NHL Hart Trophy rankings: Teenage phenom battles with former award winners

We’re getting down to the nitty-gritty in the NHL season, and the Hart Trophy contenders have just over a month to make a lasting impression on voters. 

Teenage phenom Macklin Celebrini is the only frontrunner who hasn’t previously won the Hart Trophy. Connor McDavid is a three-time winner, while Nikita Kucherov, Nathan MacKinnon, and Leon Draisaitl have one apiece. 

Here are the five top contenders to win the Hart Trophy.

5. Leon Draisaitl, C, Edmonton Oilers

If you compare the Hart Trophy contenders to a Richter scale, Draisaitl would barely register a measurement. 

Still, Robin to McDavid’s Batman is enjoying another superb season, sitting fourth in league scoring with 94 points (34 goals, 60 assists) in 62 games. He’s scoring at a 1.52 points-per-game clip, the fourth-best. 

Furthermore, He has the second-most power-play points (41), four behind, you guessed it, McDavid. 

The only season in which he registered more points per game (1.55) was 2019-20, his Hart Trophy-winning season. While he won’t become a two-time winner, at least this season, he’s on pace for 120 points, which would be his second-best since joining the NHL in 2014-15. 

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4. Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers

McDavid is enjoying another gem of a season as he leads all scorers in points (110), assists (74), primary assists (46), and power-play points (45). 

He’s scored or assisted on 48 percent of the Oilers’ goals, underscoring his unsurpassed influence. McDavid also has the most multi-point games, with 36, two ahead of Kucherov and MacKinnon. 

Despite those jaw-dropping stats, the Oilers are clinging to a playoff spot and wouldn’t be in a playoff position in the Eastern Conference. For the Oilers to have any success this season, they need McDavid to continue to dominate.

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3. Macklin Celebrini, C, Macklin Celebrini

Celebrini offers an equally intriguing and interesting case study. His chances of winning the Hart Trophy in his sophomore season are predicated on the San Jose Sharks making the playoffs. 

Only three times since 1924 has the Hart Trophy been awarded to a player whose team didn’t make the postseason. 

The abbreviated list includes: Al Rollins for the Chicago Blackhawks in 1954, Andy Bathgate for the New York Rangers in 1959, and Mario Lemieux for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1988. 

As I don’t believe the Sharks will secure a playoff berth, ironically because of their overdependence on Celebrini, he’ll have to wait at least one more season to win his first MVP. 

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2. Nikita Kucherov, RW, Tampa Bay Lightning

Kucherov is scoring the most points per game (1.76), and he’s tied with MacKinnon for the most game-winning goals (5) among the contenders. 

He has registered at least three points 15 times, three more than McDavid and one fewer than MacKinnon’s 16. 

The 32-year-old has 36 more points than the Lightning’s second-leading scorer, Jake Guentzel. Only Celebrini, who is 45 points ahead of Will Smith in the Sharks hierarchy, has a larger advantage. 

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1. Nathan MacKinnon, C, Colorado Avalanche

Hart Trophy odds favorite MacKinnon is on pace for 136 points, which would be the second-best of his career. He scored 140 in 2023-24, when he won his first Hart Trophy. 

The Avalanche have outscored opponents 81-27 at 5-on-5, according to naturalstattrick.com, with MacKinnon on the ice, underpinning the Canadian’s dominance. He leads the NHL in even-strength points (80), seven ahead of second-place Kucherov, goals (43), and plus-minus (+55). 

And he has awoken after this worst patch of the season, with four multi-point outings post-Olympics. 

On his current trajectory, and as long as he avoids any more game misconducts, MacKinnon deserves his favorite status and is on course for his second Hart Trophy. 

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