McDavid approaching a record that only Gretzky holds

Connor McDavid currently sits third in the NHL scoring race behind Evgeni Malkin and Nikita Kucherov. He’s five points behind Kucherov for the lead and is on pace for 99 points this season which would be another incredible year for the 21-year-old. 

Kucherov is seeking his first career Art Ross trophy, Connor is after his second, and Malkin is looking for his third. I have no doubt that the final 16 games of the season will be an intense race for the Art Ross trophy and I definitely won’t be able to keep my eyes off of it. However, Connor McDavid winning the Art Ross won’t just be another trophy to his name, but it will also be a huge notch in the record books.

Believe it or not, in the 101 years that the NHL has been around, Wayne Gretzky is the only person in NHL history to win back to back Art Ross trophies before the age of 21. That means he’s REALLY good at hockey, and Connor is too. If Connor can push the pace in this final stretch of the season and win the Art Ross, he will join Gretzky in the record books.

For some reason if you’re still a McDavid hater and think he’s over rated and won’t amount to what is hype is, just remember that he’s this close to doing something only one other man has done in 101 years. There have been a lot of players coming close to this record like Connor, but if he can pull it off it will be a huge accomplishment.

Wayne Gretzky’s first Art Ross trophy came in 1981 when he was 20 years old. He scored 164 points that year and then put up 212 points the following year at the age of 21 to capture his second Art Ross trophy. He went on to win the next five Art Ross trophies as well, leaving everyone in his dust.

It’s awesome seeing Connor in the scoring leader race again this year, however he’s got some stiff competition being five points behind Kucherov, who’s been on hot fire lately and is pretty much set to win the trophy. Lately he’s been playing with Stamkos and Killorn who have a combined 116 points over the course of the season. Malkin has been playing with Hagelin and Rust who have racked up a combined 57 points between them. Connor’s most recent linemates have been Draisaitl and Lucic, who have 92 points between the two of them this season. This is obviously excluding all the different defenceman and players they play alongside on the power play and other game situations, but it’s still interesting to note.

If Lucic were to go on a miraculous streak right now after getting some confidence back last night, maybe Connor has a chance to catch up to Kucherov. No pressure, Looch! Nuge’s return may also play an advantage to Todd McLellan’s line matching strategy and could take some relief off of McDavid as well.

We know the odds are against McDavid and it will be a tough challenge for him to win the title. Do you think he can catch up to Kucherov and win the Art Ross? I don’t need him to join Gretz in the record books for me to know how much I love him, but it would be a nice addition!