As we head into the home stretch of the NHL season, the battle to be anointed the league's most valuable player is heating up.
A familiar face still leads the pack, but a group of superstar contenders ensures it'll be a compelling race that could come down to the wire.
Here are our top five candidates at this point to claim the Hart Trophy in June:
5. Nathan MacKinnon
| GP | G | A | P | ATOI | SCF% | CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64 | 33 | 48 | 81 | 21:51 | 53.08 | 53.88 |
The Colorado Avalanche have found it tough to break through in the ultra-competitive Central Division, but MacKinnon's strong play has kept them in a playoff position, or right on the doorstep, for most of the season.
Mikko Rantanen has taken his game to another level in 2018-19, but he clearly owes some of that improvement to playing alongside the proven catalyst in MacKinnon on one of the NHL's most dangerous top lines.
The 2018 Hart runner-up might have a hard time convincing voters he belongs among the finalists this time around due to Rantanen's increased contributions, but MacKinnon should once again be in the conversation.
4. Johnny Gaudreau
| GP | G | A | P | ATOI | SCF% | CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64 | 30 | 52 | 82 | 20:11 | 53.3 | 53.69 |
Gaudreau has cooled off a bit since our last edition, but he's still the most lethal weapon on the Calgary Flames, who remain one of the league's best stories this season.
Similar to the first name on this list, Johnny Hockey has some help, but there's no way the Flames are atop their division without his stellar play in 2018-19.
Gaudreau is on pace to eclipse the 100-point mark, and he'll likely soon surpass his career high of 84 that he established last season.
3. Connor McDavid
| GP | G | A | P | ATOI | SCF% | CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 | 33 | 54 | 87 | 22:58 | 51.12 | 50.61 |
The Edmonton Oilers are probably too far out of the playoff race now for McDavid to garner enough first-place votes, but - as we've documented many times - he's arguably the NHL's most valuable player, irrespective of his team's struggles.
As such, the superstar center should at least be a Hart finalist, especially given that he's figured in on an utterly astounding 48.6 percent of the Oilers' goals.
No player does more to help his team than McDavid, but as the Oilers have slid further out of contention, the all-world forward's case to win the Hart has gotten tougher to justify.
2. Patrick Kane
| GP | G | A | P | ATOI | SCF% | CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 63 | 40 | 54 | 94 | 22:26 | 45.77 | 48.07 |
Kane has been carrying Chicago and warrants a long look for this award, even with the Blackhawks sitting outside the playoff picture.
They certainly wouldn't have gotten back into the playoff mix without Kane, who potted his 40th goal of the season in dramatic fashion Wednesday night and recently reeled off a 20-game point streak. The Blackhawks are closer to a postseason berth than the Oilers, and if they manage to secure one, it would be tough not to tab Kane for this award given his impact.
He has figured in on 44 percent of the Blackhawks' scoring (94 points on 214 team goals), which illustrates just how much Chicago depends on his elite production.
The question is how close the team needs to get to the playoffs for his individual exploits to be rewarded. That's up to the voters, but there's no disputing how good he's been or where the Blackhawks would be without him.
1. Nikita Kucherov
| GP | G | A | P | ATOI | SCF% | CF% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 65 | 30 | 74 | 104 | 19:38 | 53.16 | 53.04 |
It's easy to get caught up in the "most valuable" debate when it comes to Hart voting, but let's not make this more complicated than it should be.
Kucherov has been far and away the league's best player on what is unquestionably the league's best team.
Yes, the Tampa Bay Lightning superstar has a talented supporting cast and the team would probably be reasonably competitive without him. But it wouldn't be the juggernaut that's already broken the triple-digit point barrier in the standings if not for Kucherov, who's been putting up video-game numbers, having already surpassed 100 points of his own.
He's been sensational all season long, and no one is more deserving of MVP honors than Kucherov at this point.
Honorable mentions: Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, Rantanen, Sebastian Aho (Hurricanes).
ATOI = Average time on ice
SCF% = Percentage of scoring chances generated by the player's team with him on the ice at five-on-five
CF% = Percentage of shot attempts generated by the player's team with him on the ice at five-on-five
(Analytics courtesy: Natural Stat Trick)
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