MLB is a sport divided by historic payroll disparity — so what’s next?
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Jesse Rogers, ESPN Staff Writer
This year in Major League Baseball, almost all the attention has been paid to on-field trends, as a slew of historic rule changes impacted almost every aspect of the game. Now, MLB is turning some of its attention back to the economics of the sport.
It was only 14 months ago that a brutal labor battle between the league and the MLB Players Association ended with a five-year collective bargaining agreement. Once again, the players were able to secure a system without a hard salary cap, and MLB remains the only one of the four major professional North American sports without some form of hard payroll floor or ceiling. It has led to some dramatic differences in team payrolls and some dramatic effects on the standings as well.
And this year, a record amount of spending in free agency pushed the difference in payrolls between the top and bottom teams to new extremes. During the 2022 season, approximately $226 million separated the payrolls of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Baltimore Orioles, the largest gap in the history of the sport — at the time. This season, it’s even larger, with a gap of nearly $299 million between the New York Mets and Oakland Athletics. But they’re not the only outliers: The A’s are one of three teams with an Opening Day payroll under $100 million; the Mets are one of 14 teams with payrolls of more than $200 million (only Steve Cohen’s team crosses the $300 million threshold).
Those differences could be tied to new extremes on the field, too. In 2022, there were a record-tying four 100-win teams, and another with 99 victories. Meanwhile, there were four 100-loss teams — also a record — and another one with 97 defeats. Those 100-win teams averaged nearly $226 million in payroll, while the 100-loss squads averaged just under $87 million.
Last year, the league created an “economic reform committee,” made up of a select group of owners who assess and advise the commissioner on economic issues such as payroll disparity and the regional sports network collapse. MLB has often expressed concerns with the growing chasm in revenues and point to teams like this year’s A’s, who have the lowest payroll and are on pace for one of the worst seasons in baseball history (look out, fans of the 1899 Cleveland Spiders).
But it’s not an exact science: This year, the standings aren’t so clearly tied. If the playoffs were to begin today, three of the top four payrolls would be out, while three of the bottom four would still be playing.
The league still insists it’s worthy of attention.
“Ever since I started in the game, we have struggled with the related concepts of revenue disparity and payroll disparity and competitive balance,” commissioner Rob Manfred told ESPN. “The reason for that isn’t about making money. It’s the fact that what we sell in our game is competition and we need to make sure that we have a system in place that fans in all markets believe they have a chance.”
Payroll vs. parity on the field?
In 2000, the league commissioned an economic study and Blue Ribbon report — authored by former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell and others — which essentially concluded that baseball was headed toward financial ruin, in part because the gap between the top spender and the bottom one was growing. The difference then was $77 million.
“We believe that current trends cannot continue if the game is to remain an accessible, affordable, competitive national pastime,” the report read.
So claims of competitive imbalance are nothing new — and at various points in the 23 years since the Blue Ribbon report, there have been mixed indications of what growing payroll disparity has meant for the game.
In terms of win totals, the correlation of salary and success seems clear. The top six teams in payroll over the past five years have averaged 91 wins, up from 86 by the top salaried teams in the previous five years. And despite the relative success of small-market, lower-revenue-generating teams like the Tampa Bay Rays, the Kansas City Royals are the only team since 2010 to win the World Series with a payroll in the bottom half of the league.
“You’ve seen teams with low payrolls win, and teams with high payrolls lose, but those big markets have an advantage,” Chicago White Sox left fielder Andrew Benintendi said. “Smaller markets can’t afford some of those players. That divide is growing.”
That said, there’s no monopoly. The Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox are the only big-market teams to win more than one title since the Blue Ribbon report was released in 2000. Since 2015, 28 of the 30 MLB teams have made the playoffs. Since 2010, it’s 30 of 30.
In 2019, Manfred lauded the system, which, that year, produced equal playoff teams from both big and small markets.
“I think we have an economic system that has produced a remarkable level of competitive balance over time,” he said then.
He said something similar just last week, in another season in which so far we see parity working. If the season ended today, only the Atlanta Braves would repeat as division winners.
“Baseball is doing just great,” Manfred said at a recent hearing regarding the regional sports network (RSN) situation. “We’ve had one of the best starts to a season in decades.”
That’s thanks in large part to several surprise teams in the mix this year, but sustaining long windows of contention hasn’t always been easy for a lot of them. For many smaller-market clubs, cycles of rebuilding have become the norm, and those down years lower payrolls for players while widening the disparity between the top and bottom teams. Teams have always gone through rebuilding stages, but it has become more pronounced and strategic over the past decade or longer.
“It’s becoming a little more prevalent,” said Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson, who spent six years with the small-market A’s before a 2022 trade. “It is sad when coming up with an organization you think you’ll undo the cycle, playing good baseball. Hitting the reset button seems to be happening on a decent amount of clubs. It’s OK if you’re not winning and trying to rebuild a little, but when you get to the point of having a good team and recognizing it, it’s a little deflating if you don’t spend.”
Forcing teams to spend even during a rebuild is a hard case to make, though, even for the union. The concept of a salary floor was raised during the most recent labor negotiations, but it was summarily dismissed: Any discussion of increased small-market payrolls would mean implementing a system they believed would curtail big spending on top free agents.
“If you get a floor, you get a cap,” Mets pitcher and former MLBPA executive subcommittee rep Max Scherzer said. “There was a proposal exchanged on that.”
In a perfect world, teams would spend on their own with hopes of fielding a winning team. That’s not always happening — and there’s no easy solution.
“All clubs have demonstrated the ability to compete,” MLBPA executive director Tony Clark told ESPN. “The question is whether they are willing to do so.”
