Wayne Gretzky owns a laundry list of NHL records, including the mark for the most career points. A player earns a point by either scoring a goal or getting an assist, which is credited to up to two players who pass the puck toward a teammate who scores. Gretzky's 894 career goals plus his 1,963 career assists give him a grand total of 2,857 points over his illustrious 20-year career. That's nearly 1,000 more than any other player.
Here's a look at the players with the most career points in NHL history:
Wayne Gretzky, 2,857 (894 goals + 1,963 assists)
Jaromir Jagr, 1,921 (766 goals + 1,155 assists)
Mark Messier, 1,887 (694 goals + 1,193 assists)
Gordie Howe, 1,850 (801 goals + 1,049 assists)
Ron Francis, 1,798 (549 goals + 1,249 assists)
Marcel Dionne, 1,771 (731 goals + 1,040 assists)
Steve Yzerman, 1,755 (692 goals + 1,063 assists)
Mario Lemieux, 1,723 (690 goals + 1,033 assists)
Joe Sakic, 1,641 (625 goals + 1,016 assists)
Sidney Crosby, 1,631 (601 goals + 1,030 assists)
Phil Esposito, 1,590 (717 goals + 873 assists)
Ray Bourque, 1,579 (410 goals + 1,169 assists)
Alex Ovechkin, 1,575 (868 goals + 707 assists)
Joe Thornton, 1,539 (430 goals + 1,109 assists)
Mark Recchi, 1,533 (577 goals + 956 assists)
Check out the ESPN NHL hub page for the latest news, analysis, stats, schedules and more.