One voter didn't have McDavid first for Hart Trophy... they had him fifth

Edmonton Oilers star Connor McDavid had the type of season that everyone around the hockey world could see was a once-in-a-lifetime performance.

Well, just about everyone.

Sure, McDavid picked up his third Hart Trophy on Monday night for a remarkable 2022-23 campaign, but he did so missing out on a unanimous selection by just a single vote.

There’s a difference in opinions for voting, and then there’s whatever this writer did.

Somehow, McDavid picked up 195 of 196 possible first-place votes for the NHL’s MVP, but the lone person who chose against picking him as their top candidate picked him fifth, selecting Boston’s David Pastrnak with their first-place vote instead.

After claiming the Hart Trophy as a unanimous selection in 2020-21, Connor McDavid nearly did it again in 2022-23, receiving the first-place vote on 195 of the 196 ballots for 1,951 voting points. #NHLAwards#NHLStats: https://t.co/CYi6YD6PIf pic.twitter.com/6nrsfYNg2V

— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) June 27, 2023

With 153 points in 82 games, McDavid won the scoring race by 25 points over his teammate Leon Draisaitl, while he outscored Pastrnak by 40 points.

Sure, Pastrnak’s Bruins won the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s best regular season team, but it’s unfathomable that even if someone felt like he was a more valuable player to Boston than McDavid was to Edmonton, that there were somehow also three more players ahead of the Edmonton star on their ballot.

The Hart was nearly unanimous for Connor McDavid. One first-place vote for David Pastrnak. One fifth-place(!) vote for McDavid. pic.twitter.com/pThVcsFJNa

— luke fox (@lukefoxjukebox) June 27, 2023

Media aren’t always exactly known to be in agreement on award voting over the years, but this is the kind of flub that needs some explanation.

With the Pro Hockey Writers’ Association releasing their ballots shortly after the awards, we’ll likely have a Twitter thread explainer from one of the 196 who submitted a ballot this season, as well as some closure on who the other four players including Pastrnak picked ahead of McDavid were.

But it’s not that likely it’ll be that well-received an explanation, with McDavid having one of the most remarkable seasons this millennium, and one that seemed to be a slam dunk unanimous winner of the Hart Trophy.

McDavid was the ninth player in NHL history to win three or more Hart Trophies, joining the likes of Wayne Gretzky (nine), Gordie Howe (six), Eddie Shore (four), Howie Morenz, Bobby Orr, Bobby Clarke, Mario Lemieux, and Alexander Ovechkin.

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