Gretzky joins 'Gr8 Chase', will be at Friday's Capitals game as Ovechkin nears goals record

The Associated Press

· Posted: Apr 04, 2025 1:05 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

Wayne Gretzky is expected to beryllium successful attendance Friday nighttime successful Washington with Alex Ovechkin 2 goals from tying and 3 from breaking the Canadian great's NHL record.

The Capitals' crippled against Chicago marks the commencement of Gretzky joining the pursuit successful person.

"It's great," Ovechkin said aft his team's greeting skate. "He's been supportive each the clip to me. It's a amusive clip close now. We'll spot what's going to happen, but close present it's each attraction to a hockey game. It's a beauteous chill moment."

Commissioner Gary Bettman, Ovechkin's wife, Nastya, and Capitals proprietor Ted Leonsis were successful Raleigh, North Carolina, connected Wednesday night. Ovechkin scored his 892nd extremity successful that game, putting him a chapeau instrumentality connected location crystal distant from passing Gretzky's people of 894 that agelong seemed unapproachable.

"It's going to beryllium fun," said winger Tom Wilson, who similar Gretzky is from Ontario. "It's bigger than the crippled close now. It's bigger than hockey. It's the `Great One.' I mean, nary 1 would person ever thought that would happen. The vigor astir this happening the full year, it's been 2nd to none, and it's been thing nary one's ever gone through."

WATCH | Ovechkin scores his 892nd NHL goal:

Not astatine slightest successful 31 years, since Gretzky passed "Mr. Hockey" Gordie Howe's all-time people of 801 vocation goals. Gretzky is accompanying Ovechkin connected the attack to 895 similar Howe did for him connected the mode to 802 successful 1994.

"The top subordinate of each clip is coming to travel america for nevertheless agelong it takes, truthful it's exciting," Capitals halfway Dylan Strome said. "I deliberation Ovi and Gretzky person a beauteous bully relationship. And evidently the ambassador that he's been for the crippled for arsenic galore years arsenic helium has, helium does a ton for hockey and a ton for Canada, truthful it's cool."

The anticipation is gathering astir hockey for what's being billed the "GR8 chase," and Gretzky being successful the gathering is the latest portion of that.

"It conscionable shows you however adjacent the players are successful the crippled and however overmuch respect determination is betwixt some of them," said retired defenseman Jason Demers, an NHL Network expert who volition besides beryllium astatine the crippled with "NHL Live" moving connected tract for the occasion. "Having Wayne beryllium determination and enactment Ovechkin, who's going to fundamentally interruption his grounds and instrumentality him retired of the grounds books, I cognize he's got 20 oregon 30 much of them, but it's conscionable chaotic to deliberation astir the enactment that guys person for 1 another, and that's what makes our athletics truthful great.