Welcome to Star Power Index: A weekly measure of the players making big splashes around the league. If a player is included on this list, it might not be a good thing – it means he's getting a lot of the hockey world's attention.
These players are in no particular order when it comes to how much buzz they attract. We will review the Star Power Index every week during the regular season.
Edmonton Oilers outstanding Connor McDavid reached a very high milestone when he celebrated his 1,000th birthday. point reached Career this week. In fact, McDavid accomplished the feat in a remarkable amount of time and joined a very elite company in the process.
McDavid became the fourth-fastest player in NHL history to score 1,000 points by reaching the milestone in just 659 career games. Only Wayne Gretzky (424 games), Mario Lemieux (513) and Mike Bossy (656) reached the 1,000-point mark in a few games as the Oilers star.
McDavid was also the fourth fastest driver to go from 900 to 1,000 career points. The Oilers star ultimately made it in just 58 games, making him the fastest since Lemieux to make the jump in 51 games.
“In many ways we have [Leon Draisaitl and Darnell Nurse] I grew up on this ice and played in front of these fans and this city. “It’s a special night that I’ll never forget,” McDavid said said Sportsnet in a postgame interview after Thursday's game.
In typical McDavid fashion, the star forward secured his 1,000th career point by scoring the goal in the second period. At 2:44 of the second period, Nurse passed the puck forward to Draisaitl, and Draisaitl set up McDavid. Draisaitl showed patience as he waited before handing the puck to McDavid, who scored a one-time goal, reaching the career milestone.
As soon as McDavid's shot crossed the goal line, he was surrounded by his teammates, who jumped off the bench to enjoy McDavid's powerful performance.
In between all of this, McDavid had recently missed three games while dealing with an ankle injury, but returned to the lineup on November 6th against the Vegas Golden Knights. In four games since returning to the lineup, McDavid has nine points (three goals and six assists) during that time and is looking like the superstar playmaker the league has come to expect.
McDavid also showcased his spectacular playing skills when he scored the first assist on Nurse's game-winning goal in overtime, helping the Oilers to a 3-2 win over the Oilers Nashville Predators.
It was a truly remarkable evening for a generational player like McDavid. From the moment he entered the NHL, McDavid has produced one highlight-reel game after another, and this is just the latest chapter in a legendary career.
That's no secret Colorado avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon can be an unstoppable freight train when it comes to putting the puck in the net. However, MacKinnon has really been picking up several points in the assists department lately.
Following Colorado's game against the Carolina Hurricanes On Saturday, MacKinnon had 22 assists, the most of any player in the first 15 games of a season in nearly 20 years. During the 2005/06 season, Peter Forsberg collected 25 assists for the club Philadelphia Flyerswhile Jason Spezza collected 22 assists with the Ottawa Senators.
MacKinnon has one goal and seven assists in his last three games. That stretch was highlighted by a three-assist performance in the 4-2 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday.
During the third period of Wednesday's contest, MacKinnon managed to free the puck up the backboard despite being in the middle of a sea of players. The Avalanche star pushed the puck to his teammate Mikko Rantanen in front, and Rantanen sank a snapshot past the Kings goalkeeper David Rittich.
Rantanen scored a hat trick in Wednesday's win and MacKinnon ended up assisting on two of his three goals.
over the last two weeks, MacKinnon has scored an incredible two goals and 13 assists in just six games and has now picked up a point in all but one game this season. During that two-week span, the Avalanche forward has scored at least three points in three games, while also surpassing four points twice.
MacKinnon's recent streak has him leading the NHL in points, the next closest player Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov (28). Additionally, MacKinnon's 26 assists are the best in the league to this point.
It's no secret that MacKinnon is one of the most talented centers the NHL has to offer. Considering how hot he's started this season, it won't be a surprise if MacKinnon is in the conversation to win his second straight Hart Trophy title as league MVP.
New Jersey Devils defender Dougie Hamilton helps anchor the team's blue line, but was also an outstanding playmaker on the offensive side of the ice.
Hamilton is currently tied for second on the team in assists (14) and is fifth on the Devils in points (15). The veteran blue-liner has also recorded six assists in his last five games, including three assists against the New York Islanders last Saturday.
In that 4-3 overtime win over the Islanders, Hamilton received the first assist on a power play goal from the star forward Jack Hughes. After the Devils won the faceoff, Hamilton received the puck from Hughes near the blue line. Hamilton watched the path to the net and since there was no clear shot, he pushed the puck back to Hughes. Hughes eventually took a snap and scored from the faceoff circle.
Hamilton also received a second assist on one Stefan Noesen Goal in the third period that made it 3-3. In overtime, Hamilton and Hughes managed once again to put the Devils in the win column.
The experienced blueliner showed sensational ice vision in overtime. At the 2:35 mark of the extra session, Hamilton had the puck in his own zone and spotted Hughes in front of the court at the other end of the ice. Hamilton uncorked a pass that went almost all the way across the ice, and Hughes was able to get the puck past the Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin to win the game.
Hamilton has certainly benefited from playing alongside another veteran in the past Winnipeg Jets defender Brenden Dillon on the team's top pairing. The 31-year-old continues to provide excellent playmaking ability on the blue line for a very talented Devils offense that continues to give opposing teams good chances.
Tampa Bay Lightning goalkeeper Andrei Vasilevskiy also wrote its own history on Thursday. In a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets, Vasilevskiy became the fastest goaltender to reach 300 wins in just 490 career games.
In doing so, Vasilevskiy has surpassed Montreal Canadiens Legend Jacques Plante, who reached this milestone in 521 career games. Additionally, Vasilevskiy (30 years, 112 days old) also became the fourth-youngest goaltender in NHL history to reach this mark, trailing only Martin Brodeur (29 years, 223 days) and Terry Sawchuk (29 years, 323 days). lay. , And Marc-André Fleury (29 years, 361 days).
Equally impressive, Vasilevskiy and the Lightning became the first team to beat the Jets by at least three goals since the Vegas Golden Knights did so on March 28.
Vasilevskiy has been a steady scorer for Tampa Bay as of late. The 30-year-old has posted a 2.33 goals against average and a .918 save percentage in his last four appearances, while allowing just two goals in his last two appearances.
Vasilevskiy appears to have returned to form after a poor season in the 2023-24 season, when he posted a career-worst 2.90 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. His play will certainly be of utmost importance if the Lightning want to make a push in the 2024-25 postseason.
