Alex Ovechkin is moving up again.
His first period goal on Friday night was the 742nd goal of his career, and officially moved him into sole possession of fourth place on the NHL’s all-time goal scoring list, jumping ahead of Hockey Hall of Famer Brett Hull.
Ovechkin previously passed Marcel Dionne to move into fifth place earlier this season.
He is now only 24 goals behind Jaromir Jagr for third on the all-time list, and 59 behind Gordie Howe for second place.
Wayne Gretzky’s record of 894 goals is now just 152 away for Ovechkin.
Barring injury he should pass Jagr later this season, setting the stage to jump ahead of Howe sometime early next season.
You can see his goal on Friday in the video above. He scored it from the same spot he has scored so many of his goals so far at the top of the left face off circle.
His goal on Friday continues what has been an absolutely incredible start to the 2021-22 season. He already has 12 goals in 14 games, making it one of the best starts he has ever had to a season. He is currently in a race with Edmonton’s Leon Draisaitl for the league lead in goals and is not showing any sign of slowing down.
—
Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.