It is hard not to compare Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby and Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin; together they've been the high standard in the National Hockey League for what it means to excel greatly at the sport of ice hockey. The frenemies have been competitors for 20 years in this league; frenemies alluding to the fact that they're long-time Metropolitan division rivals, but their unwavering support for each other as hockey players has always been there.
The Gr8 Chase has been completed by Ovechkin, where he has scored his 895th NHL goal, passing the Great One, Mr. Wayne Gretzky. A record that was deemed likely impossible to break has been broken. This campaign has highlighted this feat greatly; the closer number eight got to passing number 99, the amount of eyes and ears tuning into the games and story lines increased. It has been all about Ovi this year; and rightfully so. He now holds the most goals of all-time in NHL history; it could be another 30 years before this number is broken. Can he get to 900?
Spoiler alert - he's not done yet. Ovechkin's current contract with the Caps runs through the 2025-26 season.
The list is short. The names iconic. #Gr8ness
— NHL Public Relations (@NHLPR) April 6, 2025
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As per the NHL, Crosby texted Ovechkin after the game against the Chicago Blackhawks in which Ovi scored two, tying the 894 record. Sid texted again Sunday, congratulating him for the miraculous achievement of 895.
As hockey fans, we've been blinded by goals. The most goals, ever? That is so exciting. But what about the markers Crosby has that Ovechkin will not be touching? Let's give Sid some credit here. The 37-year-old that has spent his entire career with the Penguins has has some "untouchable" stats too.
First and foremost, championships. Crosby has won three Stanley Cups; one in 2009 and then back-to-backs in 2016 and 2017. Compare this to Ovi's one Cup win the next year in 2018 and Sid has got him beat here. At first glance this seems unreachable, but the Capitals are close to potentially securing the President's Trophy as the team with the most points this season and will be on their quest for the Cup while the Penguins have already started to golf. Still, two Stanley Cups is difficult and I don't see Ovi winning two more by the time his career is done. Maybe one more for him? The icing on the cake this year?
The all-time goals record is not the only Gretzky record that was beat this year. Crosby has 20 straight point-per-game seasons. Read that again. Point. Per. Game. 20 straight seasons. This broke the previous mark held by number 99, which was 19 point-per-game seasons. Alex Ovechkin is not touching this record.
Crosby currently ranks ninth in all-time points with 1,682 and Ovi is on the outside of the top-ten looking in sitting at 11th with 1,619. With the offensive production of these two staying consistent, even after 20 years in the NHL, I don't think Sid needs to worry about Ovi here. Depending how long Crosby plays, he could crack the top five in all-time points. Ron Francis sits in fifth currently with 1,798. That's reachable!
Tying into points is the assists marker; Crosby is in the top-ten all-time in assists at 1,060. Ovechkin is ranked 56 on this list, with 724. No chance here for Ovi. The argument here is that when you're scoring goals yourself... you're not recording assists. Touché.
Crosby has the edge in shootout goals; 46 compared to Ovechkin's 37. It is really interesting because the now greatest goal-scorer in NHL history in Ovi has had 125 of these shots, where as Crosby has had 120. Sid's percentage is much higher though, at 38.33, compared to Ovi's 29.6. Crosby is in the top-ten, while Ovi is 15th. He won't touch Sid's numbers here.
An important marker in hockey stats is the plus/minus. Another number that Ovi will not touch of Crosby is his plus-198. Ovi's is still in the positive, but he boasts a plus-62 over the course of his career. Can he catch Sid? I highly doubt it.
Comparatively looking at their NHL Edge statistics, Crosby ranks in the 98th percentile of skating distance vs. Ovechkin's 59th percentile. Is this a stat to be celebrated? No one is really talking about it, but I found it interesting. Crosby's ice time this season is still an average of over 20 minutes a game, vs. Ovi's less than 18. Is this age related? Could be, because their career ice-time averages are different by only two seconds; 20:40 for Sid and 20:38 for Ovi.
Another marker Crosby has over Ovi right now; multi-point games (Crosby 491 to Ovi 451). Sid is also the only active player that has scored 100-points vs three different franchises (Islanders, Flyers, Rangers) and he is close to the 100-point mark with two other squads (Devils, Capitals).
What about the against each other numbers? The two stars have played 72 regular-season games against each other with Crosby recording 93 points (32 goals, 61 assists) compared to Ovechkin and his 67 (37 goals, 30 assists). They're such tough, gritty competitors who work hard every day and night (and are incredible team leaders).
They're iconic players who have shaped the course of the NHL since both joining the league in 2005 (Crosby at 18 and Ovi at 20). Both should be celebrated for their achievements for a long, long time; likely all the way into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Time will tell.