Nikita Kucherov is the clear favorite for the Art Ross Trophy
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FrankSidebottom
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- Mar 16, 2021
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Imagine Kucherov didn’t miss one and a half seasons in his prime…
He seems to be getting better with age.
I think his game will age well. He doesn't rely on foot speed or size.
- Oct 9, 2012
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Like MacK, he just seems to have another gear when it matters
Bozo Nicholson
5 Alarm Fire™
- Jun 6, 2015
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Today’s totals: a couple secondary mercantile assists and an average NHLer primary.
Personally, I’m not impressed.
Personally, I’m not impressed.
Fantomas
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- Aug 7, 2012
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Kucherov's adjusted goals created this season is 51, which is below Ovy's 53 in '07-08. I would rate that season ahead of Kucherov's. MacKinnon this year is also at 51, virtually identical to Kucherov. While Kucherov has more assists, MacKinnon has more goals.
He's one of the best 2 or 3 players in history from an absolute standstill.
It's like, most players make their money off speed, shooting, puckhandling, whatever. Kucherov's key skill is literally decision-making. He could probably be a PP specialist into his 40s, because not much of what he does in that setting relies on his physical skillset. He just carves teams up with quick decisions.
Stammertime91
TBL: TEAM OF THE CENTURY
Prototypical lazy Russian and he's rubbing it in our face.
HE CANT KEEP GETTING AWAY WITH IT
I start to believe Kuch is about to cement himself as the second best Russian NHLer passing Malkin
Kucherov is such a joy to watch. He's not a freak of nature like Jagr, or a bull like Ovechkin, or a fire hydrant like Crosby, or a speed demon like McDavid. He dominates almost solely with hockey IQ.
Dare I say the best pure decision maker since Lemieux/Gretzky.
Dare I say the best pure decision maker since Lemieux/Gretzky.
Yes, every touch he makes on PP creates a scoring chance
So he's one Owen Tippett ahead of Brayden Point.
It’s not easier to rack up points as a center imo. Centers score more because usually the best players/best play drivers play center. There might be some truth to it when you start going down the line in quality, but I don’t think it has any impact on elite players. I don’t see any reason why McDavid and MacKinnon would score less playing wing or that play driving wingers like Kucherov, Jagr, Kane, Lafleur, etc were at a disadvantage in terms of production.
Video Nasty
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- Mar 12, 2017
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Can’t write off McDavid with 7 games remaining, 2 of which are in hand. Not when he has a 22 points in 7 game stretch this very season.
That being said, I think McDavid needs a minimum of 3 points tonight.
Hats off to Kucherov. I’ve always enjoyed his game, but he reached another gear this season that I didn’t think he had. 125 points in his last 66 games. Amazing.
That being said, I think McDavid needs a minimum of 3 points tonight.
Hats off to Kucherov. I’ve always enjoyed his game, but he reached another gear this season that I didn’t think he had. 125 points in his last 66 games. Amazing.
He's starting to rack up Russian records. He's the only Russian player to top 80 assists, and he's done it 3 times. And he has the two highest point totals by a Russian in history (3 of the top 6).
Obviously Ovy is #1, but Kucherov is building a very good case for himself vs. everyone else.
EmptyNetAssassin
Registered User
You really can't man. HE is a generation talent.
I think he probably is, yeah. It really shows when you see what he can do from a dead stop. No other player in the league is as dangerous when at a complete standstill, and probably the two you mentioned are the only ones in history who've been better at it.
100%. What makes this season so amazing is how many guys are doing something incredibly special. McDavid should hit 100 assists with ease, and that puts him on a list with literally the three best players in history. (Kucherov has an outside chance at it too, but I mean, as great as Kucherov is, nobody's putting him on THAT tier.)
MacKinnon gunning for 140 points.
Matthews with a reasonable chance at 70 goals.
Just an unreal season for some future legends of the game.
Terrible season for goalies
ricky0034
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- Jun 8, 2010
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I see it as the offense usually kinda goes through Centers by default all else being equal which does lead to more scoring
but if a Winger is elite enough like Kucherov is the offense will go through them even though they're on the Wing
If you don’t have Stamkos as a first-ballot Hall of Famer then you clearly know nothing about hockey. The guy was beating prime Ovi for Rockets before breaking his leg and is still the #2 goal scorer in the league over the course of his career - his first-ballot HoF credentials were in no doubt even before he captained the most dominant team of the cap era to back-to-back championships. He’s fallen off hard and is little more than a power play specialist at this point, but that certainly doesn’t take away from his career accomplishments - a nuance you obviously either didn’t consider or are trying to ignore in a futile effort to bolster your argument.
The same is true of Hedman and Vasy. Hedman isn’t the player he once was (especially defensively) and Vasy is only now returning to form following surgery, but I don’t think anyone with any hockey knowledge whatsoever would argue that those guys aren’t first-ballot Hall of Famers. Again, their abilities now and their career accomplishments are two completely different things, no matter how hard you try to conflate them.
Point realistically is on the outside looking in when it comes to the Hall. He’s an excellent regular season player (arguably the best two-way center in the league for much of his career) who transforms into an all-time great playoff performer, and had he not been injured the last two postseasons he might well have made the Hall on the strength of his playoff resume alone, but as it stands his historic performance in back-to-back Cup runs aren’t quite enough in my opinion to overcome a regular season resume that puts him in the Hall of Very Good. His career obviously isn’t over and there’s still a chance he gets there by the time he’s done, but I don’t think many would say he’s a Hall of Famer at this point, and I very much doubt anybody would argue that he’s a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Nice attempt at a strawman argument though.
Longevity will be key for Point. If he hits the usual markers (1000 points, for instance), he will probably get in, but not on the first ballot. If he gets to like 1200+, and continues to elevate his game in the playoffs for a few more years, he might turn into a first ballot guy.
He's an interesting case. While Kucherov is by far our best regular season player, in the playoffs it's pretty hard to choose between the two. Point starts playing defense again, and was just a monster of a goal-scorer in both cup runs. When comparing the two in the playoffs, it also probably depends how much you hold Point's injuries against him. His playoff style turns into one that is a lot more injury prone than we see in the regular season, which is part of "elevating his game."
I Hate Blake Coleman
Bandwagon Burner
93 assists. I think he can hit 100 by season's end.
EmptyNetAssassin
Registered User
A good center has an easy chance to get secondary assist or primary assist off a facebook that a winger doesn't have nearly the likelyhood to get a point off a face win turned into a goal. Good Centers also tend to be in the areas with the puck is more involed just because they are more involved in the defense, breaking out of the zone, and transition game in the neutral zone. I think it is a little of there are better skaters playing center and they are more guys that are better at scoring goals playing wing than center.
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