NHL Goal Scoring Great Sees Greatness in McDavid and Ovechkin

Today’s greatest goal scorers continually wow NHL fans and set new records as the game changes. While the game itself has changed — in many ways for the better — NHL legends of the past have taken notice of today’s stars. With 127 and 15 games left in the season to add to this total, Connor McDavid has set a new career-high in terms of points and continues to do something few have ever seen, finding new ways to score and could reach 70 goals by the end of the campaign. Meanwhile, Alexander Ovechkin is on his way to breaking Wayne Gretzky’s goal-scoring record after many once thought there was no way that feat could ever be achieved. It’s an incredible career that isn’t even done yet.

Specifically, Brett Hull has taken notice. In an exclusive interview with Betway, the NHL legend discussed what some of the game’s current greats are doing and who he is most impressed by. Giving props to guys like Mitch Marner, David Pastrnak, and Jason Robertson, it is McDavid and Ovechkin who has really impressed him over the past few seasons.

Hull on What McDavid Is Doing

As McDavid puts together a season that will eventually rank among the best seasons in NHL history, Hull noted that he would have loved to have had the opportunity to play with the Oilers’ captain. Saying he knows he never would have been able to keep up, “He’s too fast!” Hull added that his speed is incredible, but his ability to adapt and be a leader is equally as impressive.

McDavid is leading the Oilers to another playoff birth and the hope is that this season the team can make it further than their appearance in the Western Conference Final in 2021-22. Hull doesn’t think the Oilers are too far off. He explained, “You can’t say enough about those two guys in Edmonton, [Leon] Draisaitl and McDavid. It’s scary if they could surround them with a little more talent and some goaltending.”

Noting he wasn’t far removed from the glory years of the Oilers, Hull thinks Edmonton could get back to those dynasty years. All they need are the right pieces to make what McDavid is doing more than just an incredible show to watch on a nightly basis.

Hull on Ovechkin’s Career

Whereas McDavid has been adaptable and consistently changing things up as a way to improve, Ovechkin is steady as a rock, doing his thing and daring people to stop him. “You look at other sports and usually, consistency is a guy getting 20 or 25 goals for six or seven seasons. Well, this guy’s been getting 50 goals for 18 years. It’s incredible,” Hull said of Alex Ovechkin’s run in the league. He added, “He’s a marvel to watch. He’s never changed the way he’s played. He’s a beast out there. No one can shoot harder. But you still can’t stop him after all these years. He is a freak of nature and I have really enjoyed watching him.”

When it comes to Ovechkin eventually breaking Gretzky’s record, Hull notes just how hard it is to score that often. He said he personally go to 741 goals but didn’t think he could have scored another goal in his career. He got the most out of what he could bring to the ice and never imagined someone would ever get as close to Gordie Howe (801) and Gretzky (894). He believes Ovechkin will do it with ease.

He noted, “In all seriousness, 80 goals for him is two seasons, and he’s got plenty of life left in him.”

Hull Should Know When Someone Is Doing Something Incredible

Hull is one of the greatest goal-scorers in NHL history. He played in the NHL for 19 seasons, from 1986 to 2005, and scored a total of 741 goals, which ranks him third all-time in NHL history behind only Gretzky and Gordie Howe. He scored 527 of his career goals with the Blues, and he also had an 86-goal season with them in 1990-91, which is the third-highest single-season total in NHL history. He won the Hart Trophy as the NHL’s most valuable player that season. To say he’s the kind of player who should be able to recognize the greatness of today’s goal-scorers is an understatement of epic proportions.

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