Predicting Each NHL Team's Most Valuable Player for the 2023-24 Season
Every NHL team, whether it wins the Stanley Cup or the draft lottery, will have one player who stands out above the rest and brings the most value to their squad.
We are going to take a stroll through the league and project who that one player will be for all 32 clubs.
In some cases, that person will probably be obvious and be the best, most impactful player on the roster. In other cases, it might be a more unheralded or secondary player who is going to need to shoulder a heavy load and be a difference-maker.
In terms of value, we are looking at overall production, importance to the roster and the ability to significantly alter the course of the team's season.
Let's take a look at who we like around the league.
Arizona Coyotes: Clayton Keller
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Clayton Keller might be the best pure offensive player the Coyotes have had since the organization relocated to Arizona in the mid-1990s, and his 86-point performance a year ago matched the franchise's best single-season output since that move.
There is a very real chance he builds on that this year and becomes the first 90-point player the franchise has had since moving to the desert.
That's not only due to his skill and offensive instincts, but also because he'll be the go-to player for the Coyotes offense, get top power-play billing and have a bit more support offensively. The arrival of Logan Cooley brings another potential star to the mix, while the Coyotes made a couple of nice offseason veteran additions in Sean Durzi, Matt Dumba and Jason Zucker.
An already strong player getting better support means Keller has a chance to keep building on his numbers. It also makes him the most valuable player on the Coyotes.
Anaheim Ducks: Troy Terry
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Troy Terry might not be the most gifted player among the Anaheim Ducks' core.
Trevor Zegras will make more highlights.
Mason McTavish might end up being a better pure goal-scorer.
Leo Carlsson might end up being a bigger star than any of them.
But right now Terry is the best overall player on the roster.
From the moment he arrived in the NHL, he always had strong underlying numbers and was a good possession-driver, but everything finally started to click for him offensively two years ago when he broke out with 37 goals in only 75 games.
He might not approach those raw numbers again, but you should still feel comfortable penciling him in for 25-30 goals and 60 points while he acts as the best possession-driver on the team.
He is starting a new seven-year, $49 million contract extension this season and is a critical part of their long-term core.
Boston Bruins: David Pastrnak
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What the Boston Bruins will actually look like on the ice and in the standings this year is very much an unknown because of everybody they lost this offseason, including top centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci to retirement.
But even with those departures and even with the questions surrounding the roster there is still a pretty strong core of superstars here.
With all due respect to great players like Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy, David Pastrnak is now the unquestioned best, most impactful player on the roster and is coming off a monster 61-goal season. He is still in what should be his prime years, and if he does not repeat his numbers from a year ago he is going to be a threat for at least 50 goals for the foreseeable future.
He has been an offensive force for the past seven years and is going to need to take on an even bigger share of the offensive load given the question marks that now exist at the center position. He is perfectly capable of doing it, and if they end up getting back to the playoffs and making any sort of a run, Pastrnak is going to be the person driving the bus for that success.
Buffalo Sabres: Tage Thompson
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Tage Thompson has helped completely change the outlook for the Buffalo Sabres' current rebuild.
They originally acquired him as a key piece of the Ryan O'Reilly trade with St. Louis. For his first couple of seasons in Buffalo, he looked like a first-round bust that highlighted the failures of the O'Reilly deal and the Sabres' previous regime.
But two years ago something clicked for Thompson that completely changed the narrative around the trade that brought him to Buffalo and the organization as a whole.
He is now one of the league's biggest (literally and figuratively) offensive stars and has become a true franchise cornerstone for the Sabres. There was some question going into the 2022-23 season as to whether the 6'6", 220-pounder would be able to repeat his 2021-22 breakout performance, and he not only managed to repeat it, he also improved on it. Significantly. He jumped from 68 to 94 points.
His combination of size, sublime stick-handling skills and absolute cannon of a slap shot make him one of the most dangerous offensive zone players in the league. He might be the key reason the Sabres finally snap their 12-year playoff drought this season.
