He needs 22 goals to become the eighth player to score 700. With 50 goals this season, Ovechkin would tie Mike Gartner for seventh in NHL history with 708 and would pass Teemu Selanne (684), Mario Lemieux (690), Steve Yzerman (692) and Mark Messier (694).
Ovechkin has averaged just under 0.61 goals per game. He would have to score at the same pace for another 357 games to surpass Gretzky.
A key factor for Ovechkin will be how long he wants to play. The 34-year-old said during the NHL Player Media Tour in September that he hasn't thought beyond the end of his contract, which runs through the 2020-21 season. He's eligible to sign an extension with the Capitals beginning July 1, 2020.
"We'll see what's going to happen in two years," Ovechkin said. "We'll see where we're at and, of course, I want to play until I can't play, you know? I don't want to be a guy who go out there and just, like, you know, play [like a] joke. If I'm going to be at the same level, yeah [I'll play]."
Ovechkin has said that Gretzky's record is unbreakable but admitted in September that he's coming around to the idea he might be able to do it.
"There's always a chance, but again, I have to play the same way, I have to do the same thing," he said. "I have to use my chances and we'll see."
