Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is currently chasing down career NHL goal No. 800. After starting the 2022-23 season at 780, he has scored 15 goals thus far.
Ovi is third on the all-time NHL goals list, behind Wayne Gretzky (894) and Gordie Howe (801). The next highest active player on the list is Sidney Crosby, at No. 35 with 532 goals. With his 787th goal, Ovechkin set the record for most goals scored with the same franchise. With goal No. 793, he passed Gretzky for the most goals scored on the road for a career (403).
Follow along here as Ovi scores his way up the record books, including a schedule of upcoming games and highlight videos of goals No. 787 and beyond.
Ovechkin scored two goals in the first period of the Capitals’ matchup against the Vancouver Canucks — the first unassisted and the second with help from Dylan Strome and Anthony Mantha. Ovechkin has now passed Wayne Gretzky for most goals all time on the road.
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Alex Ovechkin jumps on the loose puck and notches his 792nd career goal vs. the Canucks.
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Alex Ovechkin slaps in his second goal of the game to put the Capitals up 2-0 against the Canucks.
Goal No. 791
A victory over the Calgary Flames was already well in hand, but Ovechkin’s goal at 12:24 of the third period — assisted by Conor Sheary and Sonny Milano — put him nine away from 800.
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Alex Ovechkin tallies goal for Capitals on the power play
Alex Ovechkin wins it for the Capitals with this clutch slap shot in overtime vs. the Flyers.
Goal No. 789
A goal at 15:12 of the second period against the St. Louis Blues on Nov. 17 moved Ovechkin one step closer to 800. Dylan Strome was credited with the one assist on the tally.
Alex Ovechkin scores on the power play for Capitals
Goal No. 787
With his goal at 8:55 of the second period — a power-play tally assisted by Trevor van Riemsdyk and Anthony Mantha — Ovechkin broke Gordie Howe’s record for most goals scored by a player with a single franchise:
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Alex Ovechkin scores his 787th career goal to break Gordie Howe’s record of most goals with one team.
Upcoming schedule
Note: All games not on ESPN, TNT or NHL Network are available via NHL Power Play, which is included in an ESPN+ subscription (local blackout restrictions apply).
Judge led the major leagues with 4,012,983 votes in the first round of fan balloting, and the outfielder was picked for his seventh American League start in eight All-Star Games, though he missed the 2023 game because of a sprained right big toe. He was also the leading vote-getter during the first phase in 2022 and last year.
Ohtani topped the National League and was second in the big leagues with 3,967,668 votes, becoming the first designated hitter to start in five straight All-Star Games.
The pair was selected under rules that began in 2022 and give starting spots to the top vote-getter in each league in the first phase of online voting, which began June 4 and ended Thursday. Two finalists at every other position advanced to the second phase, which runs from noon ET on Monday to noon ET on July 2. Votes from the first phase do not carry over.
An individual can vote once per 24-hour period.
Remaining starters will be announced July 2. Pitchers and reserves will be revealed July 6.
SAN FRANCISCO — Barry Bonds will be getting a statue outside the San Francisco Giants‘ home stadium where he set baseball’s career home run record, the team’s CEO said Thursday.
Larry Baer, Giants president and chief executive officer, was asked during a radio interview about a statue for Bonds, and he responded that it was “on the radar.” But Baer didn’t have any details of when it would happen.
“Barry is certainly deserving of a statue, and I would say should be next up,” Baer said during an appearance on San Francisco’s 95.7 The Game. “We don’t have the exact location and the exact date and the exact timing. … It’s coming. All I can say is it’s coming.”
Bonds played for San Francisco the last 15 of his 22 big league seasons, hitting 586 of his 762 homers while with the Giants from 1993 to 2007. He set the single-season MLB record with 73 homers in 2001, and hit his record-breaking 756th homer to pass Hank Aaron in a home game off Washington’s Mike Bacsik on Aug. 7, 2007.
There are currently five statues outside Oracle Park, those of Hall of Famers Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Gaylord Perry and Orlando Cepeda. The Giants retired Bonds’ No. 25 jersey in 2018.
Bonds, a seven-time MVP and 14-time All-Star, is not in the Hall of Fame. He failed to reach the 75% threshold required during his 10 years on the Baseball Writers Association of America’s Hall of Fame ballot, mostly because of steroids allegations that dogged him during his final years with the Giants. The Contemporary Player Committee also passed on electing Bonds in 2022, though the committee could reconsider Bonds’ status.
Kershaw has 2,997 strikeouts in his 18-year career, three short of becoming the 20th major leaguer to reach the milestone.
Kershaw’s next scheduled start is expected at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox.
“I knew I had eight to go,” Kershaw said. “Eight in Colorado is never going to be easy to do. I felt good. But pitched well, got through six. A chance to strike out three at home would be really cool.”
The 37-year-old will be the third active pitcher to reach the mark behind Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer. Verlander, in his 20th season, has 3,468 strikeouts. Scherzer has 3,412 in 18 seasons.
“He’s certainly competing, making pitches,” manager Dave Roberts said. “I think he has gotten better each time out, even with not the best of stuff. He just found a way to be efficient.”
Kershaw struck out three in the first two innings Thursday and got his fourth for the final out of the fifth. He struck out Tyler Freeman for the second out of the sixth inning and left the game after retiring the next batter. Kershaw threw 69 pitches, 41 for strikes.
“You always want to be efficient, no matter what,” Kershaw said. “My days of throwing 115 pitches is probably over. Getting through six is probably the biggest thing at Coors Field.
“Doc [Roberts] is doing a good job of protecting me, which I appreciate. I just want to be able to go back out there every fifth, sixth day. Whatever that means is good for now.”
Kershaw recorded two strikeouts on his 73 mph curve and got three more on sliders against a Rockies lineup that had all right-handed batters. He earned his fourth straight win and helped the Dodgers finish a three-game sweep with a 3-1 victory.
The three-time National League Cy Young Award winner and 10-time All-Star received plenty of crowd support in Colorado, getting a standing ovation from some in the Coors Field crowd when he left the mound after the sixth inning.
Kershaw has made eight starts this season after being activated from the injured list May 17 following offseason left knee and foot surgeries. His ERA dropped to a season-low 3.03 after Thursday’s game.
“He has given us a shot in the arm,” Roberts said. “We’re sort of ailing on the starting pitching side. Coming in and giving us valuable innings, I just love that kind of edge that he gives on start day. We certainly feed off that.”