Calgary Flames: Jacob Markstrom
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The Calgary Flames' 2022-23 season was a massive disappointment, and that teamwide disappointment was driven by down years from two of their most important players: forward Jonathan Huberdeau and goalie Jacob Markstrom.
If the Flames are going to get back to the playoffs, they are going to need both players to return to their previous level.
Perhaps none more so than Markstrom.
While his 2022-23 performance was one of the worst of his career as a starting goalie, he has too much pedigree, too much experience and too much talent to be that bad again. It was the perfect storm of everything going wrong for the Flames—and Markstrom—all in the same season, including a coach in Darryl Sutter who pretty much every player seemed to tune out,
It is a new campaign, with a new voice in coach Ryan Huska, a fresh start and an opportunity for Markstrom to again remind everybody that he has been and still can be a top-tier goalie. He is just one year removed from being a runner-up for the Vezina Trophy. If he can get back closer to that level, the Flames will be a playoff team again.
Carolina Hurricanes: Sebastian Aho
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The Carolina Hurricanes are a team where the whole is always greater than the sum of the parts. They do not have that one guy who will keep opposing coaches or goaltenders awake at night.
What they have instead is an incredibly deep team full of really good players.
Out of that collection of really good players, Sebastian Aho is the best, most important of the bunch.
In some ways that construction and lack of a top-shelf scorer might be one of the things that has held them back from breaking through and winning a Stanley Cup, but there is no denying that it is still one of the best teams in hockey and that Aho is the engine that really helps drive it.
He is an outstanding goal-scorer and an excellent playmaker, he drives possession and is right in the middle of what should be his peak years offensively, so there is still a chance he can continue to build on his production. He has been the Hurricanes' best player for a while now and will continue that this season.
Chicago Blackhawks: Connor Bedard
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The Chicago Blackhawks won't win a lot of hockey games this season, and they are still going to be pretty far away from the playoffs, but that does not mean the year will be a failure.
The value in this season will be seeing Bedard, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NHL draft, develop into a franchise cornerstone.
We have only seen him play against NHL talent in a handful of preseason games and two regular-season games, but he has shown every sign you want to see from a young franchise player.
When guys like Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin and Connor McDavid first broke into the NHL as top picks they put up huge numbers and made a significant impact on bad teams that were first starting to build something. Bedard could have that sort of impact here.
No matter what, his presence alone is bringing value to the Blackhawks because it is making them relevant again on the ice.
Colorado Avalanche: Cale Makar
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Nathan MacKinnon gets most of the headlines in Colorado because he is usually the Avalanche's leading scorer and is one of the top players in hockey.
But if you want to talk about the best, most impactful overall player on the team, it's defenseman Cale Makar.
Anytime you have a blue-liner who can play the minutes Makar does and impact the game through all three zones (and in all situations) the way he does, you are talking about a truly unique force.
And right now there is nobody in hockey who plays the position with as much brilliance and dominance as him. Teams that have players like this on defense are not just good, they are Stanley Cup contenders.
Makar has been a point-per-game player since entering the league in 2019 (in both the regular season and playoffs) while also playing the role of a No. 1 defender.
Given the way he scores, the team around him and the increasing rate of offense in the NHL, he might have a shot at hitting the 100-point mark this season.
Columbus Blue Jackets: Zach Werenski
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The Columbus Blue Jackets had a lot of problems last season, and injuries were at the very top of that list.
There was no injury that was more impactful than the shoulder setback that caused the loss of Zach Werenski, their top defenseman, for pretty much the entire season. And he was having a really great start to the year before he was injured.
When healthy, Werenski is one of the better offensive defensemen in hockey and is capable of 20 goals and 45-50 points from the blue line. Columbus needs to improve dramatically across the board (both offensively and defensively), and getting its top defenseman back should help them accomplish both.
