Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin. Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

Alex Ovechkin reaches another big milestone for Capitals

By Adam Gretz | Last updated Jan 11, 2026 10:50 PM ET

Alex Ovechkin is already the NHL's all-time leading goal-scorer, but he still keeps finding ways to reach new personal milestones for the Washington Capitals. He did it again on Sunday night against the Nashville Predators.

Another 20-goal season for Alex Ovechkin

Ovechkin opened the scoring for the Capitals in their 3-2 loss to the Predators, giving him his 20th goal of the season.

That makes it the 21st consecutive 20-goal season for Ovechkin in his career, moving him closer to tying Hockey Hall of Famer Gordie Howe for the most 20-goal seasons in league history.

Howe scored 20 goals 22 times, but did it over 26 seasons in the NHL.

Ovechkin has never scored less than 20 goals in his career, and has failed to reach 30 goals just one time in his career, and that was during the COVID-shortened, 56-game season back in 2020-21.

Here is a look at his 20th goal of the season on Sunday. It came from the spot on the ice where so many of his 917 regular-season goals have come from.

OVI AGAIN

That's goals in four straight and five goals during that span! pic.twitter.com/gISCv2RVTo
— NHL (@NHL) January 12, 2026

With 20 goals in his first 46 games, that puts Ovechkin on a 35-goal pace for the season. While that might be a ways off from the 49-goal pace he has averaged for his career, it is still an almost unheard of number for a player in their age 40 season.

Only two players in NHL history have ever scored 35 goals or more after celebrating their 40th birthday: Howe and Johnny Bucyk. Ovechkin has a chance to join that list.

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on Twitter @AGretz

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