Canadian hockey fans are destroying Wayne Gretzky over his allegiance to Donald Trump following the 4 Nations Face-Off.

Amid all the record talk, the Washington Capitals are looking like a pretty good group, cranking out one hit after another.

Five charts how close Alex Ovechkin is to overtaking Wayne Gretzky's career goal scoring title and how both dominated the NHL.

Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin is getting closer and closer to breaking Wayne Gretzky's prestigious NHL record.

Wayne Gretzky became something of a controversial topic in Canada during the 4 Nations Face-Off. Gretzky's relationship with Donald Trump amid the strained political relations between the US and Canada became a flash point when the "Great One" was selected to be an honorary captain for Canada.

Ovechkin, 39, entered this season needing 42 goals to break Gretzky's record of 894 career goals, which has stood since 1999. The Washington captain, who scored three times on Sunday afternoon, has 29 goals this season. He needs 13 more with 25 games left to become the NHL's all-time leader.

Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is only a few goals away from becoming the NHL's all-time leading scorer. Here's how many goals he needs and when he'll play next.

Alex Ovechkin fired a perfect wrist shot past Calvin Pickard for his first goal of the game, scored from his office on the power play for his second and sailed a shot into an empty net from his own zone to complete the hat trick.

Yet Capitals winger Alex Ovechkin is closing in on that Gretzky record. The Capitals drafted him with the first overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft and he has been in the NHL since the 2005-2006 season. Time is the biggest constraint for Ovi, as he is 39 years old and will turn 40 before the 2025-2026 regular season begins.

Ovechkin will resume play when the Washington Capitals visit the Pittsburgh Penguins and Sidney Crosby (a game-time decision after returning from playing for Canada at 4 Nations) at PPG Paints Arena on Saturday (3 p.m. ET; ABC, ESPN+, SN360, TVAS) with 879 goals in his 20 NHL seasons.

Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals is closing in on the NHL goals record of 894 held by Wayne Gretzky. After a hat trick on Sunday, Ovechkin has 882 goals and needs 13 to break the record.