The Orioles, in second place in the AL East, are a prime example of what successful drafting and rebuilding looks like — but the team suffered through years of losing and low payrolls to get to their current competitive level.
“Since I’ve been here, our payroll is what it is,” O’s manager Brandon Hyde said. “I can only control what I can control. Those decisions aren’t up to me. We do the best we can do with the group that we have.
“I’m sure as we get better, our payroll is going to increase. Our players are going to make more, too, as they get to their fourth, fifth and sixth year. I can see it going up.”
Baltimore has surprised fans and pundits alike with its success this year, but the Orioles are the exception, not the rule.
“I hate that in a lot of years, half or at least a third of the league might be out of contention on Day 1,” one executive of a big-market team said. “I like when a team comes out of nowhere and surprises the league. We see less of that now.”
Should the concern be higher this time?
The trends have become more and more pronounced as big-market teams continue to realize revenue streams in and outside of ballparks. VIP seating, team-owned television networks and even bars surrounding stadiums, along with new gambling facilities, have all added to revenues. And while those markets have always spent more on payroll, they’ve also caught up to the smaller markets in other ways, spending more on team infrastructure.
“There was a real shift when the Yankees, Dodgers and Red Sox started spending as much attention to scouting and player development and analytics as the small-market teams were,” one small-market AL executive said. “There was a time when payroll disparity was mitigated, somewhat, by systems and internal processes that were better than those teams. There was a time when we were considered farm systems for those bigger market teams. Now, they’re spending 2.5 times on their payroll and their infrastructure.”
In other words, small-market teams previously stood out by drafting and developing players at a highly successful rate. Now, those bigger markets are doing it as well.
“Call it the Andrew Friedman effect,” another executive said, referring to the Dodgers president who took his small-market mentality from Tampa Bay to Los Angeles.
“The Yankees will eventually employ a coach for every player, if that’s what it takes,” another one quipped.
With new revenue streams and more time and money spent on team infrastructure, smaller markets maintain that the imbalance is approaching “unsustainable levels,” according to one executive.
“You’re seeing the commissioner’s office spend a little bit more thoughtfulness on not only the big picture of payroll but also on teams spending a ton of money on other spaces,” Minnesota Twins president Thad Levine said. “Are there ways to regulate some of those things?”
That’s partly what the economic reform committee will be looking into. But there is no clear statistic that proves the system can’t work as is, and the players association is loath to suggest anything that could lead to a full economic restructuring. The players have been clear about wanting to avoid a hard salary cap, while rebuilding teams are always hopeful their organizations will spend when the time comes. Many have — to a point.
Again, Baltimore’s 2023 success stands out. But will a team such as the Orioles be able to sustain a window of winning in the same way the Dodgers, Astros or Yankees have? Or will they go the route of the Rays, in which trading players before they make too much money through arbitration is the norm?
“Sometimes the question comes down to ownership,” more than one executive said.
Motivated ones, such as the Padres’ Peter Seidler, seemingly don’t care about market size or perhaps, in extreme cases, even the bottom line. Over the past five years, 11 players signed deals for $300 million or more, but just three were with a bottom-15 market team. All three were with San Diego.
But even as the Padres help muddy the waters as a small-market team with a massive payroll, they also continue to highlight the disparity among the league. (Their on-field struggles complicate matters, as well.)
Just 18 months ago, the league locked out the players when the two sides stood far apart on topics such as competitive balance and payroll — and the next negotiations are coming up faster than they seem. The MLBPA already suspects the economic reform committee is just another avenue for the league to attempt to suppress player salaries in the next negotiation.
Which way these issues continue to trend will say a lot about how those talks go this time. Like MLB was 23 years ago, the commissioner is concerned.
“We increased in terms of disparity this offseason,” Manfred said. “It’s something we’re going to have to keep an eye on.”
The Capitals improved by 11 points in the standings in Ovechkin’s rookie season. He helped, but he couldn’t do it alone.
In 2008, Alex Ovechkin found himself onstage at a club in Falls Church, Virginia, pretending to play guitar and pumping his fist to the crowd of Capitals fans who were instructed to keep the energy up during filming.
This music video would be a perfect time capsule for the “Rock The Red” movement in Washington — in which the home stands would be a sea of red jerseys and shirts — and not just because Ovechkin’s rock star status went from figurative to literal. The Caps won the Southeast Division in 2007-08, returning to the playoffs after a three-season drought. Under head coach Bruce Boudreau, who took over after 21 games, they played an electric offensive game that catered to Ovechkin’s skills and created a renewed fan buzz.
On stage with Ovechkin were fellow members of “The Young Guns,” as the players would be known. Center Nicklas Backstrom would become a driving force behind Ovechkin’s goal-scoring domination. His biggest takeaway from playing alongside Ovechkin: “Probably explaining to him that he wasn’t always open, but he wanted the puck all the time anyway,” Backstrom said recently with a laugh.
Defenseman Mike Green, who was in the video, would pilot their power play and become a two-time Norris Trophy runner-up. Winger Alex Semin, Ovechkin’s young countryman, would become a 40-goal scorer. Beyond them were Brooks Laich, an essential “glue guy,” and, eventually, standout defensemen John Carlson and Karl Alzner.
But the music video was also demonstrative of the Capitals’ swagger, something else Ovechkin brought to the franchise. Washington lost in seven games to the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2008 Stanley Cup playoffs, but it was clear they were pointed toward greater success. Something Sidney Crosby’s Penguins had already achieved.
