Howe 801

3. Alex Ovechkin 799

4. Jaromir Jagr 766

5. Brett Hull 741

18. Bobby Hull 610

32. Stan Mikita 541

74. Patrick Kane 434