Alex Ovechkin may very well be the greatest natural goal scorer in NHL history, regardless of whether or not he breaks Gretzky's record. This sentiment is echoed by many hockey personalities, including players, fans, coaches, GM's, analysts, columnists and just about any other individual who is invested in any aspect of hockey.

It has been well documented that "The Great 8" has a reasonably decent chance at dethroning "The Great One" as the all-time NHL goal scoring leader. It has been almost overlooked, however, that Ovechkin is also on track to break another NHL record in pursuit of Gretzky's magic number of 894.

When Ovi scored his 250th power play goal on Thursday night against the Oilers, he moved to within 5 power play goals to tie Teemu Selanne for 3rd-most in NHL history. As it stands, Ovi now sits only 15 PP goals behind Brett Hull for 2nd and 24 PP goals behind Dave Andreychuk, the all-time PP goals leader in NHL history with 274.

It's safe to say that it's not a question of IF Ovechkin breaks this record, but WHEN he does and how badly he shatters it. Ovi has AVERAGED nearly 19 PP goals per season over the last 8 seasons. At this rate, in about a season we will have a brand new all-time PP goals record-holder.

Scoring goals at the NHL level is tough, especially in the modern era. There's a possibility that Ovi comes up short on Gretzky's record and that's okay. However, if someone is going to break Gretzky's record, Ovechkin is the best player to do it. He is a glowing example of what a pro hockey player should be. He has fun with the game, he plays hard, he shows good sportsmanship, is gracious in victory and defeat, remains active in the community, he's great with the fans, great with the media and really just represents the game extremely well. Ovi is adored, respected and recognized the world over. He is one of the most durable players in the National Hockey League and his individual success is good for the sport. Not only in North America, but the entire hockey world, full-stop.

Congrats on your latest milestone, Ovi!