After losing Rookie of the Year to Ovechkin, Crosby won his first NHL MVP trophy as a 19-year-old in 2006-07. By 2008, he was playing for the Stanley Cup, losing in the Final to Detroit. Like Ovechkin, he had some new friends, too: Malkin, Kris Letang, Marc-Andre Fleury and Jordan Staal.
Ovechkin did Crosby one better between 2007-09: He became the first skater to win back-to-back Hart Trophies since Wayne Gretzky in 1985-87. (Goalie Dominik Hasek won consecutive MVPs from 1996-98). It was clear he was a franchise player, and Leonsis gave him a contract commensurate with that status: In 2008, Ovechkin signed a 13-year, $124 million deal he negotiated himself. The first $100 million contract in NHL history, it had its critics at the time, although they’d fall silent years later when his $9 million cap hit was re-contextualized as a bargain as the salary cap rose.
In 2008-09, Ovechkin scored 56 goals in the regular season to lead Washington to another division title and then had seven points in seven games to win his first playoff series over the New York Rangers — setting up the first meeting between Crosby and Ovechkin in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Game 2 of that series would provide one of the defining moments of their rivalry: The “Double Hat Trick” game in Washington, as both Crosby and Ovechkin completed hat tricks in the Capitals’ 4-3 win. Fans threw so many hats on the ice after Ovechkin’s third goal that Crosby asked if the officials “could make an announcement to ask them to stop.”
Ovechkin (14 points) outscored Crosby (13) in that series, but the Penguins outlasted the Capitals in seven games — advancing to win the Stanley Cup, which would become a recurring theme in their rivalry. Ovechkin had a chance to turn Game 7 in Washington’s favor with a breakaway in the first three minutes of the first period but was robbed by Fleury.
It was a missed opportunity. The Capitals would miss more of them to a much greater degree in the next few seasons.
1:25
The importance of the double hat-trick game between Crosby and Ovechkin
“The Drop” discuss Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin’s first playoff meeting and the importance of their double hat-trick game.
The Crisis Era (2009-14)
Goals scored: 203
Ovechkin was given the Capitals’ captaincy in Jan. 2010 after Chris Clark was traded to Columbus. He scored another 50 goals in 2009-10 and was driving a team that had pushed deeper into the playoffs than it had in any season since 1998. Washington finished that campaign with a .738 points percentage and captured their first Presidents’ Trophy in franchise history — along with all the supernatural misfortune associated with being the league’s best regular-season team.
The Capitals faced the Montreal Canadiens, who ranked 16th out of 16 playoff teams in regular-season success. After dropping the opening game in overtime, Washington won three straight games. Then it happened: a combination of Montreal goalie Jaroslav Halak with the Capitals’ sputtering offense and unmistakable jitters led the Canadiens to win the series in seven games. The Washington offensive machine was limited to one goal in each of the final three losses. Ovechkin didn’t have a goal in the final two.
This wasn’t just playoff disappointment for Ovechkin’s Capitals, but postseason regression. It sparked the first wave of conversations about Washington as a playoff underachiever and whether the Caps’ regular-season offensive wizardry could ever translate to Stanley Cup success. Despite respectable postseason numbers, Ovechkin wasn’t immune to that criticism either.
Things briefly looked up in 2010-11. The Capitals won their division for the fourth straight time and then beat the Rangers in five games in the opening round, where Ovechkin had six points. He had four points in four games in the next round, but playoff embarrassment was getting old for the “Young Guns”: The Tampa Bay Lightning swept the Caps out of the playoffs.
Skepticism about Washington being able to get over the hump due to their style of play had morphed into a full-on crisis of faith. They slumped after a hot start in 2011-12, with Ovechkin going through a stretch of one goal in eight games. Boudreau paid for that slump with his job, as Washington fired him in Nov. 2011 after 22 games (12-9-1). Ovechkin’s relationship with his former coach was scrutinized. Some labeled the Capitals star a “coach killer” in the wake of the popular Boudreau’s dismissal.
“It is complete nonsense that I would get Bruce fired,” Ovechkin said to Yahoo! Sports in 2011. “How is it on me? How can I, a player, get a coach fired? How can I quit playing for the coach who gave me so much in my career?”
The Capitals hired Dale Hunter, a franchise icon who had been a head coach in Canadian junior hockey, to replace Boudreau, with the explicit mandate to get Ovechkin and his teammates to defend to a championship standard. In other words: fewer pretty passes, more blocked shots.
Ovechkin saw his ice time drop to under 20 minutes per game for the first time. He called the season “a hard year, mentally” and his stats reflected that: Ovechkin had 65 points, a career low, although his goal-scoring rose from 32 to 38 year over year.
The Capitals defeated the Boston Bruins in seven games in the first round that season and then were eliminated by the Rangers in seven games in the second round. Ovechkin had four points against New York.
Hunter left the Capitals after the season to return to juniors. The Capitals hired New Jersey Devils assistant coach Adam Oates to take over. While Ovechkin led the league in goals in both of Oates’ seasons in Washington, the Capitals’ postseason misfortunes continued: losing to the Rangers in the first round in 2013, after a lockout-shortened season in which Ovechkin won his third MVP; and then missing the playoffs in 2013-14 for the first time since 2006-07, and only the third time in Ovechkin’s career, which led to both Oates and GM McPhee being fired.
Ovechkin was now the lightning rod for criticism about the Capitals’ lack of playoff success and diminishing returns. The criticism was carried to extremes, like when The Hockey News published an article in May 2014 titled “Alex Ovechkin to KHL would be a blessing in disguise for Capitals.”
All of it left Ovechkin baffled and frustrated. He actually clarified after the season that he was still having fun and wasn’t going to ask for a trade.
