Wayne Gretzky thinks it’s inevitable that Alex Ovechkin will break his goal record

It’s not a matter of if, but a matter of when Wayne Gretzky’s record will be broken.

The NHL legend recently spoke to The New York Times about Alex Ovechkin’s quest to break the league’s all-time goal scoring record.

Gretzky is convinced that it’s all but inevitable that ‘The Great 8’ will surpass the milestone, and is actually rooting for it to happen.

“It’s not even a question that he will pass me, and I think it’s great,” said Gretzky.

“He’s well on his way to 40 or 50 goals this year, maybe more. There is no doubt that ultimately, he will break the record.”

Ovechkin has already scored 22 goals in 31 games this season, and currently sits fourth all-time with 752 career goals.

The 36-year old, who is in the first season of a five-year, $47.5 million contract extension, is just 144 goals away from surpassing Gretzky.

If Ovechkin reaches 40 goals this season (which he is well on his way to doing), he would need to average just 31 goals per season over the next four NHL campaigns to make it happen.