Nikita Kucherov, Nathan MacKinnon and Connor McDavid were named finalists for the Hart Trophy on Tuesday.
The winner of the award, given annually to the NHL player voted most valuable to his team by the Professional Hockey Writers Association, will be announced Thursday, June 27 at the 2024 NHL Awards, being held at the Fontainebleau in Las Vegas (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, SN).
Kucherov led the NHL with 144 points (44 goals, 100 assists) in 81 games, the highest point total of his NHL career and the most in Tampa Bay Lightning history, surpassing the 128 points (41 goals, 87 assists) he had in 2018-19. The 30-year-old forward won the Art Ross Trophy, given to the player with the most points in an NHL season. He also won the Hart Trophy in 2018-19.
Kucherov and McDavid were the first players to have 100 assists in a season since Wayne Gretzky's 122 for the Los Angeles Kings in 1990-91. His 53 power-play points (13 goals, 40 assists) also led the League.
MacKinnon was second with 140 points (51 goals, 89 assists) in 82 games. In addition to leading the Colorado Avalanche in goals, assists and points, his 51 goals were fourth in the NHL and his 48 power-play points (10 goals, 38 assists) were second to Kucherov. It was the second time in his NHL career and second straight season with at least 100 points after he had 111 (42 goals, 69 assists) last season. The 28-year-old center led the NHL with 405 shots on goal and had a home point streak of 35 games (77 points; 29 goals, 48 assists) to start the season, the second longest in NHL history behind Gretzky, who had a 40-game run for the Kings in 1988-89.
"It’s the consistency in his preparation," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said Tuesday. "Takes care of his game first. But there’s no question that his leadership has evolved over the eight years that I’ve been with him. I think when you get your game to a spot that you feel comfortable with as a young player and then understand how important winning is and what it takes to get there, then you start trying to help everyone else around you. He’s certainly done that. He’s branched out and evolved as a leader of our team. Some of the things are still very consistent, the way he leads by example, the way he prepares himself and helps prepare our team for our opponents. Those parts of his DNA have always been there, but there’s no question that he’s got a bigger-picture outlook on the game now than he did when I first came."
McDavid was third with 132 points (32 goals, 100 assists) in 76 games. It was the fourth straight season the Edmonton Oilers captain had at least 100 points, and the seventh time in his nine NHL seasons. He had 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in his first 11 games, which had him tied for 107th in scoring, but had 122 (30 goals, 92 assists) in his final 65, an average of 1.88 points per game.
The 27-year-old center is attempting to win the Hart Trophy for the second straight season and the fourth time since joining the NHL for the 2015-16 season. He also won it in 2016-17 and 2020-21.
\NHL.com columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika contributed to this report \
