There have been many great goalies to grace the NHL in its 105-year storied history. For New Jersey Devils fans, Martin Brodeur comes to mind. In Buffalo, it was Dominik Hasek. In Vancouver, maybe Roberto Luongo.
Marc-Andre Fleury, with his big personality and even bigger saves, is making a case to become one of the greats.
In the league now for 20 years, Fleury has been the starting netminder for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Vegas Golden Knights and the Minnesota Wild and has been a mainstay in the NHL. It’s only fitting that he’s on the precipice of some personal accomplishments.
Here are some of the milestones we’re on the watch for ahead of the 2023-24 season:
Marc-Andre Fleury, Minnesota Wild: 15 games to 1,000, six wins to 550
If you were to ask Fleury about his highlights playing professional hockey, he would likely list off his many team accolades, which includes three Stanley Cups with the Penguins and a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Games.
His first thoughts would probably not be his Vezina Trophy in 2021, his William Jennings Trophy nor his five all-star appearances, but they’re significant in speaking to the ways in which Fleury has been a consistent difference-maker for each team he’s played on.
Since being drafted first overall in 2003 — an extreme rarity for goaltenders — Fleury has been incredibly consistent, with his save percentage not dipping below .900 since his sophomore season in the NHL. To that point, he’s only ever posted a goals-against average over 3.00 once in that span, in 2016-17, but his Penguins won the Stanley Cup that year, so no harm, no foul.
Fleury has placed himself in the company of some of the greatest to stand between the pipes. Barring major injury, he has the opportunity to firmly cement himself in that position this season.
Fleury, the 38-year-old from Sorel, Quebec, is set to play his 1,000th game in the NHL this season. Though he’ll be sharing the crease with up-and-comer Filip Gustavsson, he will undoubtably get to the 15 games needed to surpass that.
It’s also more than likely he will get to the six wins he needs to reach 550 — the most of all active NHL goalies. In fact, he just needs eight more wins to surpass one of the greatest to ever do it, Patrick Roy, for second-most of all time.
Although it’s unlikely Fleury will surpass Brodeur at 691 wins, he will sit comfortably at the top with the likes of Brodeur, Roy and Luongo. What he decides to pursue at the end of the 2023-24 season is unknown. However, it would be a surprise to many if a ticket to the Hockey Hall of Fame wasn’t in his future.
Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals: 15 points away from 1,500
It feels like Alex Ovechkin is doing something historic every season.
Last year, he surpassed Gordie Howe’s goal mark and now sits second all-time with 822. Though it probably will not happen this year, he’s also right at the doorstep of Wayne Gretzky’s all-time goals record of 894.
Even before Ovechkin had passed the 800 mark, Gretzky was sure his longstanding record was just waiting to be broken. “It’s not even a question that he will pass me, and I think that’s great,” he told The New York Times back in 2021. “There is no doubt that, ultimately, he will break the record.”
Though Ovi will have to wait for that elusive record, he’s well on his way to hitting his own milestone this season: 1,500 points.
At just a mere 15 points away and with his lethal power play shot from the left face-off circle, we can probably expect the 38-year-old Russian to hit that marker before the end of 2023.
Other points milestones to watch: Phil Kessel, eight away from 1,000; John Tavares, 25 away from 1,000; Kris Letang, nine away from 700; Mikael Backlund, eight away from 500.
Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings: Seven goals to 400, eight games to 1,300
Though he may not be as flashy as Connor McDavid or as consistent as Steven Stamkos, Anze Kopitar has been a mainstay up the middle for the Kings since making his debut in 2006, punctuated by a Selke Trophy, Lady Byng Trophy and two Stanley Cup wins.
After signing a two-year extension in July, likely ensuring the entirety of his NHL career is spent with the Kings, Kopitar is set to play his 1,300th game against the Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 28 — sixth-most amongst active players in the NHL.
Throughout his 17-year career, the 36-year-old has performed at a 0.88 PPG pace, notching 1,141 points across that time.
He’s also just seven goals away from the 400 mark, a feat he should be able to accomplish before the year is over.
Other games-played milestones to watch: Sidney Crosby, 10 away from 1,200; Ryan O’Reilly, nine away from 1,000.
Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs: One goal from 300
The Maple Leafs have had no shortage of exciting players suit up in their iconic uniform, but Auston Matthews has to be up there as one of the greatest.
At 26 years old, Matthews is entering his eighth season in the NHL but as evidenced by his consistent jaw-dropping campaigns (he has never scored less than 30 goals in a season in his career), he’s firmly in his prime and will be for years to come.
He’ll also be celebrating a milestone incredibly early in the season, perhaps in the first game — he’s just one away from his 300th career NHL marker.
At 542 points in just 481 games, Matthews is easily a point-per-game player. But, the speed at which he’s accomplished this feat, especially compared to other stars in the NHL, is what makes this so exceptional.
To put it into perspective, amongst active NHL superstars, only Ovechkin has achieved the 300 goal mark in fewer games (472). Sidney Crosby reached that mark in 622 games, Connor McDavid in 573 and Steven Stamkos in 550. Nathan MacKinnon, in the NHL since 2013 and consistently one of the top players in the league, is behind Matthews for that milestone, and he has 227 more games under his belt.
Matthews hitting the 300-goal mark in 482 games means he is scoring at a rate of 0.622 goals-per-game — unsurprising from a player who scored 40 goals in his rookie campaign and became just the third player this century to reach 60 goals in a season.
Other goals milestones to watch: Nathan MacKinnon, 16 goals to 300; Patrik Laine, two goals to 200; Matthew Tkachuk, eight goals to 200; Adam Lowry, seven goals to 100.