Alex Ovechkin is now five goals away from breaking Wayne Gretzky's NHL record after scoring the 890th of his career in the Washington Capitals' home game Sunday against the Buffalo Sabres.

That blistering pace of Alex Ovechkin's scoring has increased the onus on the Capitals’ business staff, Ovechkin’s agent and the NHL as they seek to make the most of his chase of the NHL goals record.

Alex Ovechkin played to those high standards and scored his 889th career goal Tuesday in Winnipeg. Ovechkin's goal didn’t just push him closer to Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL scoring record—it may have set up the perfect stage to break it.