Alex Ovechkin is officially a hat trick away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record for most goals in NHL history. The Russian superstar is having a season for the ages, and on Wednesday, legendary goalie Henrik Lundqvist had everyone laughing during the NHL on TNT broadcast with some hilarious words about Ovechkin and fellow superstar goalie Marc-Andre Fleury.
Ovechkin has 39 goals this season—at age 39. And if that wasn’t crazy enough, he also suffered a broken leg early in the 2024-25 campaign, sidelining him for a significant stretch. Many thought the injury would postpone his pursuit of one of Gretzky’s most prestigious records until next year. But just as he’s done so many times before, Ovechkin has defied expectations, playing at a level few thought possible.
Although the Washington Capitals lost 5-1 to the Carolina Hurricanes on Wednesday, it was the night Ovechkin officially got within three goals of breaking The Great One’s record—with seven games left in the regular season. And luckily for Marc-Andre Fleury, the Capitals won’t be facing the Minnesota Wild during the run-in.
Henrik Lundqvist’s hilarious words
Fleury, set to retire after this season, has joked about hoping not to be the goalie who allows Ovechkin’s record-breaking goal, knowing how often the moment will be replayed in the coming years. But ironically, Fleury holds the distinction of having given up more goals to Ovechkin than any other netminder—28 in total. Right behind him on that list? Henrik Lundqvist, also with 28.
Lundqvist, who was part of the NHL on TNT panel Wednesday, didn’t waste any time playfully thanking Fleury for sparing him from the top spot.
“I want to thank Fleury, too. He’s No. 1 on that list,” Lundqvist said.
“I’m No. 2. But I’m going to guess here that Fleury and I probably played the most games against him. But yeah, thanks to Marc—I’m second, not first on that list!”
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