It still might not be enough to make the playoffs in a tough Metropolitan Division, but his presence will be felt in Columbus.
Dallas Stars: Jason Robertson
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Robertson is one of the players that should be on the short list for NHL MVP consideration at the start of the season.
He is not only one of the most productive players in the NHL, he is also one of the most creative and entertaining and is a one-man highlight reel almost every single night.
He is also a part of one of the best lines in hockey and the foundation for a team that looks to be one of the best in the NHL.
Robertson's offensive output has steadily improved every year he has been in the NHL, and entering his age 24 season he should be hitting his peak years. Do not be surprised if that offensive output continues on the same upward trajectory we have seen over the first three years of his career. That could mean 50-goals and 115-120 points this season.
That is not an unreasonable expectation.
He has the talent and the supporting cast to get there, and if he does that for a Stars team that ends up being as good as it should be you could be talking about an NHL MVP and not just a Dallas Stars MVP.
Detroit Red Wings: Moritz Seider
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Moritz Seider's first two years in the NHL have been a bit of a roller coaster.
He burst onto the scene two years ago and became the rare defenseman to win the Calder Trophy as the league's Rookie of the Year, looking like he was on his way to becoming a bona fide No. 1 defenseman.
Then his second season started with a bit of a slump as he struggled alongside veteran Ben Chiarot. But when the Red Wings separated those two, Seider again started to look like the player he was as a rookie.
Now entering year three, he is set to take an even bigger step forward for the Red Wings as they continue their ongoing rebuild.
If they are going to finally show some sort of progress in that rebuild, they will need Seider to become an impact player. The talent is absolutely there, and if the Red Wings put him in the right spots with the right partner, this season has a chance to be his best one yet.
Edmonton Oilers: Connor McDavid
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This is an easy call. As long as Connor McDavid stays healthy and plays in at least 70-75 games, you know he'll be one of the top-two scorers in the NHL and the single most impactful player in the sport.
His 2022-23 season was one of the best individual offensive performances we have seen in decades, as he scored 64 goals and recorded 153 points.
It is really not out of the question to wonder if he could reach the 70-goal mark this season.
There is not a better offensive player in the world, and with his seven consecutive top-five finishes in the MVP voting, you can be almost certain he will be in that discussion again.
No matter how good the rest of his team is, when McDavid is on the ice the Oilers are going to be outscoring their opponents by a significant margin. The only question for them is whether the rest of the team can do enough to complement him.
Florida Panthers: Matthew Tkachuk
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Every team in the NHL might hate playing against Matthew Tkachuk, but every general manager, coach, player and fan would probably crawl over broken glass to get him on their roster.
The Florida Panthers star is on the short list of best all-around players in the world and brings a nearly unmatched combination of scoring, defense, possession driving, tenacity and grit to the ice. No matter the situation, no matter the opponent and no matter the style of play, Tkachuk is capable of matching almost anybody in the league and taking over a game.
He will get under your skin, he will draw you into penalties, he will make you lose your cool and then he will embarrass you with his scoring touch around the net. He's a truly unique player and one of the biggest reasons the Panthers were able to go on a stunning run to the Stanley Cup Final a year ago.
For years the Panthers were Aleksander Barkov's team, and while he remains an outstanding player in his own right, Tkachuk is now leading this group.
Los Angeles Kings: Anze Kopitar
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Anze Kopitar has been one of the best all-around players of his era, and even as he gets deeper into his 30s he remains as rock solid as ever.
He joined the Los Angeles Kings during a rebuild in 2006, helped them rise into a two-time Stanley Cup champion, endured another full-scale rebuild and is again helping them become a top contender in the Western Conference. He has literally seen the highs and lows that a franchise can go through multiple times.
And he is still a fantastic player who can do it all for the Kings.
He led the team in scoring a year ago in his age-35 season and remains one of the best defensive forwards in hockey, finishing in the top-six of the Selke Trophy voting in each of the past two years (including fifth this past season).
