Wayne Gretzky is the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer, but Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin is closing on him.

Gretzky, who played from 1979-99, leads the way with 894 regular-season NHL goals. Ovechkin, who set an NHL record on March 21 by hitting the 40-goal mark for the 13th time in his career (he had been tied with Gretzky), ranks second with 822.

Ovechkin passed former No. 2 scorer Gordie Howe during the 2022-23 season and has three years left on his contract beyond this season, giving him time to break a record once thought unbreakable.

The top 20 NHL all-time goal scorers have all topped 600 goals. All are in the Hockey Hall of Fame, except Ovechkin and Jaromir Jagr, who's still playing in the Czech Republic.

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Who are the NHL's top all-time goal scorers?

1. Wayne Gretzky,  894 goals in 1,487 games

2. Alex Ovechkin, 822 goals in 1,346 games

3. Gordie Howe, 801 goals in 1,767 games

4. Jaromir Jagr, 766 goals in 1,733 games

5. Brett Hull, 741 goals in 1,269 games

6. Marcel Dionne, 731 in 1,348 games

7. Phil Esposito, 717 goals in 1,282 games

8. Mike Gartner, 708 goals in 1,432 games

9. Mark Messier, 694 goals in 1,756 games

10. Steve Yzerman, 692 goals in 1,514 games

11. Mario Lemieux, 690 goals in 915 games

12. Teemu Selanne, 684 goals in 1,451 games

13. Luc Robitaille, 668 goals in 1,431 games

14. Brendan Shanahan, 656 goals in 1,524 games

15. Dave Andreychuk, 640 goals in 1,639 games

16. Jarome Iginla, 625 goals in 1,554 games

17. Joe Sakic, 625 goals in 1,378 games

18. Bobby Hull, 610 goals in 1,063 games

19. Dino Ciccarelli, 608 goals in 1,232 games

20. Jari Kurri, 601 goals in 1,251 games

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NHL goal leaders: All-time list of hockey's 20 great scorers