Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki didn’t just play in his 300th NHL game on Monday. He also suited up for his 300th consecutive game.
That’s impressive when you consider that the Canadiens have been one of the NHL’s most injured teams for the past two years, with teammates like Kirby Dach, Cole Caufield, and Christian Dvorak all going down for extended periods.
Whether Suzuki holds any endurance secrets or puck luck is just working in his favour, the youngest captain in Habs history now holds one of the longest active ironman streaks in the NHL.
Acquired by the Habs in a 2018 trade with the Vegas Golden Knights, Suzuki made his NHL debut with the Canadiens on October 3, 2019. One pandemic, a run to the Stanley Cup Final, two rebuilding years, and 217 points later, and he has yet to miss a game.
In fact, only three NHL players have longer streaks than the London, Ontario, native, and they’re all veterans: Phil Kessel (1,064 games), Brent Burns (770 games) and Ryan Suter (377 games).
As a result, Suzuki’s got more consecutive games under his belt than any active NHLer under 30 — and he’s only 24. If he wants to catch Kessel, who is the all-time leader in consecutive games played, he’ll have to stay healthy for the next nine and a half seasons.
In the meantime, though, he seems to be taking things one shift at a time.
“I think I’ve been able to grow as a player and my mindset from when I was a rookie ’til now, not to let too much get into my head,” Suzuki told Daily Hive over the summer. “There [are] a lot of distractions that can go on, and all you can do is focus on the next day, the next opportunity that you get to step on the ice.”
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