When Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin tied Wayne Gretzky for the all-time NHL scoring record Friday night, the Great One was ready for it.

Gretzky took Ovechkin's historic goal in stride, as was to be expected given what he told reporters before the Capitals' game against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Gretzky, who once stood alone with an NHL record of 894 goals that he set before retiring in 1999, shared his honest thoughts on seeing Ovechkin get closer and closer to surpassing that feat this season.

"When I was breaking Gordie Howe’s record, he was there. And I said 2 years ago that if Alex gets close to my record, I’ll be here," Gretzky said. "That's the hockey league, right? From Beliveau to Howe, Orr, Lemieux, Messier, you pass it down. You guys might not believe me, but if somebody breaks Alex's record, I hope Alex is there to shake his hand. Right now, I hope Alex enjoys it. He deserves all the credit and accolades he's getting."

Ovechkin entered Friday's game with 892 goals and tied Gretzky's record in the third period. The moment he did was so, so special:

Ovechkin, 39, finished with two goals in the Capitals' 5-3 win and just needs one more to officially become the NHL's most prolific goal scorer in history.

“I don’t care what era you play in, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, it's hard to score goals," continued Gretzky. "In 20 years from now, we're gonna see these kids come along and we'll go, 'Wow, these guys are really good.' And that's a good thing."

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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Wayne Gretzky’s Quote About Alex Ovechkin Breaking His NHL Record Was All Class.

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