Auston Matthews has more goals and a higher gpg than Ovechkin age for age. And the gap is about to grow. Can he also make a run at 894?

[DitchMarner]

I don't get the feeling he's going to have a huge goal scoring season this year. I see him scoring about 40-45 goals. He looked like he was "back" when he put up three goals in two games against CHI and NSH (two bad teams) but didn't look very dangerous against WSH (a good defensive team) and PIT (not a good defensive team).

He's a guy who goes on heaters and makes goal scoring look like a walk in the park when he's hot. I think he'll be that way for a while longer, but I don't see him aging well enough as a goal scorer to end up with close to 900 goals. He's a shooter who can score goals from the dirty areas. He's not a guy who dekes around players or crashes the net. He can score on slapshots and one-timers, but he's not a big PP one-time threat.

When he's in his mid 30s, I don't see him being able to score with the kind of consistency that he'll need to threaten the goal record. He's also fairly injury-prone for an elite player and that won't make challenging the record any easier.

 

[BallardEra]

I don't get the feeling he's going to have a huge goal scoring season this year. I see him scoring about 40-45 goals. He looked like he was "back" when he put up three goals in two games against CHI and NSH (two bad teams) but didn't look very dangerous against WSH (a good defensive team) and PIT (not a good defensive team).

He's a guy who goes on heaters and makes goal scoring look like a walk in the park when he's hot. I think he'll be that way for a while longer, but I don't see him aging well enough as a goal scorer to end up with close to 900 goals. He's a shooter who can score goals from the dirty areas. He's not a guy who dekes around players or crashes the net. He can score on slapshots and one-timers, but he's not a big PP one-time threat.

When he's in his mid 30s, I don't see him being able to score with the kind of consistency that he'll need to threaten the goal record. He's also fairly injury-prone for an elite player and that won't make challenging the record any easier.

It doesn't look good at the moment. It seems like they're trying to avoid surgery at all costs by looking at alternative treatment/methods.

 

[bobholly39]

It's too bad for injuries. This is of course always the x factor, especially any big injury, which seems to be the case at the moment (big/nagging, either way it's lasting).

I still feel super confident he will surpass 800 goals major injuries aside. ~5-10 games missed per year, and no big impact to his style of play, and he hits it. Of course with major injuries, or major impact on his ability (shot, wrist issues etc) that would change things.

 

[Midnight Judges]

Longevity is underrated in hockey fandom.

 

[MadLuke]

Longevity is underrated in hockey fandom.

maybe but if Sakic, Messier or Yzerman decline completletly or retire at 25 they are seen completely differently, doing a lot of relevant hockey tend to be highly rated and tend to be correlated with longevity (a Lafleur-Dryden is a lucky exception to be able to in 7 years more than 99% of athlete will do in 20 or Orr-Lemieux-Bure-Forsberg so good to make a lot happen)

 

[Plural]

800 seems plausible still. I am not sure if this is semantics of whatever, but I don't think likely is a word I'd use. Reaching 800 goals for Ovechkin wasn't likely before he was somewhere closer to 650 goals. Most players are de-facto ruled out of the 800 goal race by the time they're 26-years. The select few who are still in the race are not "likely" before they enter the +650 club and even then it probably is still not better than 50-50 chance.

 

[Gerulaitis]

if the NHL made hockey 3on3 all the time, Matthews could absolutely crush it without a question.
he’d have a real shot at 894, maybe more.

 

[MadLuke]

if the NHL made hockey 3on3 all the time, Matthews could absolutely crush it without a question.
he’d have a real shot at 894, maybe more.

That what make something like this:

Goals

1.	Alex Ovechkin	9
2.	Bobby Hull*	7
3.	Phil Esposito*	6
4.	Wayne Gretzky*	5
	Charlie Conacher*	5
	Gordie Howe*	5
	Maurice Richard*	5
8.	Babe Dye*	4
9.	Brett Hull*	3
	Auston Matthews	3

More robust of a lead, cannot win it this year so he would need to win 7 after turning 28 to beat it, doing it 6 times like Ovechkin to tie it.

894 is always a significant rules change or style change away to fall, like Fleury winning more games than Patrick Roy in the regular season where the rules-usage changed a lot from 1980s to now, but far from it in the playoff were the rules-usage stayed very similar.

 

[authentic]

That what make something like this:

Goals
[TABLE=collapse]
[TR]
[TD]1.[/TD]
[TD]Alex Ovechkin[/TD]
[TD]9[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]2.[/TD]
[TD]Bobby Hull*[/TD]
[TD]7[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]3.[/TD]
[TD]Phil Esposito*[/TD]
[TD]6[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]4.[/TD]
[TD]Wayne Gretzky*[/TD]
[TD]5[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TD]Charlie Conacher*[/TD]
[TD]5[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TD]Gordie Howe*[/TD]
[TD]5[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TD]Maurice Richard*[/TD]
[TD]5[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]8.[/TD]
[TD]Babe Dye*[/TD]
[TD]4[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD]9.[/TD]
[TD]Brett Hull*[/TD]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[TR]
[TD][/TD]

[TD]Auston Matthews[/TD]
[TD]3[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]

More robust of a lead, cannot win it this year so he would need to win 7 after turning 28 to beat it, doing it 6 times like Ovechkin to tie it.

894 is always a significant rules change or style change away to fall, like Fleury winning more games than Patrick Roy in the regular season where the rules-usage changed a lot from 1980s to now, but far from it in the playoff were the rules-usage stayed very similar.

There’s not really a chance he stays healthy enough to get there. It would take a miracle at this point and I don’t see him chugging along until 40 like Ovechkin is now as an elite goal scorer.

