Alex Ovechkin ties Wayne Gretzky's NHL record with his 894th goal

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alex Ovechkin skated over to his son Sergei at the glass. He bowed to Wayne Gretzky standing in a suite. He blew kisses to his wife, mother and family on the other side of the arena.

In signature dramatic fashion, Ovechkin scored the 894th goal of his career — and second of the game — to tie Gretzky's NHL record and set off a wild celebration among his Washington Capitals teammates on the ice and in the stands of the only building he has called home for the past two decades.

“I’m still a little shaking and still can’t believe it,” Ovechkin said with Gretzky sitting beside him after Washington's 5-3 win over Chicago on Friday night. "It’s history. It’s great for the game. It’s great to do it here. It’s special.”

Another special moment awaits if and when Ovechkin scores his 895th goal to break one of hockey's records that looked unbreakable. But the chance to celebrate at home with Capitals players past and present and match Gretzky made it a moment Ovechkin will never forget.

Neither will Gretzky, who along with Ovechkin is the league's co-leading goal-scorer for the time being.

“I can live with that for 24 more hours,” Gretzky said. “I can still say I’m tied for the most.”

0vechkin scored No. 894 from his spot in the left faceoff circle on the power play on a pass from longtime teammate John Carlson with 13:47 left in the third period. The goal — his 41st of the season and record-setting 136th game-winner to break a tie with Jaromir Jagr — caused teammates to spill off the bench and mob Ovechkin in the corner of the rink.

“We kind of looked at each other just and said, ‘Screw it, I’m going,’” winger Tom Wilson said. “It was just so cool to be a part of it as a group.”

Ovechkin's goal song, “Shake, Rattle & Roll” by Big Joe Turner, blared from the speakers, and mascot Slapshot flipped the counter in one corner from 893 to 894 as fans rose to their feet and stayed there to applaud the accomplishment. The 39-year-old who has spent his entire career with Washington skated circles around center ice to implore for more, in between his emotional moments paying tribute to Gretzky and his family.

“That was awesome,” said center Dylan Strome, who set up Ovechkin's 893rd goal. “Like, you’re left speechless and they still got to play the game and try to find him for one more.”

Amazingly, Ovechkin almost got another one. He had chances in the final 10 minutes and either missed the net or was denied by Spencer Knight, one of a record 182 different goaltenders he has scored on during his career.

“I just guess I’m glad he didn’t get the last one,” Knight said. “But, yeah, it’s cool to see, it’s great for the sport.”

One way Ovechkin refused to get No. 895 was into an empty net. He told coach Spencer Carbery and others he wanted no part of passing Gretzky like that.

"He wants to break the record with a goaltender in the crease, which I appreciate,” Carbery said. “He told me that on the bench, and I just wanted to confirm that he didn’t want to go out. And it’s hard for us as coaches because I just wanted to make sure in that moment: hat trick, at home. And he didn’t want to go out and score on an empty net to break the record. We have six games left, and he wants to break the record and have that moment where he’s shooting the puck past a goalie.”

Afterward, Blackhawks players stayed on the ice to do a handshake line with Ovechkin, who gets his next chance to break the record Sunday at the New York Islanders.

“Obviously very classy by the Hawks organization what they did tonight for ‘O’ and it’s as good as it gets,” Wilson said. “We have more to look forward to hopefully, but this was an incredible night.”

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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) raises his arm after scoring his 894th goal in 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) raises his arms after scoring his 894th goal in 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) pointing upwards after scoring his 894th goal in 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) waving to the crowd at the end of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) acknowledges the crowd after scoring his 894th goal during the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) raises his arms after scoring his 894th goal against the Chicago Blackhawks during the third period of an NHL hockey game Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) skating on the ice at the end of 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) 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) celebrating his 894th goal with teammates 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 poses in the in the locker room with his 894th NHL career goal puck in 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 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) waving to the crowd at the end of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) pointing upwards after scoring his 894th goal against the Chicago Blackhawks during the third period of an NHL hockey game Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