His scoring and all-around play still make him the most valuable player in Los Angeles.
Minnesota Wild: Kirill Kaprizov
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It is really difficult for one player to completely change the entire feel of an organization, but Kirill Kaprizov has had that impact on the Minnesota Wild from the day he arrived in 2021.
Prior to his debut in the NHL, the Wild were consistently one of the dullest teams in the league and even in victory did not really do anything to attract eyeballs.
They just always existed in anonymity, winning 45 games in the most boring way possible and bowing out early in the playoffs when they ran into a better, more dynamic team.
And while the playoff success still hasn't been there in recent years, Kaprizov has at least helped bring a sense of excitement that never previously existed.
He is a game-changing offensive force, and with the Wild still dealing with a complicated salary-cap situation this season because of buyouts of Zach Parise and Ryan Suter, they are going to need the players already on the roster to keep getting better and maintaining their current level of play.
There is almost no margin for error with this group. The good news for the Wild is Kaprizov has shown that he has 40- to 50-goal talent and is perfectly capable of helping to carry the offense.
Montreal Canadiens: Nick Suzuki
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The Montreal Canadiens' rebuild is still a few years from producing fruit, but there are some really encouraging building blocks in place.
Cole Caufield has shown the potential to be a top-line goal-scorer, while they also have Nick Suzuki locked in as their long-term captain and No. 1 center.
He is now four years into his career and has been alarmingly consistent in his end-of-year production, pretty much always scoring at a 20- to 25-goal, 60-point pace over 82 games. There might still be another level the Canadiens need him to reach for their rebuild to really take off, but even at his current production he is a good player to have as part of a core.
The Canadiens obviously feel strongly about his value as both a building block and a leader, naming him captain and signing him to a long-term contract extension.
They acquired him as part of the Max Pacioretty trade with Vegas in 2018, and as difficult as it might have been to move a proven goal-scorer like Pacioretty, the Canadiens did quite well to land a key piece of their rebuild in the deal.
Nashville Predators: Juuse Saros
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The Nashville Predators' plan still seems to be a little confusing given the roster moves they have made over the past year.
They have shed salary and dumped veterans to accumulate draft picks and salary-cap space, and then spent the offseason signing veteran players like Ryan O'Reilly and Gustav Nyquist.
Are you rebuilding? Are you trying to make the playoffs? Are you trying to do the impossible and accomplish both?
Either way, any success they have this season will be determined by what Juuse Saros is able to do in goal. And he is the type of goalie who is capable of taking an average team and lifting it up to a level it has no business being at. He has kind of done that over the past two years. When he plays and plays well, the Predators win a lot of games no matter how bad the rest of the team looks.
He is a free agent after next season, and with the Predators' plans still unclear, it is fair to wonder if he will be used as a trade chip at some point over the next two years. But until that happens he is going to keep the Predators as competitive as he possibly can when he takes the crease.
New Jersey Devils: Jack Hughes
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The New Jersey Devils are not only Stanley Cup contenders, they are also one of the most exciting teams in the league—which is something that has never really been said about them at any point in their existence.
The arrival of Jack Hughes is just one of the many factors in helping the Devils accomplish both of those things.
The only thing that has stopped Hughes is injuries and his ability to consistently stay on the ice. But as long as he is out there, he is going to be the focal point of the Devils offense and one of the most creative, dynamic players in the league.
He has the talent (and the supporting cast around him offensively) to be a top-five scorer in the NHL. That sort of production will always put you in the MVP discussion.
Whether or not he reaches that level leaguewide, he is definitely the Devils' most valuable player this season and beyond.
New York Islanders: Ilya Sorokin
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There is almost nothing about the New York Islanders that makes you think they are a playoff team.
They do not score a lot of goals, they are consistently among the worst teams in the league when it comes to suppressing shots and scoring chances, and the roster itself is short on top-tier talent.
