Alex Ovechkin finishes his 'GR8 Chase' season with 897 career goals, three more than Wayne Gretzky

Alex Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals not only finished his chase of Wayne Gretzky's career NHL goals record this season, he's given himself some breathing room over the Great One.

The 39-year-old Russian star, who broke the goals record long held by Gretzky on April 6 when he scored the 895th of his career against the New York Islanders, ended the year with 897 after scoring in Washington's regular season finale against Pittsburgh.

Ovechkin entered the season 42 short of breaking the regular-season record by the Great One that had long seemed unapproachable. Ovechkin began his 20th NHL season on a heater but it appeared that his bid for history might have to wait until the 2025-26 season when broke his left leg in a shin-on-shin collision in November. Ovechkin missed 16 games but resumed his pursuit at Toronto in the Capitals' first game out of the Christmas break.

The missing time only seemed to make Ovechkin more determined. He scored 22 goals in the final 31 games to finish with 44 on the season, tying Hall of Famer Gordie Howe for the most in a season by a player aged 39 or older.

Facing longtime rival and peer Sidney Crosby and in the regular season, Ovechkin finished in vintage Ovechkin fashion. Not long after Crosby gave the Penguins a 3-1 lead, Ovechkin swooped into his spot in the left circle and blasted a power-play goal past Alex Nedeljkovic, bringing the fans clad in red inside PPG Paints Arena to their feet.

Ovechkin already owned the NHL records for power-play goals and shots on goal.

No. 894 also gave him 136 game-winning goals, breaking a tie for the most with Jaromir Jagr. After adding Sorokin, Ovechkin has scored on 183 goaltenders, breaking Jagr's record by beating Leevi Merilainen of the Senators with No. 874. Ovechkin has 178 multi-goal games, second to Gretzky (189).

Ovechkin earlier this season became the 60th player to record 700 assists. He joined Gretzky, Gordie Howe, Jagr, Marcel Dionne and Phil Esposito as the only players with 700 goals and 700 assists.

Ovechkin, after climbing past Mike Gartner (708), Esposito (717), Dionne (731), Brett Hull (741) and Jagr (766), scored goal No. 802 on Dec. 23, 2022, to move into second behind Gretzky (894). He got his 895th in his 1,487th regular-season game, the same number Gretzky finished with.

Gretzky held the record since scoring his 802nd goal on March 23, 1994, to pass Howe. He added 92 more before retiring in 1999 after a total of 1,487 games over 20 seasons.

Gretzky now holds 54 NHL records. Two seem truly untouchable: 2,857 total points and 1,963 assists, which is more than anyone else has in goals and assists combined.

For NHL playoff goals, which do not count toward the record, Gretzky has the most (122). Ovechkin has 72. Gretzky also had another 56 in the World Hockey Association regular season and playoffs, while Ovechkin has 57 from his time in the Russia-based KHL.

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Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby (87) and Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin (8) skate during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin (8) shoots with Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby (87) defending during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Pittsburgh, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin acknowledges fans during a scoreboard tribute during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Pittsburgh, Thursday, April 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates after scoring his 895th career goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against New York Islanders in Elmont, N.Y., Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrating his 894th career goal with fans during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8), second left, celebrates after scoring his 895th career goal during the second period of an NHL hockey game against New York Islanders in Elmont, N.Y., Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrating his 894th career goal with fans during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrating his 894th goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) reacts after scoring a goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Boston Bruins, Tuesday, April 1, 2025, in Boston. (AP Photo/Mark Stockwell)

Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker)

Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin (8) passes the puck past Winnipeg Jets' Colin Miller (6) during the first period of an NHL hockey game in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Fred Greenslade/The Canadian Press via AP)

Washington Capitals' Alex Ovechkin (8) takes a shot on Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck (37) during the second period of their NHL hockey game in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (Fred Greenslade/The Canadian Press via AP)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) and Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt (88) battle for position during the third period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates his goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin warms up before an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin takes to the ice to warm up before an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, March 22, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates his goal during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Thursday, March 20, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Federal agents carrying out immigration arrests in Minnesota's Twin Cities region already shaken by the fatal shooting of a woman rammed the door of one home Sunday and pushed their way inside, part of what the Department of Homeland Security has called its largest enforcement operation ever.

