Will Ovechkin hit 20 goals this season?

[GMR]

I think Ovi hits 25-30 easily still. he's too good for too long to fall off, and he's breaking that record if it's the last thing he'll ever do.

Yeah, like Marleau with the games played record.

 

[Bowski]

Let's all light a candle and pray that he does.

It means a lot to bring the overall record to where it rightfully belongs.

 

[QJL]

5 goals in 22 games (2 empty netters).

38 years old. Gretzky retired at age 38.

We all know who the greatest goal scorer ever is.

This should be interesting…

 

[T REX]

5 goals in 22 games (2 empty netters).

38 years old. Gretzky retired at age 38.

We all know who the greatest goal scorer ever is.

This should be interesting…

Are the empty netters unassisted? If not, that is embarrassing for Ovi and the Caps. Seriously, just retire. Have some respect for the game and yourself. SMDH. Pathetic.

 

[The Panther]

I kind of feel bad for Ovi (if you can feel bad for a beloved athlete with hundreds of millions of dollars and mass adulation) in that now---in the social media age---there's so much scrutiny on the NHL goals record. Every single thing you hear about the Caps now is "will Ovechkin get the goals record?". This is the last thing Ovi wants emphasized when he's still a fair distance from it and starting to naturally slow down a bit.

It's normal to focus on these things when a record-chaser is within sight and maybe weeks or days from matching / breaking an enormous record. But Ovechkin isn't particularly close, as it's going to be at least until next season (probably more) until he's at the precipice of the record.

Really, everyone should just forget about it for a while and let Ovi and the Caps get on with their season.

 

[CatOTails]

Probably hard to score and win games when your top forward is 38 and top center is Dylan Strome,
With Becks and TJ on IR it's truly a miracle Washington floats somewhere near PO spot. Half of the team are A/KHLers.

 

[HTFN]

I see there are still a few people in denial.

Ovechkin started the season with a 4 game scoreless streak. Then he scored and people said he was just getting started.

Instead, he soon went into a 6-game scoreless streak. "No worries", people said. Then he scored 2 in a single game. "Ovie's back!".

Except he is currently in a shiny new, 7-game scoreless streak.

We're only 22 games into the season and he already has three massive scoreless streaks, each worse than the previous one. And it's not just the stats. His skating has been a problem for a few years but now it's just ridiculous. He does everything slow now.

I'm sure he'll have bumps in production every now and then but he's in steep decline and things are only going to get worse.

he's also got cupping bruises all over his neck and presumably upper body. You don't just go do that for fun, man is tweaked with something and trying to brute force through it like he always has.

 

[Macbanan]

To add onto how difficult it is to judge how much a player has left in the tank.

Before the start is his last season, Gretzky was 37 and at 885 goals, coming off a season where he was 4th in points with 23 goals and 67 assists.

How many would have guessed he wouldn't at least make it to 900 goals? ( He wasn't chasing a record, but still)

 

[BB88]

I don't believe that. I think if he gets within 50 goals of the record, even if he only scores at a 15 goal rate every season, he'll stick around for the 4 or so seasons to achieve it, even if he's just a 10-15 goal guy each year.

Maybe if this decline happened when he was still over 100 goals away. But he's close enough to it that even scoring 15 per year he'd keep coming back to do it since it would only be around 4 or so seasons.

If he scores 15-20 goals this season no way is he an NHL player in 3-4 years time, being able to score 15 in a season

 

[Phil McKraken]

On pace for 18 this year and has 47 to go after that. I don't think he pulls it off unless he plays another three seasons, and even then, the decline might be steeper than most people think. Iginla's production was cut in half from one season to the next.

 

[HabsQC]

Lockout seasons really hurt his chances. Sucks for him

 

[sr edler]

I kind of feel bad for Ovi (if you can feel bad for a beloved athlete with hundreds of millions of dollars and mass adulation) in that now---in the social media age---there's so much scrutiny on the NHL goals record. Every single thing you hear about the Caps now is "will Ovechkin get the goals record?". This is the last thing Ovi wants emphasized when he's still a fair distance from it and starting to naturally slow down a bit.

It's normal to focus on these things when a record-chaser is within sight and maybe weeks or days from matching / breaking an enormous record. But Ovechkin isn't particularly close, as it's going to be at least until next season (probably more) until he's at the precipice of the record.

