His new record for most goals scored in the National Hockey League is, adjusted for competition, much more impressive than the Wayne Gretzky mark that he surpassed. When Mr Gretzky, “the Great One”, retired from hockey in 1999,

Alex Ovechkin finally did it. On Sunday afternoon on Long Island, the Washington Capitals star broke Wayne Gretzky’s record to become the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer with 895.

Wayne Gretzky's NHL record of 894 goals was once considered unbreakable. Then Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin broke it Sunday. "They say records are meant to be broken, but I'm not sure who's going to get more goals than that," Gretzky said during Sunday's on-ice ceremony.

Alex Ovechkin scored his record-breaking 895th career goal, but the New York Islanders beat the Washington Capitals 4-1 on Sunday. Marc Gatcomb had two goals, Bo Horvat and Jean-Gabriel Pageau also scored,

Gretzky, back then at least, was more than a hockey player to Canadians. He was homegrown royalty, a player of such quality, of such rare possibility, that he transcended the game we’ve always used to define ourselves.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that the Washington Capitals’ captain and super sniper, Alexander Ovechkin, broke Wayne Gretzky’s goal-scoring record this weekend when he beat countryman Ilya Sorokin on a power play.

With his 895th career goal on Sunday, the Washington Capitals star has accomplished what was once unthinkable and surpassed “The Great One,” Wayne Gretzky, as the all-time leading goal scorer in NHL history.

Ovechkin’s dominance on the ice from the left circle defines his legacy as the greatest goal scorer in NHL history.

Moments after he scored the record-breaking goal in the Capitals’ 4-1 loss to the Islanders at UBS Arena in New York, the 39-year-old Ovechkin was joined on the ice by his wife, Anastasia Shubskaya, and their family for a mid-game ceremony.