NHL: Pittsburgh Penguins at Washington Capitals – Source: Imagn

Alex Ovechkin aand Sidney Crosby were the two young new faces of the NHL when the infamous lockout which canceled the entire 2004-25 season ended. They’ve since gone on to author two of the best careers in hockey history.

Washington Capitals star captain Ovechkin is on the verge of breaking Wayne Gretzky’s all-time scoring record of 894 goals. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh Penguins captain Crosby scored his 600th goal and on course to be first-ballot Hall of Famers when their playing days end.

What’s even more special about their accomplishments is that they’ve all come while wearing one sweater. It’s a rare thing for some of the best players across professional sport to spend their entire careers with a single franchise, but Ovechkin and Crosby fall into that category.

Seven NHL players who have scored 600+ career goals with a single franchise

Alex Ovechkin

Ovechkin was taken by the Capitals with the first overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft. He has spent his entire career with the Capitals and has become the best goalscorer of the modern era. He led the Capitals to the Stanley Cup in 2018, the first in franchise history.

With 867 career goals, he’s only 27 goals away from tying Wayne Gretzky’s all-time mark of 894.

Sidney Crosby

Crosby, the first overall selection in the 2005 NHL Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins, has carved out his own Hall of Fame career with numerous personal accolades as well as three Stanley Cup championships. He hit the 600-goal mark earlier this week.

Mario Lemieux

Speaking of Penguins players, Lemieux has been considered to be one of the best players to lace up the skates. He played two separate tenures with the Penguins; he initially retired in 1997 after dealing with Hodgkins’s lymphoma but returned in December 2000. He finished his career with 690 goals.

Gordie Howe

Nicknamed “Mr. Hockey”, the late Gordie Howe was known not only for his goalscoring but also his hard-nosed play on the ice.

He played 25 straight seasons with the Detroit Red Wings from 1946 to 1971, winning the Stanley Cup four times. He died in 2016 at the age of 88.

Steve Yzerman

The iconic longtime captain of the Detroit Red Wings, Yzerman began his career in 1983 before retiring in 2006.

He captained the Red Wings to three Stanley Cup wins and finished his career with 692 goals. Yzerman was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009.

Joe Sakic

Sakic wore two NHL uniforms during his career but technically played for the same franchise. He began with the Quebec Nordiques, who moved to Denver to become the Colorado Avalanche in 1995 and captained them to two Stanley Cup wins.

Sakic finished his career with 625 goals and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.

Bobby Hull

Nicknamed the “Golden Jet” due to his blonde hair and high-velocity shot, Hull played 15 NHL seasons for the Chicago Blackhawks, scoring 604 goals and earning an induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983.

He’s the father of Brett Hull, who was also inducted into the Hall of Fame as a player himself. The elder Hull died in 2023 at the age of 84.