Now that the NHL regular season has come to a close, a couple players will have to clear some space on their trophy cabinets.
For the sixth time in his career, Edmonton Oilers superstar Connor McDavid has won the Art Ross Trophy, while Colorado Avalanche counterpart Nathan MacKinnon will take home the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy for the first time, the league officially announced Thursday night following their final regular-season games.
The Art Ross Trophy is given to the player who leads the league in points at the end of the regular season, and McDavid took the title after finishing the campaign with 138 points, eight more than second-place Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The “Rocket” Richard is awarded to the player who scores the most goals in the regular season, and MacKinnon’s career-high 53 goals were enough to secure the hardware, beating out second-place Cole Caufield of the Montreal Canadiens.
For McDavid, it’ll end his Art Ross drought, having lost the previous two trophies to Kucherov. He previously won in back-to-back years in 2017 and 2018, then won in three consecutive seasons from 2021 to 2023.
His point total this season is the second most of his 13-year career after he put up 153 points in the 2022-23 season, becoming only the sixth player in NHL history to surpass the 150-point threshold.
MacKinnon, meanwhile, set a career-high in goals and surpassed the 50-goal mark for the second time, first doing so in the 2023-24 season when he potted 51 and won the Hart Trophy.
He and Caufield were the only players this season to score 50 or more goals. He also became only the second Avalanche player to have multiple 50-goal seasons, joining Joe Sakic. Prior to the team’s relocation to Colorado, Michel Goulet of the Quebec Nordiques had four 50-goal campaigns.
Over in the crease, Colorado Avalanche goalies Mackenzie Blackwood and Scott Wedgewood combined to win the William M. Jennings Trophy as the goaltenders on the team with the fewest goals against in the regular season.
The Presidents' Trophy-winning Avs led the league in both goals against per game (2.43) and team save percentage (.913).