“If you remember when Hunter was here and I didn’t score goals, you guys said, ‘Why don’t you score goals?’ I said, ‘My job [is] to block shots’. The whole world says, ‘Ovi stop playing what he used to play, he’s gone. We [are] never going to see him again,'” he said after the 2013-14 season. “I don’t want to turn my back on this kind of position again. I get paid to score goals. I scored 50.”
Ovechkin scored 203 goals in this era. That was seven fewer in this span than Steven Stamkos, the new goal-scoring marvel in the NHL. But while Ovechkin had his struggles, he was still piling on the goals to his career total.
In 2010, ESPN’s John Buccigross was among the first to publicly suggest that Ovechkin might break Gretzky’s goals record. “This will take a lot of health, a lot of hockey love and a lot of luck. But it’s not far-fetched.”
The Frustration Era (2014-17)
Goals scored: 136
General manager Brian MacLellan hired former Nashville Predators coach Barry Trotz to take over the Capitals for 2014-15. Other new faces had joined Washington in recent seasons, too, augmenting the core around Ovechkin: forwards Evgeny Kuznetsov and Tom Wilson, defensemen Brooks Orpik and Dmitry Orlov and goaltender Braden Holtby. Soon, T.J. Oshie would arrive from the St. Louis Blues.
Trotz would have a critical relationship with Ovechkin, whose goal total rose back to 51 in Oates’ last season in Washington. Trotz was aware of Ovechkin’s reputation as a “coach killer” and accusations of selfish play. From their first meeting, Trotz got to know a player who liked being challenged and was summarily obsessed with winning the Stanley Cup.
MacLellan and Trotz agreed that surrounding Ovechkin with enough talent to ease his burden was the best move. Sometimes, that led to overcorrections — like when Ovechkin’s ice time dropped to 18:22 per game and his goals dropped to 33 in the 2016-17 season. But Trotz insisted it was to serve the ultimate goal.
Trotz got Ovechkin back to the playoffs in 2014-15, winning in seven against the New York Islanders before losing again to the Rangers in seven games. They were sixth in the NHL in offense and seventh in defense, after being 13th and 21st under Oates.
This started a run of three straight postseasons in which the Capitals had their run end in the second round. The next two instances had a common theme: Sidney Crosby and the Penguins.
Ovechkin’s archrival had two assists in the Penguins’ six-game victory over the Capitals in 2016, a series where Ovechkin had seven points to lead the Capitals. Five of the six games were determined by one goal. Like they did in 2009, the Penguins vaulted over the Capitals and eventually won the Stanley Cup against San Jose.
The same thing would happen in 2017. The Capitals eliminated the Toronto Maple Leafs in six games to earn a rematch with Pittsburgh. This time, Crosby had seven points in six games and Fleury shut out the Capitals in Game 7 to eliminate Washington. Two rounds later, Crosby was hoisting the Cup after defeating Nashville.
Three Cup wins for Sid The Kid, each time at the expense of Ovechkin.
He was a nonfactor for much of it. Ovechkin criticized his own performance in Game 4. Trotz shifted his superstar winger to the third line against Pittsburgh in Game 5. In Games 6 and 7, Ovechkin didn’t register a point and was a minus-2 in the series finale.
As one veteran coach told ESPN at the time: “He just doesn’t have that body language that says, ‘I’m taking over.’ Normally, he’s like an assassin.”
The Capitals’ defeat in 2017 earned Washington the moniker of “saddest sports town” from the New York Times: “The issue is no longer whether the Capitals will ever win the Stanley Cup with Ovechkin and the immensely talented core around him. It’s whether this group can ever get past the playoffs’ second round.”
The Stanley Cup Era (2017-18)
Goals scored: 49
Alex Ovechkin was on stage again in front of Capitals fans. It was June 2018. His long beard hung over red party beads around his neck. On his head was something only previously attainable through photoshop edits: a hat with a Capitals logo and the words “Stanley Cup Champs.”
Ovechkin was giving a victory speech to a packed National Mall. “We’re not going to f—ing suck this year!” he bellowed. “We’re STANLEY CUP CHAMPIONS. Yeaaaaaaaaah!”
All of those playoff disappointments. All of those harsh lessons learned. All of that criticism Ovechkin shouldered for his team, whether it was personally warranted or not. As he lifted and kissed the Stanley Cup — with his Conn Smythe Trophy for playoff MVP beside him — the burdens he carried as a franchise savior and NHL superstar were lifted, too.
This is what catharsis looks like.
By this time, it was clear Ovechkin had a career that likely would put him in the Hall of Fame, with a goal total that was going to end up among the highest ever. Winning the Stanley Cup meant that there would be no caveats, no “but he never won a championship” detractions when it came to his hockey immortality.
The postseason was its own Eras Tour for Ovechkin’s Capitals. They defeated Columbus in the first round, coached by their old Rangers rival John Tortorella. Then came the third straight meeting with Sidney Crosby and the Penguins. After losing Game 1, the Capitals rallied to take a 3-2 series lead. Ovechkin, who had seven points in the series, had the primary assist on Kuznetsov’s overtime goal in Game 6 that eliminated Pittsburgh and put Ovi in a conference championship round for the first time.
With those demons from Pittsburgh exorcised, the Capitals defeated another postseason tormentor in the Lightning in seven games, shutting them out in Games 6 and 7. (Somewhere, Dale Hunter smiles at defense winning championships.)
The Final Boss was Vegas, as the Golden Knights shocked the NHL by advancing to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season. That team’s architect? GM George McPhee, who drafted Ovechkin and surrounded him with the “Young Guns.” Their starting goalie? Marc-Andre Fleury, who had previously made Ovechkin’s postseason life miserable.