But they always seem to find themselves in the playoff race, or even in the playoffs like they were this past season.
Why?
It's the goalie.
Ilya Sorokin is arguably the best in the world at the position and as such is one of the most impactful players in the sport when it comes to the success or failure of his team. Forget being the MVP of the Islanders, he should have been a leaguewide MVP finalist during the 2022-23 season for getting that team into the postseason.
New York Rangers: Igor Shesterkin
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It must be something about the New York teams being dependent on their goalie to win games, because the Rangers are right there with their crosstown rivals when it comes to the position dictating what the team does.
In the Rangers' case, it is a little more baffling—and frustrating—because their roster really does look impressive on paper.
They have big-time offensive stars like Artemi Panarin and Mika Zibanejad, they have multiple top-two draft picks (Alexis Lafreniere and Kaapo Kakko) and they have a Norris Trophy-winning defenseman in Adam Fox.
Despite that talent, they almost seemed determined to play the game in a manner that relies on Igor Shesterkin being better than the other team's goalie. It seems to be the Rangers' preferred method of hockey after doing the exact same thing to Henrik Lundqvist for more than a decade.
Fortunately for the Rangers, their goalie usually is better than the other team's netminder, and it gets them a lot of wins.
The bottom line on Shesterkin's value is this: Since the start of the 2020-21 season, when he is the goalie of record, the Rangers are 89-40-15. That is a .670 points percentage, which averages out to a 109-point pace over 82 games.
When he is not the goalie of record, they are only 37-29-10. That is a points percentage of only .552, which averages out to a 90-point pace over 82 games.
The former number is a Stanley Cup contender.
The latter number is not a playoff team.
Shesterkin matters that much.
Ottawa Senators: Tim Stutzle
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When the Ottawa Senators had to trade defenseman Erik Karlsson, they got really lucky with the return and hit a home run by landing the draft pick that turned out to be Tim Stutzle.
Just three years into his career, he already looks like a franchise player who has the potential to be one of the elite scorers in the league.
He is coming off a breakout season in 2022-23 that saw him record 90 points in 78 games and really take a massive leap forward in his overall performance.
The Senators are at a point in their rebuild where it is time to start winning games and seriously competing for a playoff spot. While they have some big question marks with their forward depth and goaltending situations, they do have some sensational talent at the top of the lineup. Stutzle looks like he has a chance to be the best of them all.
As he's just entering his age-22 season, the sky seems to be the limit for what he is capable of offensively. The Senators might not be a playoff team yet, but they will certainly be fun to watch.
Philadelphia Flyers: Owen Tippett
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The initial answer with the Philadelphia Flyers might be Travis Konecny, but given the state of the Flyers' rebuild, there is a good chance he gets traded at some point in the near future.
There is also a lot to like about Owen Tippett's game and the way he took a huge step forward last year.
In fact, that is one of the very few things to like about this Flyers team in the short-term.
Tippett is going to be counted on to be a big part of the offense, especially following the offseason departures of Kevin Hayes and James van Riemsdyk, and there are a lot of signs that he could be in line for an even bigger year offensively.
He significantly increased his shot volume last season to three shots on goal per game and had strong possession numbers on what was an overall lousy team. Given that shot volume and play-driving ability, he is just a little bit of shooting luck away from a 30- to 35-goal season. He is one of the few bright spots on this roster.
Pittsburgh Penguins: Sidney Crosby
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When it comes to the Pittsburgh Penguins' most valuable player, it has consistently been Sidney Crosby for almost two decades. It remains Sidney Crosby today, and it will continue to be Sidney Crosby until he retires.
He might be getting into his late 30s, but there is nothing about his game that is slowing down.
He remains an elite offensive player and playmaker, and has also steadily become an outstanding defender who impacts the game all over the ice. The Penguins roster is constructed in such a way that the top six and the power play is going to have to carry the bulk of the offense, while the bottom six will be relied on to shut things down defensively.
