McDavid deserves Hart Trophy, but Oilers superstar has stiff competition

The 2023-24 season got off to a slow start for Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid, but you wouldn’t know that by looking at his stat line.

Though he won’t surpass the ridiculous 153 points he recorded a season ago, the 27-year-old has been phenomenal once again, with 26 goals and 119 total points through 68 games. His 119 points are good enough for third-in-league scoring.

Understandably, the two players ahead of him in the scoring race, Nikita Kucherov and Nathan MacKinnon, are both receiving heavy recognition in the Hart Trophy debate. Kucherov’s 124 points lead the league, while MacKinnon sits second with 123. While both are having fantastic seasons, however, it’s the way that McDavid has gotten to 119 points that may lead towards him being the frontrunner.

With 12 games to go, McDavid needs just seven more assists to have 100 on the season. He would join Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, and Bobby Orr as the only NHLers to ever hit that mark.

It is also worth noting how the Oilers horrific start to the season was in large part due to McDavid’s struggles. He had just 13 points through his first 14 games of the season, which may not sound like much of a struggle, but was very disappointing given the dominating numbers his fans have become accustomed to.

McDavid has since racked up 106 points in 54 games, and to no surprise, the Oilers have completely turned their season around. While this team has certainly added some depth around him, their ugly record when he was struggling early in the season shows just how much he factors into their success.

The Hart is given to the player who is believed to be the most valuable to his respective team, and with the way the Oilers season has unfolded, it’s hard to argue against him taking home the award for the fourth time in his career.

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