Alex Ovechkin doesn't shy away from admitting his chase for Wayne Gretzky's all-time NHL goal record

It's just a matter of time before Washington Capitals captain, icon and future Hall of Fame forward Alex Ovechkin overtakes Wayne Gretzky's all-time NHL goals record of 894.

With 27 games remaining in the 2024-25 NHL regular season, Ovechkin is only 16 goals away from catching Gretzky.

Before he played in Saturday's Capitals vs. Penguins game, Ovechkin was a special guest on the telecast led by Steve Levy, along with former NHL players Mark Messier (a longtime teammate of Gretzky) and P.K. Subban.

Levy asked Alex Ovechkin if the plan was for him to attempt to break the record with time remaining in this current season, and the Caps star answered positively.

"I'm gonna try, you know," Ovechkin answered. "Take it game by game and we'll see what happens."

Ironically, the Russian hockey star did not score a goal in Washington's 8-3 thumping of the Penguins at PPG Paints Arena. While he did manage four shots on the net, he finished with zero points.

Ovechkin and the Capitals will continue their schedule when they return home to play Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl and the visiting Edmonton Oilers at Capital One Arena in downtown Washington DC; the puck is set to drop at 1:00 PM EST.

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Wayne Gretzky has openly endorsed Alex Ovechkin's quest to break his goal-scoring record

While not every athlete wants to see their long-standing records broken, Wayne Gretzky has given his stamp of approval to Alex Ovechkin in the latter's chase to break his goal-scoring record.

Earlier this season, Ovechkin revealed that Gretzky routinely sends him text messages of encouragement.

“It’s great,” Ovechkin said of Gretzky's messages to him. “Even when I have a slump, he will sometimes text me and say, ‘Don’t worry about it. It will come.’ He’s on my side."

“If that kind of person is rooting for me, it’s pretty cool stuff. He’s the best player out there and he’s a great human. He supports me and it’s a pretty cool thing......“I hope when it’s going to be close, he’ll give me some advice.But not yet.”

Alex Ovechkin has played his entire National Hockey League career with the Washington Capitals after they made him the first overall selection in the 2004 NHL Draft; he would be named team captain in January of 2010.

Ovechkin has 879 career goals and 714 assists, including 72 goals and 69 assists in 151 career playoff games. In 2018, he captained the Capitals to their first and only Stanley Cup win.