Crosby is still perfectly capable of leading that charge and is still going to be one of the best overall players in the league.
He is not only not slowing down, he is in some ways still getting better as an overall player.
San Jose Sharks: Tomas Hertl
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San Jose Sharks fans are going to be in for a rough season given how thin the defense and unproven the goaltending situation is, but there are still some bright spots on this roster.
Tomas Hertl being the brightest of them all.
It is still a little surprising he was willing to re-sign in San Jose given the direction the team was clearly headed in, and with the recent trades of Erik Karlsson and Timo Meier, there is not much here to make the Sharks competitive in the short-term.
But Hertl is still a top-line scorer who is going to carry the offense and push the 30-goal mark if he stays healthy.
Almost all of the offense on this team will have to come from Hertl, Logan Couture and offseason acquisition Anthony Duclair, because once you get beyond them there are not many proven top-line scorers on the roster.
Seattle Kraken: Matthew Beniers
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Matthew Beniers was the first draft pick in the history of the Seattle Kraken, and he was outstanding as a rookie in taking home the Calder Trophy.
Now that he has a full year in the NHL under his belt, he might be ready for a true breakout season.
He was the second leading goal-scorer and fourth-leading scorer on the Kraken last season and did most of his damage offensively during even-strength play. If he can become a bigger factor on the power play, his offensive numbers have a chance to really take a jump and help make him the Kraken's first true star.
There seems to be a chance for a lot of players on this roster to regress this season (most notably Jared McCann, who might not have another 40-goal campaign in him), but if Beniers' progression can balance that out, it will only increase his value.
Seattle has done a great job of building its roster into a playoff team so quickly, and with Beniers and Shane Wright, they have the potential for a pretty dynamic one-two punch to keep building around in the future.
St. Louis Blues: Jordan Kyrou
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The St. Louis Blues can no longer defend and their goalie can not be counted on, but do you know what they can do?
They can score.
They have a lot of offensive upside, and Jordan Kyrou has turned out to be their most impactful player with the puck on his stick.
He shattered his previous career high in goals last season by filling the net 37 times, despite the fact that his shooting percentage dropped by a full percentage point from what it was the previous year.
Increased ice time and an improved ability to generate shots on goal contributed to that offensive outburst, and it still seems like he has the potential to be even better this season.
The success or failure of the Blues is a complete wild card that is dependent on whether Jordan Binnington can give the competent goaltending play and if they can improve their defensive play. But they will be able to count on their offense to give them a chance on most nights, and Kyrou will be the leader of that scoring.
Tampa Bay Lightning: Brayden Point
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Expectations seem lower for the Tampa Bay Lightning entering this season than at any point over the previous eight years. A lot of that is due to the early-season absence of franchise goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy, who underwent back surgery early in training camp.
But the Lightning seem well equipped to deal with that sort of injury for a couple of months, mainly because they still have a strong defense and a deep offense full of stars.
Steven Stamkos and Nikita Kucherov are obviously two of the biggest game-changers on that unit, but do not let them overshadow the brilliance of Brayden Point, as he is right there with them in terms of impact and importance.
He had a career year offensively for the Lightning a year ago with 51 goals and 95 total points and has become one of the main cogs for their power play.
Point and Kucherov form one of the league's most dominant scoring duos, and you could probably take your pick as to which one is more valuable. But Point has become such a force of a goal-scorer that he gets a little bit of the edge.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Auston Matthews
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Auston Matthews scored 40 goals and had 85 points in 74 games a year ago, and that was considered somewhat of a "down" season for him. When those numbers are considered "down," even by a small amount, that is when you know you are dealing with one of the league's best players.
There is no question he is the cornerstone of the Toronto Maple Leafs' organization and their best player, and if his shooting percentage can bounce back to his normal career level (it was a career-worst 12.2 percent a year ago), there is no reason that he can not be a 50-or 60-goal scorer again.