Washington won the Stanley Cup in five games. Ovechkin had five points in the series, including a goal in the clincher. He was finally a champion. Ovechkin ended the postseason with 15 goals in 24 games and won the Conn Smythe.
The Capitals did not, in fact, suck that year.
Elder Statesman Era (2018-23)
Goals scored: 215
This era is the greatest tribute to the transformative effect that winning the Stanley Cup had on Ovechkin.
Washington would lose in the first round in the next four seasons after skating the Cup, under head coaches Todd Reirden — who replaced Trotz when the coach had a contract dispute with the Capitals — and Peter Laviolette, who replaced Reirden in 2020. But the afterglow of the Cup was bright enough to obscure any disappointment. Ovechkin’s MVP performance — and his continued ascent up the all-time goal-scoring rankings — were a shield from any criticism.
Ovechkin led the NHL in goals in 2018-19 and 2019-20. In total, he won the Richard Trophy in seven of eight seasons from 2012-2020. He remained a dominant goal-scorer even as he aged into being one of the NHL’s elder statesmen, something emphasized by Ovechkin’s hair and beard having gone gray.
Another hallmark of Ovechkin’s maturity — and, more importantly, how winning the Cup unburdened him — was his burgeoning friendship with Crosby. The two would bond at the NHL All-Star Game, chatting during the skills competition, the old school watching the new school.
At the 2023 All-Star Game in South Florida, Crosby, 35, and Ovechkin, 37, was a dual-entry in the breakaway challenge trick-shot competition: skating in on a three-on-none with Ovechkin’s 4-year-old son, Sergei, who had watched the event with his father near the benches while wearing an “Ovi Jr.” jersey.
“Before we ever played a game against each other, there was a rivalry,” Crosby said at the time. “It was always set up that way. I think over time, you understand that it gets heated and intense on the ice. We both want to have success. But you appreciate you playing against each other for as long as it’s been.”
Off the ice, Ovechkin’s public statements courted controversy.
In 2017, Ovechkin announced that he was spearheading a social media campaign in support of Russian president Vladimir Putin that was called “Putin Team.” Ovechkin had been a vocal supporter of Putin before. “I never hid my relationship with our president, always openly supported him,” he said. “I’m certain that there are many of us that support Vladimir Putin. Let’s unite and show everyone a strong and united Russia.”
That support was put under a microscope in 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine. The NHL suspended its dealings with the KHL in March 2022. It also terminated its broadcast agreement with Russian television. Russia has been frozen out of the hockey world since its invasion of Ukraine. It was banned, along with Belarus, from international hockey tournaments by the International Ice Hockey Federation starting in 2022. That ban was extended last month through the 2025-26 season.
Ovechkin received backlash from fans who were angered by the invasion — he has a photo with the Russian president as his social media profile.
“He’s my president. But like I said, I’m not in politics. I’m an athlete,” he said. “I hope everything is going to be done soon. It’s a hard situation right now for both sides.”
Ultimately, Ovechkin’s statement on the matter was a plea for peace: “Please, no more war. It doesn’t matter who is in the war — Russia, Ukraine, different countries — we have to live in peace.”
This era was also defined by Ovechkin’s decision to remain in Washington. He signed a five-year, $47.5 million deal in July 2021 to potentially play out his career with the Capitals — including his pursuit of Gretzky’s record. At that point, he was sixth on the all-time list, with 730 goals.
The Catching Gretzky Era (2024-present)
Goals scored: 67 (and counting)
One condition Ovechkin put on the Capitals before signing his extension in 2021: He wanted to play for a contender, not a rebuilding team.
Leonsis promised that a rebuild wouldn’t happen. “To me, a rebuild is when you look the players, the coaches, the fans in the eye and say we’re gonna be really, really bad. And if we were really, really bad, I don’t think Alex would break the record,” the owner said.
In turn, Ovechkin promised Leonsis that he’d stay in shape and his eyes wouldn’t be fixated on breaking Gretzky’s record of 894 goals, but on bringing another Stanley Cup to Washington.
The Capitals missed the playoffs in 2022-23 and decided to change coaches. They hired 42-year-old Spencer Carbery, an assistant coach with the Maple Leafs who had history in the Capitals’ farm system. A candid speaker and a strong tactician, Carbery returned Washington to the playoffs as a wild card in 2023-2024 and has them threatening to win the Presidents’ Trophy in 2024-25.
Leonsis kept his promise to Ovechkin, as the Capitals smartly added talent around him in players like forwards Dylan Strome and Pierre-Luc Dubois, defenseman Jakob Chychrun and goalie Logan Thompson. The prospect pipeline that had produced so many of Ovechkin’s teammates through the years gave him impact players in Connor McMichael and Aliaksei Protas. Considering how Crosby’s Penguins trended after their championship runs, the fact that the Capitals were a contender again was nothing short of remarkable.
Ovechkin scored 31 goals in 2023-24, but there was reasonable concern about whether he’d be able to catch Gretzky. He appeared to be slowing offensively, with an 11-goal and 10-point drop year over year. He had perhaps the worst playoff series of his career against the Rangers in 2024, with no goals or assists and five shots on goal in New York’s sweep.
Ovechkin put those concerns to rest with 17 goals in his first 20 games of the 2024-25 season, the hottest goal-scoring start of his career. Not even a fractured fibula could slow him down for long. After being injured on Nov. 18, he returned to the Capitals lineup on Dec. 28 — scoring another goal in his comeback game. As was often said about Ovechkin during a career built on good health: Russian Machine never breaks.
The gap between Ovechkin and Gretzky became one of single digits. Breaking the record was no longer just possible. It was inevitable.
