Colorado Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon became the first player this season to hit the 50-goal mark after finding the back of the net in the opening period against the Vancouver Canucks.
With Vancouver out to an early 1-0 lead, MacKinnon found space in the slot and fired a wrist shot past Canucks’ netminder Kevin Lankinen. It’s the second time in his career he’s reached the milestone after scoring 51 goals during the 2023-24 campaign.
The marker was MacKinnon’s 121st point of the season, putting him in a tie for second with Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov for second most in the league. Connor McDavid has a four-point lead on both Kucherov and MacKinnon at 125 for the league-high.
MacKinnon is now three goals ahead of Montreal Canadiens winger Cole Caufield, who is second in the NHL.
The 30-year-old MacKinnon has helped the Avs build the best record in the league this season at 49-14-10 for 108 points in 73 games.