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.
Before answering whether anyone can top Ovechkin, the big question is what his final total will be. Ovechkin has five games left this season unless the Capitals decide to rest him some before the playoffs. He has another season left on his contract.
If he retires after 2025-26 at age 40, he could end up with more than 930 goals. If he signs an extension, that figure will be even higher, a nearly impossible number to beat.
Here’s who might have an outside chance to pass him:
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
He’s the most obvious candidate because he already has two 60-goal seasons to Ovechkin’s one. He’s a pure scorer with four goals in his NHL debut and 398 goals in 623 games. Ovechkin needed 634 to reach 400 goals. He’s averaging 0.64 goals a game in his career to Ovechkin’s 0.60.
Matthews is 27 and potentially has many years left in his career. If he can maintain his current scoring pace and plays 1,500 games, he’d top 950 goals.
But that’s a big if. Matthews missed a total of 34 games over his second and third NHL seasons. He has been out on two occasions this season with a nagging injury, costing him 15 games. He has dropped from 69 goals to 30.
One of Ovechkin’s strengths is his durability. Matthews needs to stay healthy.
Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
He has developed into a regular 50-goal scorer and has signed an eight-year extension that makes him the NHL’s highest-paid player. If Connor McDavid also commits long-term in Edmonton. there’s the potential for many more goals. Draisaitl is about to hit 400 goals and like Ovechkin, he’s hard to stop on a one-timer from the faceoff circle (the right one, in his case).
The issue is Draisaitl, 29, didn’t become a 50-goal scorer until his fifth season. He has played 790 games, taking more time to approach 400 than Ovechkin and Matthews.
David Pastrnak, Boston Bruins
Pastrnak, 28, has a 61-goal season and four 40-goal seasons. But he’s 12 goals from 400 and has played 752 games. And can he keep up the numbers with the Bruins retooling?
Gavin McKenna, junior hockey
The Medicine Hat Tigers winger is the likely No. 1 pick of the 2026 NHL draft. He had 34 goals last season and 41 this season at age 17. He has a 45-game point streak and is projected as a generational player. He has another year left in the Western Hockey League and at the world junior hockey championship to build up his game. He’s more of a playmaker but can score.
But it’s always difficult to assess how junior stardom translates to NHL stardom, especially since players are drafted by a team near the bottom of the league and don’t have a lot of early support.
Young player TBA
Don’t forget that Ovechkin was 13 when Gretzky retired. One thing to watch is domination at the world junior championships. Ovechkin had 18 goals in 18 games over three tournaments.