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Alex Ovechkin is off to a scary start, the best of his career. Through 9 games, Ovechkin has 61 shots on goal. His 6.77 shots per game put him on a pace for more than 500 shots - a feat that only he and Phil Esposito have achieved in the history of of the NHL.
| S/G | S | |
| Through 9 | 6.77 | 61 |
Ovechkin has managed to play an average of 79 games (including the full 48 in 2012-13) over his last three seasons, so maintaining his cannonade through 79 games amounts to some awe-inspiring numbers:
| S/G | S | |
| Through 79 | 6.77 | 535 |
The season would be so awesome, in fact, it would count as a career high in shots and shots per game for him, placing him second all-time behind Phil Esposito in 1970-71:
| Year | GP | S | S/G | |
| Phil Esposito | 70-71 | 78 | 550 | 7.05 |
| Alex Ovechkin | 13-14 | 79 | 535 | 6.77 |
| Alex Ovechkin | 08-09 | 79 | 528 | 6.68 |
| Phil Esposito | 71-72 | 76 | 426 | 5.61 |
| Bobby Hull | 68-69 | 74 | 414 | 5.59 |
| Brett Hull | 91-92 | 73 | 408 | 5.59 |
| Alex Ovechkin | 07-08 | 82 | 446 | 5.44 |
| Bobby Orr | 69-70 | 76 | 413 | 5.43 |
| Phil Esposito | 69-70 | 76 | 405 | 5.33 |
| Phil Esposito | 72-73 | 78 | 411 | 5.27 |
Ovechkin's 13-14 would be second all-time behind Phil Esposito in 70-71. His 6.77 shots per game would push his 05-06 season, where he took 425 shots (5.25 per game) into 11th place all-time. He would have the 2nd, 3rd, 7th, and 11th-best seasons of all time, and his four best seasons averaging 6.02 shots per game would surpass Esposito's four best, which averaged 5.82 shots per game.
At his career average of 12.2%, Ovechkin's 65 goals would tie his 07-08 season as his career high and make him just the 8th player in history to score 60 twice.