FBI director is Kash Patel, left, tallking with former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, center, and NHL Commisioner Gary Bettman, right, during the first period of an NHL hockey game between the Washington Capitals and Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates his 893rd goal in a hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8), far right, and Chicago Blackhawks left wing Nick Foligno (17), far right, and former members of the Washington Captials, tke part in the ceremonial puck-drop before the start f the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) walking onto the ice before the start of the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrated his 893rd goal with his teammates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrated his 893 goal with his teammates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrates his 893rd goal in a hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks during the first period of an NHL hockey game Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) walking onto the ice before the start of the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) takes part in the ceremonial puck drop before the start of the first 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) celebrated his 893rd goal with his teammates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals left wing Alex Ovechkin (8) celebrated his 893 goal with his teammates during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Middle East stock markets tumbled Monday as they struggled with the dual hit of the United States' new tariff policy and a sharp decline in oil prices, squeezing energy-producing nations that rely on those sales to power their economies and government spending.

Benchmark Brent crude is down by nearly 15% over the last five days of trading, with a barrel of oil costing just over $63. That’s down nearly 30% from a year ago, when a barrel cost over $90.

That cost per barrel is far lower than the estimated break-even price for Saudi Arabia and most other countries producing energy in the Middle East. That's coupled with the new tariffs, which saw the Gulf Cooperation Council states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates hit with 10% tariffs. Other Mideast nations face higher tariffs, like Iraq at 39% and Syria at 41%.

“With these measures and the expected retaliatory measures that could be adopted by other countries, the stability and predictability of international trade could be undermined,” the accounting firm PwC said in an advisory to its Mideast clients.

The Dubai Financial Market exchange fell 6% after it opened for the week, with market leader Emaar Properties down 9%. The Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange fell 4%.

Markets that opened Sunday saw losses as well. Saudi Arabia's Tadawul stock exchange fell over 6% in trading then, with further losses of 3% after opening Monday. The giant of the exchange, Saudi Arabia's state-owned oil company Aramco, fell over 5% on its own on Sunday, with more losses Monday, wiping away billions in market capitalization for the world's sixth-most-valuable company.

The drop in Aramco, whose shares also power Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's expansive plans to reshape the kingdom's economy, ties directly back to the overall price of oil.

Last week, OPEC+ members Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Oman, Russia, Saudi Arabia and the UAE agreed to speed up the introduction of more oil into the market. This month marks the first oil production increase by the group since 2022.

“OPEC+ has shifted its market management strategy from a steady incremental increase in output to monthly announced targets, bringing forward higher output levels for May this year,” an analysis published Monday by the state-majority-owned Emirates NBD Bank of Dubai said. “That will leave oil markets grasping with additional volatility as they assess the negative impact on global trade of the tariffs announced by the Trump administration.”

The Qatar Stock Exchange fell over 4% Sunday and a further 2% as trading resumed Monday. Boursa Kuwait fell over 5% on Sunday, with slight losses again Monday.

The Pakistan Stock Exchange fell rapidly Monday, with Islamabad facing 29% tariffs from the U.S. The exchange suspended trading for an hour after a 5% drop in its main KSE-30 index.

"We may face this situation until the uncertainty ends at the global market,” said Mohammed Sohail, the chief executive at Topline Securities.

Pakistan’s Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said over the weekend that Islamabad will send a delegation to the United States soon to negotiate. The U.S. imports around $5 billion worth of textiles and other products from Pakistan, which heavily relies on loans from the International Monetary Fund and others.

Associated Press writer Munir Ahmed in Islamabad contributed to this report.

A dejected investor waits to restart trading, which suspended for an hour following a 5% drop in in its main index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

Stock brokers discuss the situation at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), after trading suspended for an hour following a 5% drop in in its main index, in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

An investor looks on indexes and benchmark 100 index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

A stock broker checks indexes and benchmark 100 index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

An investor takes a picture with a cell phone of indexes and benchmark 100 index at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSE), in Karachi, Pakistan, Monday, April 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)