Alex Ovechkin gets 100% real about breaking another Wayne Gretzky's record after historic 895th career goal 

Last NHL season was special for Alex Ovechkin as he broke Wayne Gretzky’s all-time regular-season goal record. He scored his 895th career goal against the New York Islanders in early April. Now, he is close to another record. Gretzky holds the record for most combined regular-season and playoff goals with 1,016. Ovechkin has 974, and that puts him 42 goals away.

But Ovi is not thinking about the record, and he wants to focus on each game.

"I’m not looking that far ahead," Ovechkin said, via tass.ru (translated to English by Google). "We’ll fight game after game and try to play. Our secret is unity."

Ovechkin, at the age of 39, scored 44 goals in the 2024–25 season. He missed 17 games with a broken leg and later added five more goals in the playoffs. So, if he scores over 42 more goals, he will pass Gretzky again. Ovechkin has been scoring near it in his last few seasons, exceptions aside.

Ovechkin made these comments during an NHL vs KHL "Match of the Year" charity game in Moscow on Sunday. He was honored before the game for breaking Gretzky's goal record. His family was there, and he also scored during the game, receiving a new SUV as a gift.

The charity game raised 30 million rubles (about $385,000) for children with disabilities. Ovechkin’s teammates included other Russian NHL players, like Sergei Bobrovsky. They won the game 15–3, and fans enjoyed seeing Ovechkin with his family and teammates.

Alex Ovechkin talked about his NHL retirement rumors

Alex Ovechkin also talked about his future during the Moscow event. He said he has not made a final decision on his retirement till now. There were rumors that next season would be his last, but he said that it is not confirmed.

His wife earlier said they might return to Russia after his contract ends. Ovechkin responded by saying no date was mentioned.

“My wife never confirmed anything,” Ovechkin said as quoted by reporter Daria Tuboltseva. “She said we might play in Russia — anything is possible. No date was mentioned. This is nonsense that you guys start twisting around, putting us in an uncomfortable position. We’ll see. Could I stay in the NHL for another season? Anything is possible.”

Team officials also said Alex Ovechkin could keep playing if he still performs well. He will be 40 when the 2025–26 season starts, and it will be his 21st season in the NHL.