 

[TheBig08]

If ovi didn't get injured this season he was on pace to get 68 goals,45 assist, 113 points in 82 games that would better than Matthews number last season 69 goals,38 assist, 107 pints in 81 games. it's crazy a 39 year old ovechkin doing that against a prime Matthews, and if they would have both got 70 goals to me ovechkins would be more impressive with the fact he did it at 39 years old.

 

[x Tame Impala]

This “more goals than Ovie at the same age” crap is only able to be a semblance of an argument because of his weird 2011 and 2012 seasons coached by Hunter and Oates.

Ovie averaged 54 goals a season before those two outlier years where he then scored 32 and 38 goals in nearly full seasons. Afterwards he got right back on track and won 7 more Richard’s into his 30’s.

Matthews is the inferior goal scorer to Ovechkin and most likely won’t have the longevity to score 700 goals let alone 900. He’s a phenomenal talent when healthy and in the regular season but he’s no Ovechkin.

 

[TheBig08]

even if Matthews never got injured I don't think he would have the longevity and wouldn't pass him in goals.

This “more goals than Ovie at the same age” crap is only able to be a semblance of an argument because of his weird 2011 and 2012 seasons coached by Hunter and Oates.

Ovie averaged 54 goals a season before those two outlier years where he then scored 32 and 38 goals in nearly full seasons. Afterwards he got right back on track and won 7 more Richard’s into his 30’s.

Matthews is the inferior goal scorer to Ovechkin and most likely won’t have the longevity to score 700 goals let alone 900. He’s a phenomenal talent when healthy and in the regular season but he’s no Ovechkin.

I always wonder what was wrong with him those seasons. could you tell me.

 

[DeletedUser539]

even if Matthews never got injured I don't think he would have the longevity and wouldn't pass him in goals.


I always wonder what was wrong with him those seasons. could you tell me.

They tried to turn him into a more complete player which I didn't understand as he was an unstoppable wrecking ball that could score at will changing his game was not the solution finding other players that could fill in the holes would have been ideal rather than changing a dynamic ice tiller such as ovi

 

[Boxscore]

Matthews looks like he's going to age more like Lindros than Ovechkin, unfortunately.

 

[The Panther]

If ovi didn't get injured this season he was on pace to get 68 goals,45 assist, 113 points in 82 games

He played, like, 20 games at that pace, man...

 

[Professor What]

They tried to turn him into a more complete player which I didn't understand as he was an unstoppable wrecking ball that could score at will changing his game was not the solution finding other players that could fill in the holes would have been ideal rather than changing a dynamic ice tiller such as ovi

It was like the idea of Gretzky once being benched because he "didn't play defense." How stupid is that? Let the generational talent be what he is.

 

[DeletedUser539]

It was like the idea of Gretzky once being benched because he "didn't play defense." How stupid is that? Let the generational talent be what he is.

Hockey is weird but sometimes it's about sending a message to everybody else if Gretzky can be traded so can you if Gretzky can be benched so can you so keep your shit together but it still boggles me but there is a psyche aspect to all sports as the playersrs aren't robots that's why an outside the box solution can work

 

[Professor What]

Hockey is weird but sometimes it's about sending a message to everybody else if Gretzky can be traded so can you if Gretzky can be benched so can you so keep your shit together but it still boggles me but there is a psyche aspect to all sports as the playersrs aren't robots that's why an outside the box solution can work

I understand what you're saying, but if you're genuinely trying to get a generational talent to change, it might be a sign that you need to be changed. Lol

 

[McFlash97]

Matters won't even get 700 b4 he calls it quits. Forget 894.

 

[MadLuke]

Not sure how fair or not but since Jan 25 2024, Ovechkin scored 1 more regular season goals than Matthews...

52 in 77 vs 51 in 78

This is insane, in some sense he built some lead in the last calendar year... as a 39 years old.

 

[10YearsHaveGone]

Not sure how fair or not but since Jan 25 2024, Ovechkin scored 1 more regular season goals than Matthews...

52 in 77 vs 51 in 78

This is insane, in some sense he built some lead in the last calendar year... as a 39 years old.

Its remarkable. Ovi has the peak of goal scoring that few can match combined with a longevity that few can match in league history.

 

[filinski77]

Not sure how fair or not but since Jan 25 2024, Ovechkin scored 1 more regular season goals than Matthews...

52 in 77 vs 51 in 78

This is insane, in some sense he built some lead in the last calendar year... as a 39 years old.

Unless Matthews goes on a tear at the end of this season, Ovechkin from age 31 to 39 would have outscored Matthews (aged 19 to 27) more times (5) than Matthews has outscored Ovechkin (4 times). THAT is absolutely insane - and illustrates how amazing Ovechkin is. Matthews is one of the best goal scorers of all-time, but Ovechkin in the back half (and worse-half) of his career still outdid Matthews more often than not.

Insane

Year /Ovechkin Age /Matthews Age /Who scored more
2017 31 19 MATTHEWS
2018 32 20 OVECHKIN
2019 33 21 OVECHKIN
2020 34 22 OVECHKIN
2021 35 23 MATTHEWS
2022 36 24 MATTHEWS
2023 37 25 OVECHKIN
2024 38 26 MATTHEWS
2025 39 27 OVECHKIN

 

[BraveCanadian]

Not sure how fair or not but since Jan 25 2024, Ovechkin scored 1 more regular season goals than Matthews...

52 in 77 vs 51 in 78

This is insane, in some sense he built some lead in the last calendar year... as a 39 years old.

The pace that Ovi has kept up in his mid-late 30s as a goal scorer is insane. Even if he's quite reliant on the PP and ENG, I'm pretty sure no one else is close to his resume for goals in late career.