The Colorado Avalanche boast two Hart Trophy candidates this season: Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon.
A recent piece in The Athletic looked at the Hart Trophy race this season, placing Edmonton Oilers superstar Leon Draisaitl as the leading candidate for the Hart. The criteria used to rank players comes from Net Rating (a ranking system unveiled by The Athletic).
In that ranking, Draisaitl comes out on top with a +15.1 Net Rating after adding his offensive and defensive rankings. It’s not much of a surprise to see a player of Draisaitl’s caliber leading the way.
But what’s interesting is Cale Makar coming in second at +14.1. Now, what’s surprising about Makar is that defensemen don’t usually get this high up in the rankings. But this season, Makar and Vancouver Canucks captain Quinn Hughes are in the top five.
When looking at Makar’s season, it’s no wonder he’s right up there with Draisaitl. Makar is on a 100-point pace and has played much more solid defense this year. He’s maintained his position as the team’s top blueliner, even with Devon Toews missing some time with injury.
It’s hard to bet against Draisaitl, but with the way things are going, there’s a solid argument to be made for Makar getting the Hart. He plays a much tougher position and typically faces the opposition’s best players far more often than Draisaitl does.
There’s still a lot of hockey to be played. So, it remains to be seen if these numbers shift significantly from now till the end of the season.
Cale Makar not the only Colorado Avalanche up for the Hart
Nathan MacKinnon rounds out the top five in the Net Ratings ranking. MacKinnon is ranked slightly below Quinn Hughes at +12.5. MacKinnon has been an unstoppable force this season, leading the Avalanche offensively, while playing a solid defensive role, as well.
MacKinnon currently leads the NHL in scoring with 66 points, a full seven points over Draisaitl, and eight points over teammate Mikko Rantanen.
Now, here’s where I’d like to make a crucial point about Draisaitl’s value as the league MVP. Sure, he deserves consideration. But Draisaitl plays on a team that has Connor McDavid. MacKinnon doesn’t. He’s the guy in Colorado.
Some could argue that Makar and MacKinnon are like McDavid and Draisaitl. However, that’s a common misconception as Makar and MacKinnon don’t play the same position. They both contribute offensively, but they don’t have the same roles.
McDavid and Draisaitl do. They are both centers and expected to lead the offensive charge. While I agree that subjectivity must be reduced to a minimum when picking awards, the eye test is just as important as any metric.
And, when looking at Nathan MacKinnon’s case for the Hart, he should get plenty of consideration this year. The way things are shaping up, the top three nominees could be Draisaitl, Makar, and MacKinnon.
I’d love to see Makar win it since he’s a blue liner. But the fact of the matter is that Nathan MacKinnon provided he wins the Art Ross Trophy, should make it back-to-back Hart Trophies this season.