If he wants to retain his crown as the National Hockey League's (NHL) top scorer, Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid may want to increase his pace as the competition heats up.
The three-time reigning Art Ross holder and five-time career winner of the trophy, No. 97, is about ten points behind the leader, Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov, in search of a second coronation. Then there's Colorado Avalanche star player Nathan MacKinnon, who is in good form. He also reached the century by registering a goal and an assist in an easy 5-0 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday.
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The Pivot has a streak of eight games with at least one point, in which he scored around fifteen points in total. Beyond his performance, his traveling speed impresses head coach Jared Bednar, who is keen to rely on a player who has racked up 64 assists this season.
“To reach this mark at this stage of the campaign is incredible. We've seen guys do it elsewhere in the league. […] But he was a good player for us for so long without ever breaking the 100 mark. I looked at his stats from the past and they show how effective he is this year. Last year he scored 111 points in 71 games, but now he's already at 100, and that's amazing. He finds a way to produce more,” the pilot told NHL.com.
Regular like clockwork
For his part, Kucherov isn't letting up, which is bad news for the Montreal Canadiens, who will visit the Lightning on Saturday at 7 p.m. on TVA Sports. The Russian has been on the scoresheet in each of his last five duels. Among other things, he collected a goal and two assists against the New York Islanders on Saturday and a goal and three assists against the New Jersey Devils the next day.
“He is a very, very special player. […] Without the ability to put together a team, you can't win in this league. A man can't do everything alone, but you need a leader, and he leads by example in the locker room. He really dominates on the ice and when your best hockey players play right, everyone follows you. “It's no surprise that he's performing so well,” said Bolts head coach Jon Cooper on the circuit's English-language website a few days ago.
On Saturday, MacKinnon and the Avalanche visit the Nashville Predators, while McDavid faces the Kraken in Seattle.