In a dramatic scene similar to those playing out across Minneapolis, agents captured a man in the home just minutes after pepper spraying protesters outside who had confronted the heavily armed federal agents. Along the residential street, protesters honked car horns, banged on drums and blew whistles in attempts to disrupt the operation.

Video of the clash taken by The Associated Press showed some agents pushing back protesters while a distraught woman later emerged from the house with a document that federal agents presented to arrest the man. Signed by an immigration officer, the document — unlike a warrant signed by a judge — does not authorize forced entry into a private residence. A warrant signed by an immigration officer only authorizes arrest in a public area.

Immigrant advocacy groups have conducted extensive “know-your-rights” campaigns urging people not to open their doors unless agents have a court order signed by a judge.

But within minutes of ramming the door in a neighborhood filled with single-family homes, the handcuffed man was led away.

More than 2,000 immigration arrests have been made in Minnesota since the enforcement operation began at the beginning of December, said Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told Fox News on Sunday that the administration would send additional federal agents to Minnesota to protect immigration officers and continue enforcement.

The Twin Cities — the latest target in President Donald Trump’s immigration enforcement campaign — is bracing for what is next after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by an immigration officer on Wednesday.

“We’re seeing a lot of immigration enforcement across Minneapolis and across the state, federal agents just swarming around our neighborhoods,” said Jason Chavez, a Minneapolis city councilmember. “They’ve definitely been out here.”

Chavez, the son of Mexican immigrants who represents an area with a growing immigrant population, said he is closely monitoring information from chat groups about where residents are seeing agents operating.

People holding whistles positioned themselves in freezing temperatures on street corners Sunday in the neighborhood where Good was killed, watching for any signs of federal agents.

More than 20,000 people have taken part in a variety of trainings to become “observers” of enforcement activities in Minnesota since the 2024 election, said Luis Argueta, a spokesperson for Unidos MN, a local human rights organization .

“It’s a role that people choose to take on voluntarily, because they choose to look out for their neighbors,” Argueta said.

The protests have been largely peaceful, but residents remained anxious. On Monday, Minneapolis public schools will start offering remote learning for the next month in response to concerns that children might feel unsafe venturing out while tensions remain high.

Many schools closed last week after Good’s shooting and the upheaval that followed.

While the enforcement activity continues, two of the state’s leading Democrats said that the investigation into Good's shooting death should not be overseen solely by the federal government.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and U.S. Sen. Tina Smith said in separate interviews Sunday that state authorities should be included in the investigation because the federal government has already made clear what it believes happened.

“How can we trust the federal government to do an objective, unbiased investigation, without prejudice, when at the beginning of that investigation they have already announced exactly what they saw — what they think happened," Smith said on ABC’s "This Week."

The Trump administration has defended the officer who shot Good in her car, saying he was protecting himself and fellow agents and that Good had “weaponized” her vehicle.

Todd Lyons, acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, defended the officer on Fox News Channel’s “The Sunday Briefing.”

"That law enforcement officer had milliseconds, if not short time to make a decision to save his life and his other fellow agents,” he said.

Lyons also said the administration’s enforcement operations in Minnesota wouldn't be needed “if local jurisdictions worked with us to turn over these criminally illegal aliens once they are already considered a public safety threat by the locals.”

The killing of Good by an ICE officer and the shooting of two people by federal agents in Portland, Oregon, led to dozens of protests in cities across the country over the weekend, including New York, Los Angeles, Washington D.C. and Oakland, California.

Contributing were Associated Press journalists Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis; Thomas Strong in Washington; Bill Barrow in Atlanta; Christopher Weber in Los Angeles; and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio.

A woman gets into an altercation with a federal immigration officer as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A federal immigration officer deploys pepper spray as officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A family member, center, reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Bystanders are treated after being pepper sprayed as federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

A family member reacts after federal immigration officers make an arrest Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Federal agents look on after detaining a person during a patrol in Minneapolis, Minn., Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press via AP)

Bystanders react after a man was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)

People stand near a memorial at the site where Renee Good was fatally shot by an ICE agent, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

A man looks out of a car window after being detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during a traffic stop, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Robbinsdale, Minn. (AP Photo/John Locher)

Border Patrol agents detain a man, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

People shout toward Border Patrol agents making an arrest, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Adam Gray)

Demonstrators protest outside the White House in Washington, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey holds a news conference on Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Jen Golbeck)

Protesters react as they visit a makeshift memorial during a rally for Renee Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE officer earlier in the week, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/John Locher)