Matthews and McDavid: Making History

In 2015, Dallas Stars’ Captain Jamie Benn won the Art Ross Trophy, racking up 87 points in the regular season. Nine years later, in 2024, the hockey world is questioning whether a player can score 70 goals in a season and if a player can get 100 assists this season. Elite players like Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid are changing the way we see the game of hockey. Auston Matthews is looking to hit 70 goals in a single season. The last person to score 70 goals in a single season was Alexander Mogilny back in the 1992–93 NHL season, scoring 76 goals in 77 games played—a tough mountain to climb. With how goalies play now, there is no doubt that scoring 70 goals in today’s NHL is very impressive.

Over in Edmonton, Connor McDavid is looking to hit 100 assists in a single season. The last time this was done was by none other than the greatest player of all time, Wayne Gretzky, in the 1990–91 season, with the LA Kings putting up 122 assists in 78 games.

Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid are both looking to make history this season, but what is more impressive? Scoring 70 goals, or putting up 100 assists?

In today’s NHL, the goalies have a lot more equipment, go down to make saves and cover the majority of the net. There is no denying that it is a lot harder to score in today’s NHL, as players like Alexander Ovechkin and Auston Matthews have been scoring at ridiculous paces.

 

Auston Matthews was the first Maple Leaf ever to score 60 goals in a single season in the 2021–22 season. He currently sits at 55 goals with 16 games remaining in the season. With the trajectory Auston Matthews has been on this season, there is no doubt that Matthews can score 70 goals.

Meanwhile, in Alberta, Edmonton Oiler Connor McDavid has been playing on a completely different planet for the past 5 years.  McDavid won the Rocket Richard Trophy last year, scoring 62 goals. This year, he only has 25 but has 81 assists.

McDavid has been dishing assists all season long like it’s nothing. After the Oilers’ poor start to this season, McDavid and the rest of the team have elevated their game to put themselves back in the playoff position. It is no secret that with McDavid’s assists, he has been a massive help in bringing the Oilers back to where we thought they would be at the beginning of the season.

Both Auston Matthews and Connor McDavid have proven that they are two of the best players in the National Hockey League and are both looking to put themselves in the history books, with Matthews looking to score 70 goals and McDavid looking to achieve 100 assists in a single season.