The hunt for Alex Ovechkin’s career goalscoring record continues, but the Washington Capitals forward isn’t the only one aiming for grades that symbolize success in professional hockey.
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The No. 8 threaded the needle for the 785th time of the regular season in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Carolina Hurricanes Monday night. At the same time, he was closing in on Gordie Howe, runner-up in National League history with 801 goals; Wayne Gretzky remains at the top with 894 successes.
However, other active players deserve some attention as they could be in the news soon, be it this season or the following ones.
Sidney Crosby, 521 goals
The Pittsburgh Penguins captain has moved the ropes four times so far and is still a long way from the 600 total, but his next few goals will see him past some interesting names in the hockey world. Sidney Crosby is 38th in the standings and his next will allow him to join Pat Verbeek. Then two former penguins will be targeted, namely Bryan Trottier (524) and Marian Hossa (525). If all goes well, the famous hockey player could finish the season in the top 30. It is Quebec’s Michel Goulet who is 30th with 548 goals, four more than Maurice Richard, 31.
Steven Stamkos, 488 goals
The Tampa Bay Lightning star player has high hopes of becoming the 47th man in history to score at least 500 goals this year. He is currently No. 50 and should beat Norm Ullman, Jean Ratelle and Glenn Anderson, all of whom stopped between 490 and 500 nets. The very good news for Steven Stamkos is that he’s off to a great start: scoring seven goals in his first nine games. He didn’t lose the power play after flashing five red lights with an extra man. Also, he’s also close to the 1000 point mark since he has 981.
Yevgeny Malkin, 448 goals
The big sidekick from “Sid the Kid” has his own personal goals in this season 2022-2023. Geno is 10 games away from the 1000 plateau. He is 63rd in goals scored and his next two successes will see him join Doug Gilmour and Peter Stastny. If he scores 452 goals, he’s officially in the top 60 snipers, tied with Rod Brind’Amour. If he avoids injuries, Denis Savard (56th) and Alexander Mogilny (55th) with 473 goals each should be dangerously hot.
John Tavares, 395 goals
Toronto Maple Leafs captain and teammate William Nylander leads his club with four goals this year. This bodes well for John Tavares, who is very close to the 400 total. Currently ranked 111th all-time, barring unforeseen circumstances, he will be in the top 100 for the coming months. The former New York Islanders also have a good chance of finishing 1,000 games behind in the player group; he has played 959 so far.
Anze Kopitar, 367 goals
The idea of seeing Anze Kopitar score 400 goals this season remains a risky bet but possible. However, you should know that the Los Angeles Kings paint holder, who has twice threaded the needle since hostilities began, has not offered production of at least 35 nets since 2017-2018. And he has almost twice as many assists (710) under his belt. It is more logical to think that he will approach the figure of 390. Those interested will be pleased to know that Martin St-Louis is ranked 117th with 391 career goals.