0:53
Where does Ovechkin rank all time among NHL greats?
“The Drop” discusses where Alex Ovechkin falls in the conversation of greatest hockey players in NHL history as he closes in on Wayne Gretzky’s goal record.
The Legacy Era
Ovechkin’s contract expires after the 2025-26 season. He has indicated it might be his last one in the NHL. If healthy enough, finishing his playing career with Dynamo Moscow in the KHL is a possibility.
It won’t be the last of Ovechkin in North America, of course. He would have been a Hockey Hall of Fame player with or without the goals record, but will be inducted in Toronto the moment he’s eligible.
Where Ovechkin ranks on all-time NHL player lists is subjective — criticisms of his defensive game will undoubtedly put him below a more well-rounded player like Crosby, for example. Being “the greatest goal-scorer of all-time” is more quantifiable, especially when one considers how Ovechkin achieved his career total against goaltenders, defensive systems and a depth of talent that Gretzky didn’t face for most of his career.
However Ovechkin is remembered, his legacy is the culmination of all the eras he toured throughout his NHL career. The highs, the lows, the turbulence and the triumphs combined to create one of the singular superstars in NHL history.
After breaking the 800-goal barrier during the 2022-23 season, Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin now has his sights set on breaking Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goals record of 894.
Ovechkin began the 2024-25 season with 853 goals and has tied the record, with 894. The excitement around the chase has led to Ovi becoming one of the NHL’s most popular bets, with a slew of interesting props.
Follow along here as we chronicle each subsequent goal Ovechkin scores this season, including goal highlights, the upcoming Capitals schedule and how to watch.
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Upcoming schedule | Goal videos
The NHL’s top 10 in career goals
T-1. Wayne Gretzky (894)
T-1. Alex Ovechkin (894)
3. Gordie Howe (801)
4. Jaromir Jagr (766)
5. Brett Hull (741)
6. Marcel Dionne (731)
7. Phil Esposito (717)
8. Mike Gartner (708)
9. Mark Messier (694)
10. Steve Yzerman (692)
Goals scored in 2024-25
No. 894: April 4 vs. CHI
How else but on the power play? Six minutes, 13 seconds into the third period, Ovechkin scored the record-tying goal as Wayne Gretzky watched from the crowd. The monumental goal was assisted by John Carlson and Andrew Mangiapane.
2:24
Ovechkin shows love to crowd after tying Gretzky at 894 goals
Alex Ovechkin ties Wayne Gretzky for most goals in NHL history at 894.
No. 893: April 4 vs. CHI
Ovechkin scored 3:52 into the first period against the Blackhawks to move two goals away from the all-time record — and score his 40th of the season. The goal was assisted by Dylan Strome and John Carlson.
0:53
Ovechkin 2 away from passing Gretzky with 893rd goal
Alex Ovechkin lights the lamp as he inches closer to breaking Wayne Gretzkys all-time scoring record.
No. 892: April 2 vs. CAR
Now just three goals away from the record, Ovechkin’s 892nd was a vintage strike — powering home a shot from the left circle on a Capitals power play to cut into the Hurricanes’ lead.
0:40
Alex Ovechkin now 3 goals away from breaking Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin scores career goal 892, putting him three away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record.
No. 891: April 1 vs. BOS
Ovechkin was in the right place at the right time for his 891st career goal. He received the puck just in front of an empty net and scored on the power play — which secured his 18th career season with at least 10 power-play goals, according to ESPN Research.
0:56
Ovechkin scores 891st goal, 4 away from breaking record
Alex Ovechkin scores from close range, putting him three away from tying Wayne Gretzky’s record.
No. 890: March 30 vs. BUF
Ovechkin’s chase to pass Gretzky can now be counted down on one hand. He found the net midway through the third period on a neat no-look tip-in.
0:30
Ovechkin scores 890th goal, moves 5 away from breaking Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin scores on a fantastic redirection for his 890th career goal.
No. 889: March 25 vs. WPG
Facing a 2-1 deficit late in the third period, Ovechkin connected on a snap shot to even the game. It marked the 150th game-tying goal of his career, 11 more than anyone else in NHL history, according to ESPN Research.
1:04
Ovechkin’s 889th goal moves him 6 away from breaking Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin nets his 889th career goal to tie the score in the third period, putting him six away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
No. 888: March 20 vs. PHI
Ovechkin put home a follow-up chance late in the first period versus the Flyers. Ovi now has has 52 career goals against Philadelphia, the all-time second-most against the Flyers, passing Mario Lemieux.
0:42
Ovechkin 7 goals away from passing Gretzky after 888th goal
Alex Ovechkin nets his 888th career goal, putting him seven away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
No. 887: March 15 vs. SJ
Already comfortably ahead against San Jose, Ovechkin tipped in a goal in the third period. Eighteen of Ovi’s 34 goals have come in the third period this season, the most in the NHL, according to ESPN Research.
0:53
Ovechkin’s redirect goal moves him 8 away from breaking Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin redirects the puck into the net for his 887th career goal.
No. 886: March 9 vs. SEA
Ovechkin was out on the ice to help preserve a late third-period lead against Seattle, and wrestled enough space from a Kraken defender to score an empty-net goal to put the game out of reach.
0:41
Alex Ovechkin nets career goal No. 886, eight shy of Wayne Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin taps in an empty-netter for career goal No. 886 and his 1,600th point.
No. 885: March 5 vs. NYR
Ovi’s goal went a long way for the Capitals as it evened the score with 9:32 left in the third period. Washington went on to secure an overtime victory after Ovechkin netted his 32nd goal in 46 games this season.
