Yep, I believe the forward repeats as Hart Trophy winner after taking the award last season. Why not? The best players in the NHL continuously find ways to hit impressive marks, and MacKinnon is no exception. He scored more than 50 goals for the first time in his career last season (51). He had a career-high 140 points and a 35-game home point streak, second-longest in League history behind Gretzky’s 40-game run with the Los Angeles Kings in 1988-89. What impressive stats will MacKinnon put up this season? That remains to be seen, but there’s no doubt he will once again be the driving force for the Avalanche. — Tracey Myers, staff writer
The American forward scored 69 goals last season. Granted, expecting him to score that many again this season seems far-fetched. Wayne Gretzky (four times), Mario Lemieux (four), Brett Hull (three), Phil Esposito (three), Jari Kurri (two) and Mike Bossy (two) are the only players who have scored at least 65 goals twice in their careers. Gretzky, Hull, Lemieux, Esposito and Kurri are the four who have done it in back-to-back seasons. But Matthews’ ability to score puts him in that category. He can do it. He leads the NHL with 368 goals (in 562 games) since he broke into the League in 2016-17. Let’s face it, the object of the game is to score more goals than the opposition. The Maple Leafs consistently do that well because of Matthews. But now he’s the captain too. There are leadership responsibilities. There’s more on his plate, but the expectation here is Matthews will have another 60-goal, 100-point season. Put it all together, and this will be his season to earn the label as the most valuable player to his team. — Dan Rosen, senior writer
Since being selected No. 1 by the Oilers at the 2015 NHL Draft, no player has more points (982) and assists (647) than McDavid. It’s not even close. Consider this: the 27-year-old has 141 more points than the second-highest point getter in that span, teammate Leon Draisaitl (841). It’s that type of dominance that has netted him three Hart Trophy honors (2017, 2021, 2023). But for me, this is as much about the eye test as it is about statistics. As a kid, I watched Bobby Orr and was privileged to get to know him when he was an agent. I covered Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux at the end of their generational careers, then got to do the same with Sidney Crosby and Alex Ovechkin from the time each broke into the League. Through all that, I’ve never seen a more naturally talented hockey player than McDavid. His straight-line speed and his ability to make plays at such high velocity is jaw-dropping. Want proof? Just watch him. — Mike Zeisberger, staff writer
The forward has put together back-to-back 100-plus point seasons, and there is little reason to believe he will not be able to do it again this season. The 28-year-old had 110 points (47 goals, 63 assists) in 82 games last season and eight points (four goals, four assists) in 13 playoff games. Pastrnak is just entering his prime and with a strong supporting cast around him is capable of putting together an MVP season for the Bruins. It would not be surprising to see Pastrnak surpass the 50-goal and 100-point plateau like he did in 2022-23 (61 goals, 52 assists) in 82 games. — Derek Van Diest, staff writer
