Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin reached the 25-goal mark for the 20th time in his career Wednesday against the Ottawa Senators, tying the NHL record held by the legendary Gordie Howe.
Ovechkin failed to reach 25 goals just once in his 21-year career, potting 24 goals in 45 games during the pandemic-shortened 2020-21 campaign.
Ovechkin also became the sixth player in league history to notch at least 25 goals in a season at age 40 or older, joining Howe, Johnny Bucyk, Teemu Selanne, Jaromir Jagr, and Dean Prentice.
He already owns the NHL records for most seasons with 30 goals (19) and 40 goals (14). Ovechkin shares the record for most 50-goal seasons (nine) with Wayne Gretzky and Mike Bossy.
Ovechkin's goal against the Senators was the 999th of his career when combining his regular-season and playoff totals. Gretzky holds the all-time mark at 1,016. Ovechkin passed Gretzky for most career regular-season goals in 2024-25.