If Alexander Ovechkin breaks the all-time NHL goals record today when his Capitals take on the Islanders, the game will stop for about a 10-minute or so ceremony. In Long Island on Sunday, 21 years to the day <a href='https://www.nhl.com/capitals/' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>the Capitals</a> won the draft lottery to select a teenage phenom named Alex Ovechkin, the iconic <a href='https://www.nhl.com/capitals/news/ovechkin-aims-for-summit-sunday-vs-isles' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Caps captain can etch his name into the history books.</a> The arrival of the man who could now become the best scorer in NHL history: Alex Ovechkin. <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/antho_martineau/status/1908889424307315107'><div style='border:1px solid #CCCCCC;border-radius:10px;padding:20px;width:300px;'>Loading from Twitter ...</div></a></blockquote></div> <a href='https://www.hockeylatest.com/nhl/news/connor-bedard-under-fire-for-disrespecting-alex-ovechkin-on-historic-night' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>With two glittering goals Friday in the 5-3 victory against the Blackhawks</a>, his career tally of 894 goals has tied Ovechkin with Wayne Gretzky at the top of the NHL's record book. <h3>Ovechkin's goal per game rate is unheard of at his age</h3> Ovechkin's pursuit of the record has been nothing short of epic. After a lethargic start last year to the 2023-24 season, with just eight goals in his first 43 games, he's since scored 64 in his last 96, a .667 goal rate at the advanced age of 39. The Friday night atmosphere at Capital One Arena was one for the books. The excitement, the thunderous crowd, and witnessing history in the making before their eyes was a moment etched in not only the Capitals' history, but in the larger DC sports and NHL history. Now, with one milestone standing in the way of Ovechkin's immortality, all eyes turn toward this Sunday's game vs. the New York Islanders. And if <a href='https://www.nhl.com/capitals/player/alex-ovechkin-8471214' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Ovechkin</a> does it, surpassing <a href='https://records.nhl.com/records/skater-records/goals/most-goals-career' class='lien_marqueur' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>Wayne Gretzky's NHL record for career goal totals</a>, the game will completely stop for a 10-minute ceremony honoring the milestone. I'm told that if Alex Ovechkin breaks the record, the game will be immediately stopped and a ceremony lasting about ten minutes will take place. -Anthony Martineau/TVA Sports <div align='center' class='pl20 pr20'><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'><a href='https://twitter.com/Antho_Martineau/status/1908885081671737787'><div style='border:1px solid #CCCCCC;border-radius:10px;padding:20px;width:300px;'>Loading from Twitter ...</div></a></blockquote></div> It'll be a moment of victory not just for the Capitals faithful, but for the hockey universe. The game this Sunday is one of six remaining for the Capitals during the regular season, but it could be the night that the hockey universe stands still, especially for Alex Ovechkin.