Looking Back at the Time The Great One Built the Legacy, Now Chased by Alexander Ovechkin

As crazy as it sounds, the hockey world has someone to overtake legend Wayne Gretzky and his long-time record of 894 gaols. Washington Capitals captain Alexander Ovechkin who recently reached 802 NHL goals in December, is expected to surpass the legend’s record.

Hockey fans consider 21 January 1989 as a highly auspicious day. It was on this day when Gretzky ascended to the second place in NHL’s all-time points list for the very first time. Post this moment, the hockey legend never looked back and created history ahead in the games. 

Wayne Gretzky’s record-setting match against Los Angeles

A recent Facebook post brought back memories of a neck-to-neck match between Los Angeles and Hartford Whalers on 21 January 1989, Gretzky created history for himself. The hockey legend scored three goals and assisted his team skillfully while they were losing in a 5 -4 loss to the Whalers. Moreover, in that match, Gretzky overtook his teammate Marcel Dionne to become the NHL’s all-time No. 2 scorer. Prior to this, Dionne had a record of scoring 1770 points in 1,343 games. Moreover, the only player ahead of him was Gordie Howe with 1850 points. 

But after the Los Angeles Kings Vs Hartford Whalers match, Gretzky surpassed Dionne with 1,771 points in just 743 games. The legend also broke the then-top-scorer, Gordie Howe’s record by scoring his 802nd goal on March 23, 1994. Moreover, Gretzky finally ended his career in 1999 with a total of 894 goals and 2,857 points. 

Read More: How Does Alexander Ovechkin Compare to Wayne Gretzky As He Nears ‘The Great One’s’ NHL Goal Record?

Now fans are eagerly waiting for Alexander, who is at 810 goals to soon cross Gretzky’s 894 goals record. Moreover, Gretzky himself is happy knowing that Ovechkin would set a new record in the hockey world after so long. 

Wayne Gretzky on Ovechkin surpassing his record

Wayne Gretzky perfectly knows that Ovechkin would soon break his record and that there is no debate about it. Since it would be “great for the game,”  the hockey legend is happy that the 37-year-old would be the one to do it. Gretzky believes that it would increase the popularity of hockey globally. 

Watch This Story: Here’s a Quick Look at Top Homes Owned by NHL Players

Moreover, as Ovechkin is set to break the record, Gretzky feels that “it couldn’t happen to a better person.” Hopefully, Ovechkin would soon create history for the NHL world.