Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin Makes NHL History With 800th Goal

Capitals' captain becomes just the third player in NHL history to reach the milestone

Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin scored his 800th career NHL goal on Tuesday night against the Chicago Blackhawks, becoming just the third player in NHL history to reach the milestone.

Ovechkin joins Wayne Gretzky (894) and Gordie Howe (801) as the only players to reach the 800-goal mark.

The goal came on a power play in the second period. Ovechkin took a pass from Evgeny Kuznetsov and fired a one-timer past Blackhawks goaltender Kevin Lankinen.

The goal drew a standing ovation from the crowd at Capital One Arena.

Ovechkin has been one of the most dominant goal scorers in NHL history.

He has won the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy as the NHL's leading goal scorer nine times.

He is also a three-time Hart Trophy winner as the NHL's most valuable player.

Ovechkin's pursuit of Gretzky's record

Ovechkin is now just 95 goals away from Gretzky's all-time NHL goal-scoring record.

At his current pace, Ovechkin could reach the record in the next two or three seasons.

If he does, it would be one of the greatest achievements in NHL history.

Capitals' playoff hopes

The Capitals are currently in a playoff spot, but they are just two points ahead of the Pittsburgh Penguins for the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Ovechkin's goal-scoring prowess will be key to the Capitals' playoff hopes.

If he can continue to score at a high level, the Capitals will be a dangerous team in the playoffs.