MacKinnon finds next level, All-Stars on Olympics, and 5 other NHL items

TORONTO - By definition, All-Star Weekend is a congregation of the very best hockey players on earth. Those involved tend to touch down in the host city on a high. After all, they're stars.

Nathan MacKinnon arrived at this year's event on what can only be described as a tear. He's posted 77 points in 41 games since Nov. 1, including seven goals and four assists in the Avalanche's final three games before the break. He's finished 10 games this season with three or more points, and has failed to record a point only seven times. The game's slowed down for him.

"I just think I'm seeing things well out there right now," MacKinnon said Thursday to a large group of reporters. "Plays are developing a little bit slower - in a good way. It's a fast game, so I can kind of see things as they come and try to make the best decision I can."

Dave Sandford / Getty Images

Talk about nightmare fuel for the Avs' remaining regular-season opponents and who they draw in the playoffs. MacKinnon, a two-time runner-up for the Hart Trophy, is an MVP front-runner right now. His 84 points trail only Nikita Kucherov's 85. He's second in shots on goal and offensive-zone puck possession, and he has six more five-on-five points than anybody else.

All for a Colorado squad that's dealt with a string of injuries.

"When you see him elevate his game in the playoffs, you just don't think that he can find another level and he somehow does," Penguins superstar and close friend Sidney Crosby said.

"Everybody looks at Nate right now and how well he's doing, and it's weird, because in my mind I still feel like he's got another gear," teammate Cale Makar said of the 2022 Stanley Cup champion. "That's the crazy part. He's been playing absolutely incredible and carrying our team at the moment."

Like Crosby, almost everything about MacKinnon is a combination of power and grace. On the ice, the 28-year-old deploys a forceful, borderline violent skating stride - yet his silky hands and vision make him a finesse player, too. Off the ice, he has this unmistakable rockstar vibe, punctuated by a maniacal dedication to fitness - yet he isn't rude or attention-seeking.

Each of MacKinnon's contemporaries - Connor McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Auston Matthews, and Kucherov - have won the Hart. If he keeps up his torrid pace, and the hockey gods believe in justice, MacKinnon will get his this year.

All-Stars react to Olympic news David E. Klutho / Getty Images

Kucherov answered a question with a question Friday night.

"Is Team Russia going?" he said when asked for his reaction to the NHL finally sending players to the Olympics again.

No, he was told. As of now, due to geopolitical reasons, Russia won't be part of the 2026 Olympics in Italy, the first time NHL players will participate in the Winter Games since 2014.

"When Team Russia is not out there, it's not the same," Kucherov said.

"I want to go," the Lightning star added. "I think everybody wants to go. It definitely means a lot for the country. Ever since I was a kid, I was watching the Olympics and was dreaming to be part of it one day. It sucks to not participate in one."

David Pastrnak, the affable Bruins sniper, had a different take on Friday's double announcement regarding international hockey. He's fired up about the Olympics in 2026 and 2030 but less enthused about the 4 Nations Face-Off, which doesn't include his country. But, hey, beggars can't be choosers.

"I'm disappointed. There's a lot of players disappointed. I understand," Pastrnak said of only Canada, Finland, Sweden, and the United States competing in the 2025 event. "At the same time, you get the bad news and good news, right? We got the good news with the Olympics. The bad news is, Czech won't be able to play 4 Nations. At the same time, if you tell me we're gonna be at 4 Nations but we won't play Olympics, I would (be less happy)."

Dave Sandford / Getty Images

Pastrnak, Kucherov, and Germany's Draisaitl headline a robust group who won't be part of the nine-day 4 Nations event. It isn't best-on-best. The 2016 World Cup featured two gimmick teams in Team North America and Team Europe. Was Draisaitl pushing for Team Europe's return?

"Of course I was," he said. "There were different ways of putting something like this together, but at the end of the day, it's the league that makes these calls, right? It's unfortunate, but I'm happy with hopefully (Germany) being able to go to the Olympics."

From a fan's perspective, it's probably best to look at the 4 Nations Face-Off as a bonus, because the NHL being back in the Olympics is the truly significant development. The Canada-U.S. rivalry alone will be gripping. Imagine, too, seeing McDavid, Connor Bedard, and Crosby together.

"With all the uncertainty that's been around in years prior, and just how great of an experience it is, it's just awesome news," Crosby, 36, said.

Canadiens double-dip on Monahan

Win-win.

That's how I viewed Wednesday's Calgary-Vancouver Elias Lindholm swap (though I definitely liked the Canucks' side of the deal more). And that's how I see Friday's Montreal-Winnipeg Sean Monahan deal. Monahan, roughly a poor man's Lindholm as far as player type and overall impact, is off to the Jets for Winnipeg's first-round draft pick in 2024 (plus a conditional third).

It's a tidy piece of business for Canadiens general manager Kent Hughes, who bought low and sold high. In August 2022, Hughes acquired Monahan (then making $6.375 million a year) and a first-rounder so Calgary could clear salary. Now, after Monahan showed he's still a strong middle-six option when healthy, Hughes picked up another first. Monahan's digestible $1.985-million cap hit was a driving force behind the trade - again, kudos to Hughes.

Icon Sportswire / Getty Images

Canadiens coach Martin St. Louis and the club's development staff deserve praise, too. Monahan, now 29, was a distressed asset in need of a reboot. He was given plenty of ice time and responded with 52 points in 74 games.

While I love this deal for the Habs (A grade), I merely like it for the Jets (B).

