Matthews on verge of 300 goals; Fleury can move into 2nd all-time in wins
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By David Satriano
@davidsatriano NHL.com Staff Writer
The 2023-24 NHL season begins Oct. 10 and in the coming days, weeks and months, there could be plenty of players and coaches reaching milestones. Here's a look at some which could occur.
GOALS
850: Alex Ovechkin -- While the Washington Capitals forward likely won't score 72 goals this season to tie Wayne Gretzky for the most in NHL history, he has 822 goals and would hit a nice round number if he gets 28 goals, reaching 850. It also would be the 19th straight season Ovechkin scored at least 20 goals.
600: Sidney Crosby -- The Penguins center needs 50 goals to become the 21st member of the 600-goal club. Crosby scored 33 goals last season but has scored more than 50 once in his 18 NHL seasons (51 goals, 2009-10).
500: Evgeni Malkin -- Only three active players have scored at least 500 goals (Ovechkin, Crosby, Steven Stamkos) but the Penguins center is closing in. Malkin, who has 471, needs 29 this season to reach the mark. He's scored at least 29 goals six times in his NHL career, and scored 27 last season.
400: Anze Kopitar, Brad Marchand -- Kopitar has been one of the most consistent players on both sides of the ice since entering the NHL in 2006-07 and is seven goals away from 400 for his NHL career. The Los Angeles Kings center also needs 59 points to each 1,200. Marchand, the newly named captain of the Boston Bruins, is 28 goals away, a total he's reached eight times in his 14 NHL seasons.
300: Auston Matthews -- The Toronto Maple Leafs center will hit the milestone with his first goal this season. He is one of 12 players within 35 goals of 300 in the NHL; David Perron of the Detroit Red Wings is next closest (seven away) with Capitals forward T.J. Oshie (10), Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon (16) and Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov (24) also closing in.
POINTS
1,500: Ovechkin -- In addition to his goal-scoring milestones within reach, Ovechkin would become the 16th player in NHL history with 1,500 points and second active, behind Crosby (1,502), if he gets 15 points.
1,000: John Tavares -- The Maple Leafs center is the only player with a realistic chance to reach the milestone this season. Tavares needs 25 points to join the 1,000-point club, and would become the ninth active player to do so.
GAMES PLAYED
1,400: Ovechkin, Ryan Suter, Brent Burns -- The three active games played leaders each can get to 1,400 games this season. Dallas Stars defenseman Ryan Suter (1,362) needs to play 38 games; Ovechkin (1,347) needs 53; and Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Brent Burns (1,333) needs 67.
1,000: There are 20 players who could reach 1,000 career games played this season. Nashville Predators center Ryan O'Reilly is closest (nine games away). Buffalo Sabres forward Kyle Okposo (16), New York Islanders forward Cal Clutterbuck (18), Dallas Stars forward Matt duch*ene (24) and Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman (26) also are closing in. Minnesota Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury is 15 games away and would be the fourth goalie all-time to reach the mark (Martin Brodeur, 1,266; Roberto Luongo, 1,044; Patrick Roy, 1,029).
GOALIE WINS
552: Marc-Andre Fleury -- If Fleury wins eight games this season, he'll move into second on the wins list. Fleury trails Hockey Hall of Famers Roy (551) and Brodeur (691).
COACHING WINS
800: Peter Laviolette -- The new coach of the New York Rangers is eighth on the all-time wins list among coaches with 752. If he gets 48 wins this season, he'll become the seventh coach with that many.
600: Todd McLellan, Peter DeBoer -- McLellan, coach of the Kings, is at 575 wins and would hit 600 with 25 wins this season. DeBoer, coach of the Stars, has 560 wins and also has a chance to get there before the end of the season.
500: Jon Cooper -- Entering his 12th NHL season with the Lightning, Cooper is the longest-tenured active coach in the NHL. He is 480-250-67 and ranks seventh all-time in points percentage (.644) among coaches with at least 200 games. He should hit 500 wins this season.