0:41
Ovechkin scores 885th goal, 10 away from passing Gretzky
Alex Ovechkin scores his 32nd goal of the season, putting him only 10 away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
No. 884: March 1 vs. TB
Although the Capitals lost a showdown with old Southeastern Division foe Tampa Bay, Ovi put himself 10 goals from tying Gretzky via a third-period goal assisted by Matt Roy.
0:52
Alex Ovechkin closes in on history with late goal for Capitals
Alex Ovechkin is just 10 goals away from Wayne Gretzky’s record 894 after this goal against the Lightning.
No. 883: Feb. 25 vs. CGY
Ovechkin connected on a goal on a Capitals power play against the Calgary Flames, his eighth in eight games and 30th of the season. Ovechkin is the fourth player in NHL history to score 30 goals at age 39 or older.
EIGHT GOALS IN EIGHT GAMES.
THE #GR8CHASE IS ROLLING FOLKS!#ALLCAPS | @BlueHalo pic.twitter.com/I09wwQi0IO
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) February 26, 2025
Nos. 880, 881, 882: Feb. 23 vs. EDM
Ovechkin first found the net nearly halfway through the second period against the Edmonton Oilers. About ten minutes later, he did it again, concluding a Washington power play with a goal. His third came on an empty netter late in the third period, Ovechkin’s seventh empty net goal this season.
Ovechkin has 200 goals since Jan. 1, 2020, becoming the first player in NHL history to score 200+ goals in three different decades. Ovechkin is now on pace to break Gretzky’s career goals record by the end of this season, per all three methodologies ESPN Research has used.
1:38
Ovechkin’s hat trick puts him 13 away from breaking Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin scores a hat trick against the Oilers to reach 882 career goals.
No. 879: Feb. 6 vs. PHI
Down 1-0 in the first period against the Philadelphia Flyers, Ovechkin evened the score in the final minute with a one-timer.
0:38
Alex Ovechkin moves 16 goals away from breaking Gretzky’s record
Alex Ovechkin scores his 879th career goal to move 16 goals away from eclipsing Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record
No. 878: Feb. 4 vs. FLA
Every second counts. Ovechkin netted his 878th goal with just 0.1 seconds left, slotting the puck in an empty net against the Florida Panthers.
0:47
Alexander Ovechkin beats the buzzer to score goal 878
Alexander Ovechkin scores an empty-netter with 0.1 left to give him his 878th goal of his career.
No. 877: Feb. 1 vs. WPG
Ovechkin tied the game with under eight minutes left in the third period with his 877th goal. The Caps would lose in overtime in a matchup of two of the NHL’s top teams.
0:47
Alex Ovechkin brings Caps even with his 877th career goal
Alex Ovechkin ties the score at 4 and moves 18 goals from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record.
No. 876: Jan. 30 vs. OTT
Ovechkin scored against the Ottawa Senators exactly two weeks in ago in their Jan. 16 matchup and did it again with a power play finish in the third period against Ottawa. It marked Ovechkin’s NHL-record 318th career power play goal.
0:29
Alex Ovechkin nets his 876th goal with a great shot from the point
Alex Ovechkin finds the back of the net for his 876th goal to pull the Capitals within 1.
No. 875: Jan. 23 vs. SEA
Ovi added another empty-net tally to his career total to put the finishing touches on this victory for the Caps, assisted by Trevor van Riemsdyk and Jakob Chychrun.
0:41
Alex Ovechkin scores 875th NHL goal
Alex Ovechkin scores in the third period and is now 20 goals away from passing Wayne Gretzky on the NHL’s all-time list.
No. 874: Jan. 16 vs. OTT
Ovechkin locked in one record with his 874th goal. He broke the mark for the most goaltenders scored on after slotting one past Ottawa’s Leevi Merilainen for a game-winning overtime goal.
0:58
Alex Ovechkin’s 874th career goal wins it in OT for the Capitals
Alex Ovechkin breaks through in overtime with his 874th career goal to propel the Capitals to a 1-0 win.
No. 873: Jan. 11 vs. NSH
Ovechkin put the finishing touches on a the Caps’ 4-1 win over the Predators by way of an empty-net goal.
0:36
Alex Ovechkin scores his 873rd career goal on empty net
Alex Ovechkin moves 21 goals away from Wayne Gretzky’s record with an empty-net goal to seal the Capitals’ win.
No. 872: Jan. 4 vs. NYR
The Capitals wound up scoring seven on the reeling Rangers, and Ovechkin’s 19th of the season made it 5-3 in the third period, assisted by Dylan Strome.
0:17
Alex Ovechkin scores his 872nd career goal to increase Caps’ lead
Alex Ovechkin nets his 872nd career goal and is 23 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record.
No. 871: Jan. 2 vs. MIN
Although the Capitals lost in a shootout to the Wild, Ovechkin added to his career total via a second-period, power-play goal, assisted by Dylan Strome.
0:19
Ovechkin inches closer to Gretzky’s record with another goal
Alex Ovechkin moves closer to Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL goalscoring record with this fierce finish vs. the Wild.
No. 870: Dec. 29 vs. DET
Ovechkin is making up for time lost during his injury absence, scoring his second goal in as many games since returning. His 17th of the season was assisted by Jakob Chychrun and Connor McMichael.
0:28
Ovechkin inches closer to Gretzky with 870th goal
Alex Ovechkin is now 25 goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record of 894 goals.
No. 869: Dec. 28 vs. TOR
In his first game back following a five-week stint on injured reserve, Ovechkin notched an empty-net goal to seal the deal against the Maple Leafs. The goal was assisted by Aliaksei Protas and Pierre-Luc Dubois.
0:27
Alex Ovechkin scores in return to Capitals
Alex Ovechkin comes one goal closer to the record after scoring an empty-net goal.
