The NHL has come a long way since the 2014-2015 season when Dallas Stars forward Jamie Benn led the league with 87 points.
To see how much the NHL culture has changed, this season there are 20 players who have more than 87 points.
Elijah Roberts, defenceman for Toronto Metropolitan University, has played alongside players currently in the NHL including star defenceman Quinn Hughes. He said that there has been a big change in terms of what players can achieve.
“It’s crazy. Now 87 points is considered a bad season for some players. I don’t think we are far away from seeing a player double 87 points,” he said.
There have been a couple of players re-writing history this season, including superstars, Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews.
NHL fan, Mateus Craveiro weighs in on the incredible season that these two are having.
“I think it’s really good for the league that players like Matthews and McDavid are making history and breaking records because it attracts more eyes and can help grow the sport,” he said.
To Craveiro’s point, according to hockey insider, Frank Seravalli, this season has had the highest total attendance in the 106-year history of the NHL: 22,560,364.
“You know every time you watch these guys, you are in for a show,” Roberts said.
Roberts believes that a lot of this has to do with a newer style and generation of hockey.
“I just think the style of the game creates more offensive opportunities; it’s more run and gun,” he said. “The players also have more access to resources in terms of training treatment and nutrition.”
McDavid has become the fourth player in NHL history to record 100 assists in a single season, the first time it’s been done since Wayne Gretzky in 1991.
If Matthews scores his 70th goal of the season tonight against Tampa Bay, he’ll be the first player to reach that feat since Teemu Selanne and Alexander Mogilny, both in 1993.
“I think it just goes to show the amount of quality and skill that is in the league right now, and how the league is probably at one of its highest points in recent years in terms of skill,” Craveiro said.
One of the biggest discussion points of the season is who should be named MVP of the season. The usual names in that discussion include Matthews and McDavid, along with Nathan MacKinnon and Nikita Kucherov.
The decision to name the most valuable player has been so challenging due to the explosion of offensive performances.
“If I was to choose a player to win the MVP race, I would choose Nathan Mackinnon to win it,” Craveiro said. He also explained that is a big piece to the success of the Colorado Avalanche.
However, Roberts believes his former teammate Quinn Hughes should have his name in the mix.
“Quinn plays 28 minutes a night and is first in the league for points as a defenceman,” he said.
Roberts said that Hughes is a player who has changed the culture of defencemen and how they play the game.
This season he’s put up 91 points, in the last 30 years there have only been three occasions where a defenceman put up 90 or more points.
The game is changing and Roberts said “it makes the game more exciting.”