He sure is. Points, weaker team, weaker partners, 100 assists season. He is the most important player for his team.
But yeah, you can believe in fair Hart this year.
More points isn't that big of a deal when it's all empty net points. Not to dismiss their value, but you could also say MacKinnon had 7 more goals (10 more even strength) and goals are more valuable than assists. It's like taking a magnifying glass over an 82 game season. Both guys were insanely productive.
Weaker team and no support. Sure, the Avs finished higher in the standings, but did you forget about guys like Point, Stamkos, Hagel, Hedman?
Don't get me wrong, Kuch absolutely led the way and Tampa wasn't that impressive. But the problem is you're overrating the Avalanche team. Colorado had
2 forwards scoring over 60 points - MacK and Rantanen, as Nuke and Lehkonen missed a combined 65 games. Tampa had 3 forwards scoring over 80 points, and Duclair was a big boost offensively post-TDL. Makar outproduced Hedman, but Victor was still near PPG.
Just like Tampa, the Avs bottom 6 wasn't some luxurious thing either. Both teams were top heavy.
Aside from numbers, personally I love the way MacKinnon drives the play and draws the opposing team back creating room for his team, it's invaluable. Not many players in the history of the game can gallop through the neutral zone like he does. He also plays center that's inherently the more valuable position and includes some responsibilities that wingers don't have.
Kuch's 100 assist season was a great story and a great accomplishment, but you're fooling yourself if you don't think this was a toss-up. Did MacK not having a Hart to his name affect the voting, amongst other things? Probably. But honestly at the end of the day watching these guys for the past 7 years or so playing at the level they have, I think it's fitting both guys have won the trophy now.
The fact that MacK also won the Lindsay speaks about what his competition think of him.