NHL Star Power Index: Connor McDavid records 1,000th career point, Nathan MacKinnon is an assist machine

Welcome to the NHL Star Power Index: A weekly gauge of the players who are controlling substantial buzz around the league. When a player is included on this list it may not be a good thing — it means that they are capturing a large amount of the hockey world’s attention.

These players are in no particular order when it comes to the amount of buzz that they’re creating. We’ll revisit the Star Power Index every week throughout the regular season.

Edmonton Oilers standout Connor McDavid achieved a very lofty milestone when he recorded the 1,000 point of his NHL career this week. In fact, McDavid achieved the feat in a remarkable amount of time and joined some very elite company in doing so.

McDavid became the fourth fastest player in NHL history to tally 1,000 points as he accomplished that 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 few games than the Oilers star.

McDavid also became the fourth fastest to make the climb from 900 to 1,000 career points. The Oilers star ended up doing it in just 58 games, and was the fastest to do so since Lemieux made the jump in 51 games.

“In a lot of ways we [Leon Draisaitl and Darnell Nurse] kind of grew up on this ice, playing in front of these fans and this city. It’s a special night and one I’ll never forget,” McDavid told Sportsnet in a postgame interview following Thursday’s game.

The star forward got his 1,000th career point out of the way in the second period in typical McDavid fashion by finding the back of the net. At the 2:44 mark of the second period, Nurse flipped the puck ahead to Draisaitl, and Draisaitl set up McDavid. Draisaitl displayed patience as he waited before getting the puck over to McDavid for a one-timer goal to achieve the career milestone.

As soon as McDavid’s shot crossed the goal line, he was mobbed by his teammates, who spilled off the bench to bask in McDavid’s tremendous accomplishment.

In between all of this history, McDavid had just recently missed three games while dealing with an ankle injury, but made his return to the lineup on Nov. 6 against the Vegas Golden Knights. In four games since returning to the lineup, McDavid has racked up nine points (three goals & six assists) during that period, and looks like the superstar playmaker that the league has come to expect.

McDavid also displayed his spectacular playmaking skills when he earned the primary assist on Nurse’s game-winning goal in overtime to help the Oilers earn a 3-2 victory against the Nashville Predators.

It was a truly remarkable night for a generational player like McDavid. From the moment he stepped into the NHL, McDavid has produced highlight reel play after highlight reel play, and this is just the latest chapter in a legendary career.

It’s no secret that 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 racking up several markers in the assists department as of late.

Following Colorado’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes on Saturday, MacKinnon’s 22 assists were the most by any player through the first 15 games of a season in nearly 20 years. During the 2005-06 campaign, Peter Forsberg compiled 25 assists playing for the Philadelphia Flyers, while Jason Spezza racked up 22 assists with the Ottawa Senators.

MacKinnon has tallied one goal and seven assists across his last three games. That stretch was highlighted by a three-assist performance in a 4-2 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Wednesday.

During the third period of Wednesday’s contest, MacKinnon was able to dig the puck free along the board despite being amongst a sea of players. The Avalanche star swept the puck to teammate Mikko Rantanen in front, and Rantanen buried a snap shot past Kings goaltender David Rittich.

Rantanen tallied a hat trick in Wednesday’s victory and MacKinnon ended up assisting on two of his three goals. 

Over the past two weeks, MacKinnon has racked up a mind-boggling two goals and 13 assists in just six games, and now has registered a point in all but one game this season. During this two-week span, the Avalanche forward has recorded three games of at least three points, while also eclipsing four points on two occasions. 

As a result of his recent hot streak, MacKinnon leads the NHL in points (33) with the next closest player being Minnesota Wild star Kirill Kaprizov (28). In addition, MacKinnon’s 26 assists are a league-best up to this point.

It’s no secret that MacKinnon is one of the most gifted centers that the NHL has to offer. Considering the scalding hot start that he’s off to this season, it won’t be a surprise if MacKinnon is in the conversation to win his second consecutive Hart Trophy as league MVP.

New Jersey Devils defenseman Dougie Hamilton helps anchor the team’s blue line, but has also been a terrific playmaker on the offensive end of the ice.

Hamilton currently is tied for second on the team in assists (14) and is fifth on the Devils in points (15). The veteran blue-liner has also tallied six assists in his last five games, including a three-assist performance against the New York Islanders this past Saturday.

In that 4-3 overtime win against the Islanders, Hamilton earned a primary assist on a power-play goal from star forward Jack Hughes. After the Devils won the face-off, Hamilton received the puck from Hughes near the blue line. Hamilton surveyed the path towards the net, and since there wasn’t an open shot, he slid the puck back over to Hughes. Hughes ended up stepping into a snap shot and scored from the face-off circle.

Hamilton also earned a secondary assist on a Stefan Noesen goal in the third period that tied the contest at 3-3. In overtime, Hamilton and Hughes connected one more time to put the Devils in the win column.

The veteran blue-liner displayed some sensational ice vision in overtime. At the 2:35 mark of the extra session, Hamilton possessed the puck in his own zone and noticed Hughes ahead of the pack at the other end of the ice. Hamilton uncorked a pass that nearly went the length of the ice, and Hughes was able to get the puck past Islanders goaltender Ilya Sorokin to win the game.

Hamilton has certainly benefitted from playing alongside another veteran in former Winnipeg Jets defenseman 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 fits.

Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Andrei Vasilevskiy also made some history of his own on Thursday. In a 4-1 win against the Winnipeg Jets, Vasilevskiy became the fastest goaltender to record 300 career wins in just 490 career games.

In doing so, Vasilevskiy surpassed Montreal Canadiens legend Jacques Plante, who reached the milestone in 521 career games. In addition, Vasilevskiy (30 years, 112 days old) also became the fourth-youngest goalie in NHL history to reach the mark as he only was behind Martin Brodeur (29 years, 223 days), Terry Sawchuk (29 years, 323 days), and Marc-Andre Fleury (29 years, 361 days).

In just as impressive fashion, Vasilevskiy and the Lightning became the first team to beat the Jets by at least three goals since the Vegas Golden Knights did so back on March 28. 

Vasilevskiy has been a steady presence in net for Tampa Bay lately. The 30-year old has tallied a 2.33 goals-against-average and a .918 save percentage over his last four starts, while allowing just two goals across his last two outings. 

Vasilevskiy appears to have returned to form after turning in a down season in 2023-24 when he had a career-worst 2.90 goals-against-average and a .900 save percentage. His play will certainly be paramount if the Lightning want to make a push for the postseason in 2024-25.