Until the Maple Leafs actually go on a real playoff run, there is always going to be criticism and doubts as to how good this core is, but Matthews is still one of the best offensive players in the world.
As he goes, the Maple Leafs go. He will again put them in a position to make the playoffs, and perhaps even get a top seed in the Atlantic Division, but they will all still be judged based on what they do in the postseason.
Vancouver Canucks: Elias Pettersson
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The Vancouver Canucks are one of those teams that is stuck in a truly awful position.
They are not a Stanley Cup contender, or even a lock to make the playoffs.
But they have enough high-end talent, and enough good players, that they are also not quite bad enough to be a top lottery team.
They are stuck in the middle and can never quite seem to reach a point that swings them completely toward any one direction.
One of the players who keeps them swinging toward the playoff side of the pendulum is Elias Pettersson, and he really is a special talent and gifted player. He put everything together this past season and reached the 100-point mark for the first time in his career, and there is no reason to believe he can not do it again.
He still needs some help around him in the form of improved defensive play and better goaltending support, and there is some hope those things can happen this season given the recent roster moves that have been made and the hope of a bounceback for Thatcher Demko in goal.
But whether or not any of that actually happens, the Canucks at least know they have a top-line star to carry their offense.
Vegas Golden Knights: Jack Eichel
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The one thing that was constantly holding the Vegas Golden Knights back in their quest for a Stanley Cup was the lack of a true, top-line, No. 1 center.
They hoped that Jack Eichel could be that player when they acquired him from the Buffalo Sabres early in the 2021-22 season.
After a slow start as he recovered from neck surgery, and after getting over some later injuries during the 2022-23 season, Eichel became that impact player and helped bring a Stanley Cup to Vegas. From the start of February on through their Stanley Cup victory, Eichel was a dominant force offensively and provided everything the Golden Knights were hoping he could and more.
Along with his production, he also earned the respect of head coach Bruce Cassidy for his defensive play and became a true all-around talent.
The one thing he has not really done in his career is put together a dominant season offensively and climb near the top of the league's leaderboard.
Now that he is fully healthy and playing on a great team, this might be the year for that to happen. But no matter what his final stat line looks like, he is the new face of the Golden Knights and their most important player.
Washington Capitals: Alex Ovechkin
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The Washington Capitals might not be a Presidents' Trophy-winning or Stanley Cup-contending team anymore, but they do still have some players who can keep them interesting and competitive.
Nobody will do that more than the ageless Alex Ovechkin.
He is already shattering everything we know about aging curves and the NHL when it comes to production, and he has a chance to keep breaking his own record of being the oldest NHL player to score 50 goals in a season.
He is rapidly closing in on Wayne Gretzky's all-time goal-scoring record, and if he maintains his current pace, he should get the necessary 72 to tie the mark around the middle of next season.
But even more than chasing the record, all of those goals will still help the Capitals win games. And there is absolutely nothing that is slowing Ovechkin down when it comes to scoring goals. He still has it.
Winnipeg Jets: Connor Hellebuyck
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The Winnipeg Jets stunned everybody just before the start of the regular season when they announced matching long-term contract extensions for Connor Hellebuyck and forward Mark Scheifele.
While long-term concerns exist as to what the Jets are doing when it comes to roster building and whether they can ever get out of this perpetual state of mediocrity, one thing is certain: The continued presence of Hellebuyck does make them a better team.
A significantly better team.
Even though projecting goalie production and performance from one year to the next can be a painful, maddening process, there are some goalies who are so good and so consistent that you should be confident in what to expect from them. Hellebuyck has proved to be one of those goalies. He is one of the few goalies capable of putting a team on his back and leading it.
The Jets might not be a Stanley Cup team, but Hellebuyck's presence at least gives them a chance to be a playoff squad.
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