As Colorado Avalanche fans, we know the worth of star center iceman Nathan MacKinnon. He’s a fast skater who can crash the net any time he pleases. MacKinnon was second on the team in goal scoring with 42 and first on the team with 69 assists.
It is no surprise that MacKinnon is known league-wide. He’s never going to be left off of lists in terms of best scorers or shooters. It’s truly a privilege to have him on the Avalanche as a former first-overall draft pick.
Take this into account: per JFreshHockey on Twitter, MacKinnon was the best overall player at creating scoring opportunities:
Who created the most and best scoring opportunities in 2022-23 at 5v5 by shooting and passing the puck?
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) July 30, 2023
Using AllThreeZones tracked shot data weighed by variables like shot and pre-shot pass type, here are the top 40: pic.twitter.com/OJ2sDW7PGS
At the end of the day, nobody truly needs proof through these kinds of stats. That being said, it really puts into perspective how good MacKinnon is overall and how good he was last season.
Nathan MacKinnon set career highs in goals (42), assists (69) and points (111) last season, moving the @Avalanche star up to #⃣2⃣ on our Top 20 Centers list!#NHLTopPlayers | #GoAvsGo pic.twitter.com/DLVHTxyHY6
— NHL Network (@NHLNetwork) August 7, 2023
Despite a down year for the Colorado Avalanche, MacKinnon was a bright spot on the team. As shown above, he set career highs in three categories. It was a surprising year for that to happen, especially given the fact that he missed 11 games. He injured his hip during a hit he took against the Philadelphia Flyers on December 5th, 2022.
The fact that he put up the numbers that he did while missing that amount of time doesn’t guarantee he’ll be even better during the 2023-24 season, but it certainly makes it hard to believe that he can’t/won’t do it again, or at least come close. MacKinnon is a superstar and a top-2 player on the team. As long as he is on the ice, the Colorado Avalanche always have a chance of winning hockey games.
While Nathan MacKinnon did not make the number 1 spot on this list, it isn’t because he got snubbed. Edmonton Oilers center Connor McDavid is a well-deserving player for the top spot on this list. He had 64 goals and 89 assists and was able to play all 82 games of the 2022-23 season. Had MacKinnon played all 82 games, I’m sure that his stats would be a lot closer to that of McDavid’s.
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