Avalanche’s NATHAN MACKINNON not playing among NHL superstars?
Avalanche’s NATHAN MACKINNON not playing among NHL superstars?
Adam Proto thinks Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon doesn’t get much recognition as one of the NHL’s best talents. When people talk about the best players in the NHL, a few names immediately come to mind. Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, Toronto’s Auston Matthews, Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby, Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov and Boston’s David Pastrnak.
However, in this writer’s opinion, the one NHL superstar who doesn’t get the credit he deserves is Nathan MacKinnon of the Colorado Avalanche. The 28-year-old center is having a tremendous season and deserves more praise than he is currently receiving.
Perhaps MacKinnon’s lower profile will be on an Avs team loaded with top stars, including guard Kyle Makar, wing Mikko Rantanen and captain Gabriel Landesog, who were integral to Colorado’s Stanley Cup run. The 2021 championship season is 2022. . Notably, Makar was a senior who won the Connsmith Trophy for the most valuable playoff performance in the 2022 postseason. However, MacKinnon showed overwhelming power, leading the team in playoff goals (13) and scoring 24 points in 20 games. Without him, Colorado wouldn’t have won it all.
In 2022-23, MacKinnon missed 11 games due to health issues. That may have gone unnoticed by some observers, but it allowed him to set career highs in goals (42), assists (69) and points (111) in 71 games. That number ranked fifth in the league behind McDavid (153), Draisaitl (128), Pastrnak and Kucherov (113). However, all four players played at least 80 games. Had McKinnon been healthy all season, he would have been close to Draisaitl’s pace at around 128 points. There are players in the NHL who have signed long-term contracts for big money, and teams have ended up regretting those trades. But no one is complaining about McKinnon’s current contract, which averages $12.6 million per season. He has been a monster for the Avs this year, scoring 19 goals, 37 assists and 56 points in just 35 games. With this, he scored 45 goals, 87 assists and 132 points. It’s an impressive performance for a player who is the focal point of every opponent’s defense. MacKinnon is in his prime and has once again been a major factor in Colorado’s success this year. McKinnon doesn’t attract attention and Denver doesn’t get as much media attention as McDavid and Matthews in the Canadian market. But there is no doubt that it is powerful. If the Olympics or the World Cup of Hockey were held today, he would take center stage as one of Canada’s most important players. And she plays fair, as evidenced by her victory at the 2020 Lady Byng Memorial Trophy. Imagine how much training you have to do to be a giant monster on the ice and keep your emotions under control. That’s what McKinnon did in 11 NHL seasons. He knows better than to be an impatient person who easily distances himself from the other person.
MacKinnon has nothing to prove to anyone at this point in his career, but he is working to become a repeat Cup winner. It’s not worth betting on his actions. In this writer’s opinion, he is the second best player in the NHL behind McDavid, which is no small thing. He has the potential to win individual trophies and may not be perfect yet. It would be scary for the rest of the league.
