It’s a full-circle moment for Ovechkin, whose NHL career officially started in the same building -- it was called the RBC Center at the time -- at the 2004 NHL Draft. Ross Mahoney, who was Washington's director of amateur scouting at the time Ovechkin was selected No. 1, remembers.

Alex Ovechkin broke a record once seen as untouchable with his 895th career NHL goal on Sunday, completing a journey from a childhood marred by tragedy to the greatest heights of his sport.

More than 20 years after Ovechkin and Malkin were drafted back to back, the Penguins' Russian gushed about his compatriot's new record.

By the time Ovechkin finished his debut season, he had scored 52 goals among his 106 points, running away with the Calder Trophy given to the NHL’s rookie of the year – he received 124 of 129 first-place votes to beat out Sidney Crosby, who had his own 102-point campaign – and finishing sixth in the Hart Trophy voting for MVP.

While Ovechkin has become of the NHL all-time greats, his hockey career began when he was growing up in Russia.

With all eyes on him, Russian superstar Alex Ovechkin stepped up and delivered under the limelight, as he scored not one but two goals against the Chicago Blackhawks at Capital One Arena in Washington, DC to tie NHL legend Wayne Gretzky for most goals ever in the league. As it stands, both Ovechkin and Gretzky have 894 career NHL goals each.

In this edition of 20 Fantasy Thoughts, Alex Ovechkin has been a man on a mission to set the all-time goal scoring mark and showing that age is just a number.

Alex Ovechkin's 895th NHL goal, the one that passed Wayne Gretzky and made Ovechkin the NHL's goal king, is one of the biggest moments in the league's history. And somehow, it happened on the anniversary of one of the most important moments in Washington Capitals history.