No. 868, 867: Nov. 18 vs. UTA
A day after his hat trick against Vegas, Ovechkin scored two more against the Hockey Club — and might’ve had another if he wasn’t knocked out of the game following a collision with Jack McBain. Goal No. 867 was assisted by Pierre-Luc Dubois, while No. 868 was on the power play, and assisted by John Carlson and Dylan Strome.
0:32
Ovechkin’s 2nd goal of the night gets him to 868
Alex Ovechkin nets his second goal of the game to put the Capitals up 4-1 over the Utah HC, and moves within 26 goals of tying Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
0:43
Alex Ovechkin cashes goal 867 for Capitals
Alex Ovechkin finds the back of the net to give the Capitals a 3-1 lead over Utah, and moves within 27 goals of tying Wayne Gretzky’s all-time record.
No. 866, 865, 864: Nov. 17 vs. VGK
Back in 2018, Ovechkin and the Capitals won the Stanley Cup in Vegas. There was less at stake in this game, but Ovi came through with a hat trick in the Caps’ 5-2 win: a first-period, power-play tally (assisted by John Carlson and Dylan Strome), a second-period score assisted by Matt Roy, and an empty-net goal to cap it off (assisted by Aliaksei Protas and Martin Fehervary).
0:46
Alex Ovechkin lights the lamp
Alex Ovechkin lights the lamp
0:33
Alex Ovechkin nets goal for Capitals
Alex Ovechkin nets goal for Capitals
0:48
Ovechkin’s 864th goal tips off defender’s stick
Alex Ovechkin nets his 864th career goal after his shot banks off Alex Pietrangelo’s stick.
No. 863, 862: Nov. 9, 2024 vs. STL
Did you seriously think that an 8-1 win for the Capitals would not include any goals from Ovechkin? Ovi scored in the second period (assisted by Aliaksei Protas and Dylan Strome) to make it 2-1, then added a power-play tally in the third (assisted by Strome and Tom Wilson) to make it 4-1.
0:48
Ovechkin tallies his 2nd goal of the game and 863rd of career
Alex Ovechkin’s wrist shot finds the net to pad the Capitals’ lead vs. the Blues and creep ever closer towards Gretzky’s scoring record.
0:49
Alex Ovechkin nets 862nd goal
Alex Ovechkin nets 862nd goal
No. 861: Nov. 6, 2024 vs. NSH
Ovechkin scored his eighth goal of the season at 10:25 of the third period on assists from Dylan Strome and Martin Fehervary.
1:04
Alex Ovechkin nets 861st NHL goal vs. Nashville
Alex Ovechkin nets 861st NHL goal vs. Nashville
No. 860: Nov. 3, 2024 vs. CAR
Though the Capitals lost, 4-2, Ovi notched a first-period, power-play tally, on assists from John Carlson and Dylan Strome.
0:40
Ovechkin tallies 860th goal, 34 away from tying Gretzky
Alex Ovechkin scores on the power play, which is his 860th career goal, making him 34 shy of tying Wayne Gretzky for the most goals of all time.
No. 859: Nov. 2, 2024 vs. CBJ
Ovechkin was one of six different Capitals to score in the team’s route of the BJs, and his goal was assisted by Dylan Strome and Aliaksei Protas.
0:44
Ovechkin tallies goal No. 859 for Capitals
Alex Ovechkin slaps it in from distance to get his 859th career goal and pad the Capitals’ lead vs. the Blue Jackets.
No. 858: Oct. 31, 2024 vs. MTL
A 6-3 Capitals win with an Ovechkin goal as the capper? The fans went home happy from this one. Assists on this goal were from Aliaksei Protas and Dylan Strome.
0:46
Alex Ovechkin tallies goal No. 858 for Caps
Alex Ovechkin pads the Capitals’ lead vs. the Canadiens with his 858th career goal.
No. 857, 856: Oct. 29, 2024 vs. NYR
A raucous, 5-3 win for the Capitals included two first-period tallies from Ovi, both assisted by Aliaksei Protas and Dylan Strome.
0:19
Alex Ovechkin’s 857th goal puts Capitals back on top
Alex Ovechkin nets his second goal of the first period to retake the Capitals’ early lead vs. the Rangers.
0:19
Alex Ovechkin 856th goal gets the Capitals on the board
Alex Ovechkin scores early in the first period to give the Capitals a quick 1-0 lead over the Rangers.
No. 855: Oct. 23, 2024 vs. PHI
Ovechkin has a knack for empty-net goals, and added to his career total in that category to cap off a win against Philly, with an assist from Dylan Strome.
0:43
Alex Ovechkin scores goal vs. Flyers
Alex Ovechkin scores goal vs. Flyers
No. 854: Oct. 19, 2024 vs. NJ
It took to the fourth game of the Capitals’ season for Ovechkin to get his first marker of the campaign, on assists from John Carlson and Dylan Strome.
0:47
Alex Ovechkin scores goal for Capitals
Alex Ovechkin nets goal for Capitals
Upcoming schedule
Note: All games available to ESPN+ subscribers at no extra charge as part of NHL Power Play on ESPN+, unless otherwise noted. Blackout restrictions apply.
Sun, Apr 6: at Islanders, 12:30 (TNT/truTV/Max)
Thu, Apr 10: vs. Carolina, 7:30
Sat, Apr 12: at Columbus, 7:00 (ABC/ESPN+)
Sun, Apr 13: vs. Columbus, 6:00
Tue, Apr 15: at Islanders, 8:00 (ESPN)
Thu, Apr 17: at Pittsburgh, 7:00 (ESPN)
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