When Will Capitals' Alex Ovechkin Break NHL Goal Record?

Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin and his pursuit of history have been the biggest story in hockey this season, and that story is now entering its final chapter.

As the calendar turns to April, Ovechkin is now just five goals away from surpassing Wayne Gretzky as the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. Just when it seemed like Father Time was finally catching up with the 39-year-old, he's put together another outstanding season with 37 goals to bring his career total to 890. Perhaps the most impressive part of his season is that after suffering a broken leg in November, he not only came back less than six weeks later, but continued to score at a torrid pace.

The Capitals, who sit atop the Eastern Conference with 103 points, have nine regular-season games remaining, and there's a very good chance that Ovechkin breaks the record in that time. The question is, when exactly will he do it?

Today, we'll attempt to answer that question as our team of writers predict when and where Ovechkin will cement himself in history once more.

Jon Alfano: Ovechkin has undoubtedly been incredible this season, but he has slowed down just a bit recently. The Russian superstar scored seven goals in 14 games throughout March, and he didn't have a single multi-goal game in the month. That's still a good pace, but not quite as good as the one he was on early in the season.

As a result, I believe this goal chase will come down to the wire, but he'll get it done. The most likely date in my eyes is April 13, when the Capitals host the Columbus Blue Jackets in their final home game of the regular season. It just feels right for him to break the record in front of the home crowd at Capital One Arena.

Jacob Punturi: It’s hard to single out one of these teams that is especially susceptible to Ovi’s scoring abilities, but the New York Islanders stick out as a strong possibility for two reasons. One, it’s a chance for Ovechkin to reach history against his fellow countrymen. Islanders goalie Ilya Sorokin is a fellow Russian-born NHL’er and that friendly competition could be the needed edge to get him to that historic 895th goal.

Second, Ovi’s lit up the Islanders over his career. Over 71 regular season contests against the Isles, Ovi’s scored 44 goals. That’s an average of 0.62 goals per game. It’s enough to convince me to circle the Sunday matinee between the Caps and Isles on April 6th. A multi-goal game from The Great 8 will launch him past Wayne Gretzky as the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer. 

Nick Horwat: Had it not been for a mid-season leg injury, there is no doubt Ovechkin would already hold the goals record. As time winds down on the regular season, the Great 8 only has nine games to surpass Gretzky. He won’t need all nine games though.

Sitting just five tallies away from breaking the all-time goals record, Ovechkin can see the mountaintop. Being that close means his teammates are going to be setting him up every chance they get, much like they have all season long.

With numerous opportunities likely coming his way over the next three games, a good bet is that Ovechkin breaks the record on Friday against the Chicago Blackhawks. More specifically, a multi-goal game to tie, then break the record.

Ovechkin has always had a flair for the dramatic, why wouldn’t one of the sports most anticipated moments be something just as special?