Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon named Hart Trophy finalist

DALLAS — Nathan MacKinnon is a finalist for the Hart Trophy for the fourth time.

MacKinnon, Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov and Edmonton’s Connor McDavid were announced Tuesday as the finalists for the league’s most valuable player award as voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers  Association.

It’s arguably the deepest collection of candidates in league history, but it also might be the Avalanche superstar’s best chance to win. MacKinnon has finished second twice and third once.

MacKinnon finished with career highs in goals (51) and points (140), which was also a franchise record. It is an incredibly stacked field. Both Kucherov and McDavid finished with 100 assists, joining Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Bobby Orr as the only players in league history to accomplish that feat. Kucherov won the scoring title with 144 points, while McDavid finished third with 132.

Auston Matthews had 69 goals, the most in the NHL in 28 years, and had the best defensive metrics of this quartet, but he will likely finish fourth in the voting. Connor Hellebuyck, Artemi Panarin, Quinn Hughs and Sidney Crosby all had great seasons and could have been finalists in a normal year, but one of them will finish eighth in the voting.

The finalists for the Ted Lindsay Award, the league’s MVP as voted on by the NHL Players Association, will be announced Wednesday.