There's been a lack of centers available on the trade market, and Monahan's cheap and useful, especially on the power play. Winnipeg smartly responded to Vancouver's aggressive Lindholm pursuit and now boast a 1-4 center group of Mark Scheifele, Monahan, Adam Lowry, and Vlad Namestnikov. Not great, sure, but also definitely not bad for a team with finishers on the wing.

The catch: if Monahan can't stay healthy, the Jets just wasted their 2024 first.

The 'magic' of Kucherov and Point Mark LoMoglio / Getty Images

Kucherov's been a menace all season.

His stat line looks like it's from the 1980s: 32 goals and 53 assists for 85 points in 49 games. For context, the Blackhawks and Sharks - entire teams - have scored 105 goals in 50 games and 107 goals in 51 games, respectively.

What's caught my eye while watching the Lightning lately is how Kucherov's chemistry with longtime center Brayden Point has become almost twin-like.

"Yeah, I guess that's a way to put it," Lightning coach Jon Cooper told theScore with a laugh in late January. "You could put Kuch and Point on other lines and they'd be fine. But, when they're together, they make magic."

Both are elite skaters. Both have sky-high hockey IQ. Kucherov is particularly sharp and also on the short list for most gifted offensive talent of this generation (even if his performance in Friday's skills event was subpar).

Like all prolific producers, Kucherov and Point attack the slot area. At the All-Star break, Kucherov ranks first in the league with 4.39 slot passes per game, while Point - who's a nightmare to defend against off the rush, cycle, and forecheck - sits tied for 11th in slot shots per game, according to Sportlogiq.

Mark Blinch / Getty Images

A nugget from Stathletes that emphasizes the pair's chemistry: Kucherov has passed the puck to Point directly before 98 of Point's 249 shot attempts this season. Those 98 shot attempt "assists" - that's what we'll call them - are tied with Mitch Marner (passer) and Matthews (shooter) for the league lead.

Simply put: Kucherov and Point feed off each other, and their magic isn't easily replicable.

"Everyone says, well, hey, I can go play with McDavid. Well, you have to be able to play at top speed like he can in order to keep up," Cooper said.

"That's what Kuch can do, what Point can do, and what the greats in the league can do. They make plays at top speed, with their feet and their mind. Now that they've played together for so long, they know where each other are going to be. It's a great luxury to have, when you have two guys like that, who work as hard as they do as well."

Parting shots

Coyotes heat: Commissioner Gary Bettman's All-Star press conference Friday was dominated by Hockey Canada questions. (Read the latest on the scandal here.) The other contentious issue was expansion and relocation, which always brings about two things: name-dropping and damage control. The name-dropping this time around: not only have groups in Salt Lake City, Atlanta, Quebec City, Kansas City, and Houston recently reached out about bringing the NHL to town, but apparently Cincinnati and Omaha (of all places) have as well. The damage control: Bettman said he's "reasonably confident" the Coyotes will purchase land in Phoenix to build a new arena. Like he did in November, NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh expressed extreme disappointment in the state of the Coyotes, who continue to embarrassingly play out a 4,600-seat NCAA arena. "This is not the way to run a business," Walsh said - and he's absolutely, 100% correct. Walsh, who's more assertive than old PA boss Donald Fehr, doubled down, stating he'd support relocation if the arena situation isn't resolved ASAP. He's pissed off and isn't afraid to show it, which is exactly the type of leadership Coyotes players need right now.

Just listened to NHLPA director Marty Walsh just absolutely murder the Coyotes for five minutes. Holy shit.

- Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) February 2, 2024

"Chosen One" doc: I found the new Alexandre Daigle documentary to be entertaining and enlightening. Daigle, picked first in the 1993 NHL Draft, was hailed as a savior for the one-year-old Ottawa Senators before turning out to be something of a bust. The doc includes plenty of honesty from Daigle, who talks about battling depression as he failed to live up to expectations. There was far more stigma around mental health in the '90s; even speaking with a sports psychologist was viewed as a sign of weakness. That in mind, I wonder how Daigle's career would have unfolded had he played in this era. Would he have entered the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program, recovered, then found his way? Maybe that's oversimplifying a complicated career and life. Maybe it isn't. At any rate, I recommend "Chosen One," which is streaming on Amazon Prime Video in Canada and ESPN+ in the U.S.

Watching Chosen One: Alexandre Daigle" and being reminded Chris Pronger and Paul Kariya were picked later blows my mind
I feel for him, but am still blown away

- David (@Davebethyname) January 29, 2024

Puzzle piece: Canucks coach Rick Tocchet found out about the Lindholm trade while in transit to All-Star Weekend. The way Tocchet sees it, Lindholm's jack-of-all-trades profile changes the complexion of Vancouver's forward group. "I'm a puzzle guy, and he's a big piece," Tocchet said Thursday. "He fits the puzzle for us. To win, you have to have those guys who can play 200 feet. They can score and also defend." Tocchet reached out to one of Lindholm's old linemates, Matthew Tkachuk, for his take. Tkachuk couldn't have been more complimentary. "When Matthew Tkachuk loves a guy, you know he's a good player," Tocchet said. Credit to Vancouver's front office for being so decisive. Last season, the Canucks didn't like where things were headed in the short term and offloaded Bo Horvat five weeks from the deadline. This year, they like what they see, and acquired Lindholm five weeks out.

Elias Lindholm admiring his new team's logo.#Canucks pic.twitter.com/AlX3Dd81o2

- Randip Janda (@RandipJanda) February 1, 2024

Takes, Thoughts, and Trends is theScore's biweekly hockey grab bag.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

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