Why Connor McDavid Should Not Win The Hart Tophy

Connor McDavid is the best player on the Edmonton Oilers.

Connor McDavid would instantly make any team exponentially better.

Connor McDavid is the best player in league.

Connor McDavid should not win the Hart Trophy.

The Hart Trophy is the trophy given to the player deemed “Most Valuable to his Team”. And while McDavid is a really great player, he doesn’t bring anything of value to the Edmonton Oilers on the ice. Yes, he is valuable to the team in terms of merchandise sales, putting rear ends in the seats, and bringing back the bandwagon fans, but right now, the Oilers are terrible. And as dominating as McDavid is, he does nothing to make the team any better. With McDavid, the Oilers are a tire fire. Without McDavid, the Oilers are still a tire fire. Let’s look at other MVP candidates:

Taylor Hall: The Devils are bad when he isn’t in the lineup. They just aren’t the same team. But when he is healthy and playing, Taylor Hall brings his team to another level. That is a valuable player. Hall is valuable to the New Jersey Devils. He makes them better.

Nikita Kucherov: He is on a stacked team and they would still do okay without him, but wow does he every help them out offensively and is a huge reason the Lightning are so high up in the standings.

Nathan MacKinnon: Just watch old Avs games from this year when MacKinnon was hurt. They are bad without him. He drives the offense. They win more with MacKinnon in the lineup. He is valuable to his team.

Connor McDavid? His team is terrible with and without him. Yes he is the best.

So will Connor McDavid win the Hart Trophy? Given that the award is voted on by the hockey writers association, he still has a great chance. Because why would they pass up a chance at writing yet another article about how great he is. This is the same reason Crosby won the Conn Smythe in 2016. Because another accolade to an already decorated player is a better story than Phil Kessell wining the Smythe or MacKinnon winning the Hart.

Connor McDavid, you are a great hockey player. But you do nothing to make the Oilers better. Yes, to make such a terrible team better all by yourself is impossible, but this trophy isn’t for the best player in the league. This trophy is for the player who is most valuable to his team.