Everybody wants a piece of history. Collectors, the Hockey Hall of Fame and memorabilia companies are looking to the Washington Capitals and Alex Ovechkin as he approaches Wayne Gretzky’s NHL goals record.
The Gr8 Chase, as the Capitals dubbed it, is now eight goals from completion. As Ovechkin gets closer, the same questions keep popping up: What will happen to the record-breaking puck? What about the stick he uses to score the historic goal? Who keeps his game-worn jersey?
The Capitals did not comment for this article, but the team has a dedicated Ovechkin display at Capital One Arena. The consensus is that Ovechkin will receive the right of first refusal for the memorabilia.
Ovechkin has been saving the pucks and sticks this season and flashing his signature gap-toothed smile in photos with them after games. David Abrutyn, Ovechkin’s agent, said that likely won’t change.
“It’s up to him,” Mr. Abrutyn told The Washington Times. “When the time comes, he’ll decide.”
The 39-year-old has kept every goal-scoring puck and stick from the past four seasons.
“I’ll put them in a museum,” Ovechkin told reporters Monday.
That museum likely will not be the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, though.
Ovechkin has a long-standing plan to open his collection near his hometown in Moscow. He told NHL.com it could open in two years with the stick from goal No. 896 as the piece de resistance.
“Most of the sticks are over there already,” he said. “I think it’s going to be cool.”
The Russian’s collection of sticks and other memorabilia is the stuff of legend in NHL circles. It includes hundreds of sticks from Ovechkin and Hall of Famers such as Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.
“It was, honestly, a lot to take in,” forward Tom Wilson told NHL.com of the collection. “Usually, it was at a team party or something. You would go in there and have a couple drinks and look at all the different sticks and stuff. It was pretty impressive.”
Representatives from the Hockey Hall of Fame hope to get their hands on some artifact from the record-breaking game. Ovechkin’s status as a collector complicates matters, though.
“We have had talks with Alex; we have met with him,” said Phil Pritchard, the vice president and curator of the Hall of Fame’s resource center. “We’ve talked with the Capitals as well, and they’re open to helping us any way they can.”
Representatives from the Hall of Fame have been watching Ovechkin since the Capitals drafted him with the No. 1 pick in 2004. The 12-time All-Star has a footprint at the museum along with gear from All-Star games and his time in Russia.
“He’s throughout the Hall of Fame with all his milestones and records that he has. There is not a display focused totally on Alex Ovechkin, though,” Mr. Pritchard said. “Whether that comes in the next month, we’ll see.”
Mr. Pritchard was reticent to put a price tag on the record-breaking puck or stick. He called it it “priceless.”
“I don’t know what collectors would compare it to,” he said. “When Gretzky broke Gordie Howe’s record? I would guess so, but that would be up to the market.”
At his current pace, Ovechkin will pass Gretzky before the regular season ends on April 17. The date of the record-breaker is unpredictable, but it likely will be in the final five games of the season.
Private collectors without three MVP trophies also have geared up for the chase.
“Historic milestones like this just provide a kind of natural boost to a player’s collectibles market, and that spans across multiple items,” said Ryan Greene, the communications director at Professional Sports Authenticator.
An Ovechkin rookie card will cost more now than it did three months ago, Mr. Greene said. The same goes for autographed and game-used items.
“You’ll see, at least for a bit, a surge in value for a player who sets a prestigious record like this,” Mr. Greene said. “It doesn’t necessarily mean that where things surge to will maintain, but it’s pretty consistent that when the market settles down, the floor is higher.”
A handy benchmark for the exact rise in value will arrive this month. The Capitals have released one-of-a-kind cherry blossom jerseys in recent seasons. The team has players wear sweaters, sign them and auction them off for charity.
This year’s auctions begin Tuesday. It’s safe to assume that the signed Ovechkin sweater will fetch more than the $4,200 it raised last year.
“Ovechkin is already held in very high regard with collectors, going into this period where he can be making history,” said Greene, noting that prices could skyrocket. “You’re definitely going to see a surge for him when he does break that record, but there’s already anticipation built in where people have their eye on it.”
The players on the ice also feel the anticipation.
Winger Anthony Beauvillier joined the Capitals at the trade deadline. Despite growing up watching Ovechkin highlight reels, his thoughts didn’t immediately turn toward the record when he learned he had been traded.
“Then the first few texts you get from people are about him,” Beauvillier said. “It’s pretty special to experience, and I feel very fortunate to be a part of this.”
As the “Ovi” chants get louder and louder, opposing defenses tighten up. Fans and Capitals players might want to witness history, but opposing teams don’t.
“You can feel it; it’s a big deal around the league. The other 31 teams are all along for the ride and watching and paying close attention,” Capitals coach Spencer Carbery said. “But I promise you, they do not want to be on the ice when he’s putting one in the back of the net.”
Even teammates are eyeing their collections more closely.
“I did, a couple years ago, ask him for a stick. But I might need to get [another] one rang to me,” Beauvillier said with a smile Monday.
The 27-year-old sits just a few stalls from Ovechkin in the locker room at the Capitals’ practice facility. Like so many other fans across the country, his one memento from the future Hall of Famer became a treasured memory.
“It’s still at my house,” he said. “It won’t leave.”
Ovechkin and the Eastern Conference-leading Capitals return to action Tuesday against the Detroit Red Wings with 15 games remaining.