Really, everyone should just forget about it for a while and let Ovi and the Caps get on with their season.

Didn't he trademark "The Gr8 Chase" slogan? That doesn't seem like something someone would do if they want to fly under the radar.

Rangers could use a top line RW.

Ovi's not a top line calibre player at this point of his career.

 

[Tom Polakis]

Are the empty netters unassisted? If not, that is embarrassing for Ovi and the Caps. Seriously, just retire. Have some respect for the game and yourself. SMDH. Pathetic.

Yes, he should retire, since he contributes nothing at all to the Capitals.

 

[GeeoffBrown]

5 goals in 22 games (2 empty netters).

38 years old. Gretzky retired at age 38.

We all know who the greatest goal scorer ever is.

This should be interesting…

Yes. Ovechkin, since he won the goal scoring title the most times and also played his career in a lower scoring era

 

[Patrik26]

How many times do they play Buffalo still?

You can add the Devils too.

 

[Hockey4Lyfe]

Yes, he should retire, since he contributes nothing at all to the Capitals.

View attachment 778632

Yeah he’s still tied for the lead, but it’s also on a team with probably a top 2 worst offense.

He’s 150+ in the league in both goals and points totally. Season is still somewhat young but it’s pretty damn alarming. Capitals have had a damn easy schedule to start as well.

 

[Tom Polakis]

Yeah he’s still tied for the lead, but it’s also on a team with probably a top 2 worst offense.

He’s 150+ in the league in both goals and points totally. Season is still somewhat young but it’s pretty damn alarming. Capitals have had a damn easy schedule to start as well.

Yeah, he's declining. I was only replying to the dumb comment (not made by you) that he should "seriously, just retire."

 

[PaulD]

Hope.
Surprisingly....no, I don't think so.
I had him at 27 on early season thread.
Now I say 17

 

[tapi]

Let's all light a candle and pray that he does.
View attachment 778353
It means a lot to bring the overall record to where it rightfully belongs.

Even with his prayers to Putin he might still be reduced ~15ish goals this year, considering only 5 goals so far with all the PP-time in the world. That assuming the Caps keep giving him premier time on the power play.

 

[Tasty Biscuits]

Lockout seasons really hurt his chances. Sucks for him

He's also been extremely fortunate with his health throughout his career.

 

[Beukeboom]

Lockout seasons really hurt his chances. Sucks for him

I'd argue it has prolonged his career and kept his production higher. Just like Jagr said the years in KHL with less games did to him.

 

[jigglysquishy]

Ovi's not a top line calibre player at this point of his career.

He's also not a RW.

 

[Video Nasty]

I'd argue it has prolonged his career and kept his production higher. Just like Jagr said the years in KHL with less games did to him.

To add to this, the 2004 lockout also allowed him to enter a league that was hyper focused on trying to increase scoring after it bottomed out at barely 5 GPG in 2003-2004. If it was allowed to naturally continue in a world with no lockout and trying to bring fans back, perhaps it continues lower or stays at that level for an unknown number of seasons.

No offense to anyone who makes it, but the stance that he was hurt by the lockouts is one of the laziest and shortsighted arguments out there. He was aided by any stoppage in play, more than hindered by it.

People really believe that a 34/35 year old’s body, that played nearly all the games up to that point, didn’t enjoy recuperating while playing just 100 regular season games from late-March 2020 to early-October 2021? It’s not a coincidence that Ovechkin then posted 90 points in a season for the first time since he was 24 years old (of course also aided by a continued increase in overall scoring as well).

The fact that Ovechkin is where he’s at today has to be one of the most positive simulations out there.

 

[blundluntman]

Ngl I didn't see him falling off to this degree whatsoever. My guess was he'd go from 42 to 30+ then maybe teeter off around 28 or so. It's still early in the season of course but things are not looking very good.

 

[ozzie]

This is what happens when the greatest goal scorer ever - Gretzky.

Decides to pass instead of score at the peak of the Oiler's Dynasty.
Is too humble to continue to embarass the league, should have gunned for 100 goals in a season.
Could have hit 1000 goals if not for his humility, respect for the game and helping his team.

Instead he just won scoring titles based on his assists alone, breaking and changing hockey pool rules around the world.

Dam you Wayne, you should have finished the job, taken care of business.