Alex Ovechkin and Wayne Gretzky are tied at 894 goals. Ovechkin can break the record Sunday

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alex Ovechkin cracked a Bud Light and casually took a sip as nearby fans chanted, “Ovi! Ovi!” He was soon joined by Wayne Gretzky to put the two greatest goal-scorers in NHL history side by side.

At this moment, they are tied at 894 goals apiece after Ovechkin scored twice Friday night to match Gretzky's total that many thought no one would ever approach. When Ovechkin was asked his feeling about breaking the record, the “Great One” had a great retort.

“Well hold on a second — he hasn’t done it yet,” Gretzky said. “Can you give me 24 more hours?”

Gretzky gets at least that. Ovechkin's next chance to pass Gretzky comes Sunday in a matinee at the New York Islanders.

All eyes will be on the 39-year-old Russian superstar, who soaked in the moment of celebrating No. 894 in front of Washington Capitals fans who have cheered him on for his two decades in the league and with Gretzky, his mother, wife and children in attendance. As reflective as Ovechkin was about getting there, he instantly went back to his standard answer when asked about when he might break the record.

“It’s game by game; it’s shift by shift,” Ovechkin said. "You never know what’s gonna happen. We just gonna to continue to enjoy it and continue to do our best because we still have six games left before playoffs and our mind right now is get ready for the playoffs and play the right way in the playoffs.”

The playoffs are six games away, but the Capitals first want to make sure Ovechkin gets the record all to himself.

“There’s a reason we try to get it to him: The guy’s got 41 goals," said center Dylan Strome, who set up Ovechkin's 893rd goal four minutes into the game against Chicago. "It’s incredible.”

If Ovechkin is unable to score Sunday at the Islanders, the Capitals next play back at home Thursday night against division-rival Carolina. But everyone around the team would like to get this over with as soon as possible, something Gretzky knows from his own pursuit of Gordie Howe's then-record of 801 in the spring of 1994.

“People don’t realize this — because I went through what Alex is going through — it’s hard on your teammates, too,” Gretzky said. “It’s joyful and it’s exciting, but they feel the pressure and the stress and they have to answer all the questions, also.”

After Ovechkin tied Gretzky, they were more than happy to answer the questions. They could feel the anticipation building toward Ovechkin — the 2018 playoff MVP in leading the Capitals to their first Stanley Cup championship — doing something else special.

“I think the last few games you could sense it a little bit, but obviously on home ice within something extremely doable for the guy, it felt different the whole night,” said longtime teammate John Carlson, who passed the puck to Ovechkin for No. 894. “From warmups, from the drop of the puck, some guys are larger than life in that regard and it just seems like only a few people are capable of it. It seemed inevitable.”

Inevitable until he breaks it, as well. As Gretzky got up to leave the postgame festivities, he hugged Ovechkin and waved and said, “See you guys on Sunday.”

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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)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, left, with Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, right, during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, left, with Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, right, during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, left, with Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, right, during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington.(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, left, with Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, right, during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, left, with Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, right, during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington.(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky speaking during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington.(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin speaking during a press conference after he tied Wayne Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington.(AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Former NHL player Wayne Gretzky, left, shaking hands with Washington Capitals Alex Ovechkin, right, during a press conference after an NHL hockey game in which Ovechkin tied Gretzky's NHL career goals record of 894th goals, Friday, April 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Croatia on Thursday protested a spate of expulsions of its citizens from Serbia, where the government of populist President Aleksandar Vucic is faced with massive anti-corruption protests that have shaken his tight grip on power in the Balkan state.

Dozens of foreign citizens, including 15 Croats, have been expelled from Serbia in the past few months or slapped an entry ban, allegedly for posing a security risk for the country.

Croatia has sent a protest note to Belgrade and informed the European Union about the expulsions, Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic said in Croatia's capital, Zagreb, adding that Serbia's moves are “unacceptable.”

“We are demanding an explanation from the Serbian authorities,” Plenkovic said at a government session. “Croatia condemns such behavior.”

There was no immediate response from Belgrade while a protest rally against the expulsions of Croatian and other foreign citizens critical of Vucic and the Serbian government was held Thursday in Belgrade.

Speakers at the rally said they will not allow Serbia to become a country of "fear and repression."

Vucic's increasingly authoritarian government has stepped up pressure on critics and independent media while struggling to quell monthslong anti-corruption protests triggered by a canopy collapse in the country's north that killed 16 people on Nov. 1.

Vucic and his allies have said that unidentified Western intelligence services were behind the student-led protests with the aim to unseat him from power by staging a so-called “color revolution.”

Vucic’s right-wing allies, Hungarian and Slovak Prime Ministers Viktor Orbán and Robert Fico, sent messages of support on Thursday for the beleaguered Serbian leader ahead of a big counter-opposition protest rally he planned to stage in Belgrade over the weekend.

Orbán said in a video message from Budapest that “Serbian patriots can count on Hungarian patriots.”

"We have been watching developments in Serbia for months now. Foreign powers are trying to interfere in the lives of the Serbs. That is happening here, too. Foreign powers are trying to tell the Serbs how to live. They are doing that here, too,” he said.

Serbian police have detained and questioned several university students, government critics and even professors while media watchdog groups have warned of attacks and threats against journalists covering the protests.

Arien Ivkovic Stojanovic, a Croatian who has lived in Serbia for 12 years and is married to a Serbian citizen, thinks that her online posts critical of Vucic could be the reason why she has been ordered to leave the country.

Ivkovic Stojanovic told The Associated Press in a phone interview that police handed her a notice saying she posed a grave security risk but didn't explain why.

“At first I started laughing," she said. "I just live a normal life, I have never even had a parking ticket."

Previous cases of expulsions of foreigners from Serbia included Russians who had criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine.

Entry bans also have been slapped on regional artists and pro-democracy activists. In January, Serbia expelled 13 citizens of Croatia, Romania and Austria who were taking part in a civil society workshop in Belgrade.

TV crews from neighboring Croatia and Slovenia have been stopped on the border from entering Serbia in March to cover a large anti-government protest.

Ivkovic Stojanovic appealed her order to leave Serbia within seven days, which would split her family and separate their 3-year-old daughter from her father. The 31-year-old doctor believes she was targeted because of a post supporting the student protests.

Vucic is a former extreme nationalist who now says he wants Serbia to join the EU but has faced accusations of stifling democratic freedoms while maintaining close relations with Russia and China.

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Associated Press writer Dusan Stojanovic contributed to this report.

People attend a protest denouncing the expulsion and entry bans of dozens of foreign citizens recently due to alleged security risks for the Balkan country, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

People attend a protest denouncing the expulsion and entry bans of dozens of foreign citizens recently due to alleged security risks for the Balkan country, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

People attend a protest denouncing the expulsion and entry bans of dozens of foreign citizens recently due to alleged security risks for the Balkan country, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

A woman holds a banner reads: "Stop, expulsion of foreign citizens!" during a protest denouncing the expulsion and entry bans of dozens of foreign citizens recently due to alleged security risks for the Balkan country, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

People attend a protest denouncing the expulsion and entry bans of dozens of foreign citizens recently due to alleged security risks for the Balkan country, in Belgrade, Serbia, Thursday, April 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic speaks during a public address and announces the name of the representative for the composition of the new government in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)