It’s been a wild ride for the highest scoring Russian in NHL history, but Alex Ovechkin is now a member of the 500-goal club. His 500th goal makes him only the 43rd player in NHL history to hit this mark, and draws him even in the all-time goal scoring list with Calgary Flames legend, Lanny McDonald.
Alex Ovechkin Scores 500th Goal
The lucky goalie to give up number 500 is Ottawa Senators goalie, Andrew Hammond, who surely isn’t too happy to be the one to let it happen, and surely won’t be the last goalie Ovechkin scores on. You could feel the goal coming all night, as Ovechkin had multiple chances being shut down by the Ottawa defenseman, or by good saves from Hammond. But, despite some heroics, mainly just on Ovechkin, there was just no stopping this inevitable Russian legend from bagging his 500th, and his name is now written in NHL lore with many other greats that have come before him.
500 pic.twitter.com/QgC5RE26po
— Stephanie (@myregularface) January 11, 2016
Number 500 came as Washington was on a power play. Ovechkin, sitting right inside the left face-off circle sat waiting for his spot in hockey legend. And there it came, right laid in front of him, and in typical Ovechkin-esque style, he unloaded a shot that no mere man of a goaltender could stop. Ovechkin, scoring this goal, has assured himself as one of the greatest players in NHL history, and is also the fifth fastest to the mark in league history. No one could’ve written the script for his storied career better than this moment, and much more success will be coming soon.
Another milestone that comes hand-in-hand with his 500th is the fact that he was one of only six players in NHL history to hit the goal-mark before their 31st birthday. This milestone puts him in a club with members such as Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Steve Yzerman, Jaromir Jagr, Mike Bossy, and “The Great One” Wayne Gretzky. When you take these two milestones into consideration it isn’t, by any stretch of the mind, a difficult task to say he is a DEFINITE for the Hall of Fame, and one of the greatest goalscorers in the history of the league.
Just another of the many things you could take into consideration about the greatness of Ovechkin is the fact that he, like many other great players, lost a season and a half that could’ve seen him reach this milestone much sooner. Ovechkin would have played in the 2004-05 season as a rookie, but had to wait an extra year due to the lockout. He also lost nearly half a year to the 2012-13 lockout. This, compounded with the fact that he has played in a much lower scoring hockey era than others in the list of 500-before-31, almost a goal less per game, says something. You could go on about how statistically wonderful Ovechkin has been, even in his “bad years”, but the ride was more impressive than the stats.
Since he came into the league in 2005, he has garnered many different accolades, ranging from the Calder Memorial Trophy, presented to the Rookie of the Year, up to NHL First All-Star Team, and even winning the Hart Trophy three times. In his career, he has been named the Rookie of the Year (2006), NHL Second All-Star Team three times (2011, 2013, 2014), NHL First All-Star Team seven times (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, and 2015), won the Most Valuable Player three times (2008, 2009, 2013), as well as leading the league in goals five times (2008 – 65 goals, 2009 – 56 goals, 2013 – 32 goals, 2014 – 51 goals, and 2015 – 53 goals). And now, the only thing left to win for Ovechkin is the ever-elusive trophy that is Lord Stanley’s Cup.
Ovechkin, 30, was the 1st overall pick in the 2004 NHL Entry Draft and has played his entire career with the Washington Capitals. Ovechkin is also the Washington Capitals all-time leading goalscorer, as well as the highest scoring Russian-born NHL player ever.
