It’s happening at a much more rapid pace than initially expected, and it’s possible that by this weekend, Washington Capitals’ Alexander Ovechkin will be the NHL’s all-time leading scorer.
Ovi is three goals away with seven games left to play this season. But at the rapid rate he’s been on, it’s possible he’ll hit the record by Sunday, if not by netting a hat trick on Friday night in D.C.
“I never thought it would actually happen. I don’t think anybody did,” said Marcus Voyles, of Bowie, Maryland.
Voyles admits his line of thought on Wayne Gretzky’s record began to change when Ovi hit 700 career goals. Then, he decided in February to buy tickets to this Sunday’s game in Long Island to see the Capitals visit the Islanders — just in case.
“When we got the tickets, before service fees, they’re only like 60 bucks,” he said. “If you look now, they’re all well over 100 (approaching $200 a seat now)… so we got lucky.”
He’ll be driving up to New York with his 10-year-old son, his brother and another friend.
“We just kind of threw a dart at the calendar, and luckily we hit,” he said.
Well, perhaps if everything goes right.
Alexander Ovechkin is only goals away from becoming the NHL’s all-time leading goal scorer. Send your words of encouragement to the Capitals captain in a voicemail through the WTOP News app, available on Apple or Android. Use the “Feedback” button in the navigation bar.
‘Ovechkin on the 8s’
Until that happens, other listeners are offering up some advice for the bosses at WTOP.
“You go to news, traffic, and weather on the eights,” said Bill Brummitt, of Manassas, Virginia. “Why not do a news, traffic, weather, and Ovechkin on the eights?”
“Give an update on where Ovechkin’s chase for the goal record, where he stands,” he added. “Hopefully, he gets it before the end of the year. There’s seven games, he needs three goals. I think he’ll get it before the end of the year.”
In fact, it could be the shortest-lived format tweak WTOP has ever seen.
“It’s going to be nuts,” Brummitt said. “It’s going to be nuts.”
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