On Monday March 18, Washington Capitals’ left winger and captain Alex Ovechkin scored two goals against the Calgary Flames, which led them to win the game 5-2. 

The two goals from Ovechkin also made him the third player in National Hockey League (NHL) history to have at least 20 goals in 19 consecutive seasons behind Gordie Howe with 22 consecutive seasons and Brendan Shanahan with 19 consecutive seasons. 

Ovechkin, 38, scored his 20th goal of the season at 5:58 of the second period during a power play, which then led the Capitals 2-0 in the game. He scored again in a power play at 9:16, making the score 5-2. 

Ovechkin has scored a goal against 174 goaltenders, which is the third-most by a player in NHL history, behind Jaromír Jágr with 178 goaltenders and Patrick Marleau with 177 goaltenders.

As of March 21, Ovechkin has 844 career goals, which is only 50 goals away from Wayne Gretzky, who is regarded as the greatest player in the history of the NHL. 

Ovechkin has played with the Washington Capitals since his rookie season in 2005. His highest-scoring season was in the 2007-08 season with 65 goals. Last season, he ended with 42 goals.

In 2018, Ovechkin led the Washington Capitals to their first Stanley Cup championship, where they won 4-1 against the Vegas Golden Knights, making him the first Russian player to captain a team to the NHL Stanley Cup.

He has won the Hart Memorial Trophy three times (2008, 2009, and 2013) as the most valuable player in the NHL. In 2021, Ovechkin signed a five-year contract worth $47.5 million.  

Ovechkin is often regarded as one of the greatest goal scorers and players of all time, often compared alongside Wayne Gretzky and Sidney Crosby. As Ovechkin continues to break records, he is rapidly becoming more known as one of the greats.