The Avalanche and Oilers superstars are in the NHL's Hart Trophy conversation every year, but there are still some young faces on the Sharks and Blackhawks making the top five in January.
For most of this season, it felt that Nathan MacKinnon was going to run away with the Hart Trophy without any real fight for the award.
Connor McDavid, however, is closing the gap on MacKinnon and is now just two points behind him in the NHL scoring race.
With that, Nikita Kucherov's recent tear has also earned him a spot in my top five Hart Trophy front-runners.
The Hart Trophy is awarded "to the player adjudged to be the most valuable to his team." In other words, they are considered the NHL's MVP.
Here are my top five candidates for the Hart Trophy as of Jan. 6.
5. Connor Bedard, C, Chicago Blackhawks
Connor Bedard suffered a shoulder injury in a game against the St. Louis Blues on Dec. 12 and hasn't made an appearance since.
After being sidelined and eventually placed on the injured reserve list, the Blackhawks have struggled mightily.
When Bedard was healthy, Chicago was in the playoff race and just one point out of the last wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. But, since his absence, the team has one regulation win and a 4-6-1 record.
As a result, they've dropped in the standings, proving how truly critical Bedard is to his team.
Also, despite missing 11 straight contests, the 20-year-old is still Chicago's leading scorer, with 19 goals and 44 points in 31 games.
BetMGM Hart Trophy odds: 401.00/+40000
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4. Nikita Kucherov, RW, Tampa Bay Lightning
Kucherov has been the hottest player in the NHL ever since the calendar flipped from 2025 to 2026. The Tampa Bay Lightning have played just two games in January thus far, yet Kucherov is leading the league in points since.
In those two contests, he recorded two goals and six assists for eight points. His last performance against the San Jose Sharks saw him post a season-high five-point game.
The Russian right winger is on a seven-game point streak. Across this streak, he put up 17 points with all but one game being a multi-point outing for Kucherov.
For season totals, the 32-year-old has 20 goals and 59 points in 37 games and has jumped to fourth place in the NHL's scoring race. He is on pace to register his fifth 110-plus-point campaign.
BetMGM Hart Trophy odds: 34.00/+3300
3. Macklin Celebrini, C, San Jose Sharks
Macklin Celebrini, 19, has not taken his foot off the gas pedal in this fantastic campaign.
Up to this point, he has 22 goals and 41 assists for 63 points in 41 games for the Sharks. He finds himself in the top three of the NHL scoring race as a sophomore.
What's even more impressive is how little help he's been getting along the way while keeping San Jose competitive in the playoff race.
Celebrini's 63 points lead his team by 34 points. That lead is more than the number of points that the next player on the Sharks roster has, which is Will Smith with 29.
Smith has missed some time, but that doesn't change the fact that Celebrini has been extremely valuable to his team. If San Jose were in a playoff spot, he'd be higher on this list.
BetMGM Hart Trophy odds: 26.00/+2500
2. Connor McDavid, C, Edmonton Oilers
McDavid is a Hart Trophy candidate nearly every season. Aside from the three campaigns in which he claimed the Hart Trophy, he's been a finalist an additional three times.
This year doesn't look any different for the Edmonton Oilers captain, as he has 25 goals and 47 assists for 72 points, which is the second-most in the NHL.
Even with superstar Leon Draisaitl on the team, McDavid is still head-and-shoulders above everyone on the Oilers in terms of production. He leads Edmonton in scoring by 15 points.
The 28-year-old is quietly closing in on a personal record as he is currently on a 15-game point streak. McDavid has recorded three four-point games and one five-point performance in that span. His longest career point streak was set in 2022-23 when he registered at least one point in 17 straight contests.
BetMGM Hart Trophy odds: 3.75/+275
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1. Nathan MacKinnon, C, Colorado Avalanche
It hasn't been easy for his peers to knock him off being the front-runner for the Hart Trophy, although McDavid has been getting close.
MacKinnon led the league in scoring from Nov. 5 to Dec. 22, the longest of any player this season. But since the Christmas break to now, MacKinnon and McDavid have jostled for the title of the league's leading scorer.
The Colorado Avalanche superstar has reclaimed the lead as he has 35 goals and 39 assists for 74 points this season. In addition to leading the league in points, he also leads in goals, even-strength goals and points, and plus-minus at plus-50.
At this halfway mark of the season, MacKinnon is on pace to score 70 goals and a plus-100 rating. Only 14 players in NHL history have scored 70 goals in a season, and only three players have recorded a plus-minus rating of 100 or more.
It's no surprise that he is the betting favorite for the award.
BetMGM Hart Trophy odds: 1.30/-333
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