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Connor McDavid having career season yet won't win Hart Trophy

On the latest edition of Zone Time, Julian and crew ask if Connor McDavid should win the Hart Trophy over Auston Matthews because of his playoffs performances, or is it juts simply the case that the Maple Leafs star was more valuable to his team in the regular reason, despite the disappointing loss to Tampa.

Video Transcript

- Connor McDavid is not real. And I will refuse to admit that Connor McDavid is real, until I have the pleasure of meeting Connor McDavid and saying, OK, you're Connor McDavid. I wouldn't say that--

JULIAN MCKENZIE: And he won't win the Hart Trophy this year because he didn't score 60 goals.

- OK. Listen to me, man.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: It's the truth. It's the truth. Connor McDavid is going through the best season he's have ever had in his career. He is going off on the Calgary Flames. There is a very good chance--

- Julian. The Leafs are not in the playoffs. The Leafs are not in the playoffs anymore. Let us have a victory. Let us have one. Julian.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: --Conference Final against the Colorado Avalanche, playing out of his mind. And what are we going to do? Give the Hart Trophy to Auston Matthews because he scored 60 goals in a season. Fine. Maybe much deserved. But how are we going to feel when we see Connor McDavid balling out like he's done all year, but Auston Matthews gets the Hart Trophy. I just want to point that out. That's not me hating.

- No. No. It's OK.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: Auston Matthews deserves it but I'm just saying.

- Here's the thing.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: It's going to look funny to me.

- Here's the thing, man. You are 1,000% right.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: Thank you.

- However. However. However.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: I know I'm right.

- Listen. Listen. Listen. Let me have something. OK. Let me have something.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: You're going to do your whole let you have something. I'll let you go off in two minutes.

- It's true. I'm watching-- look it's fine. Fine. Fine. Walk away. It's OK. You just want to say all this stuff and walk away. It's OK. Fine. Listen, man. We are another year where the Leafs should have done something, and they didn't. So all we have to hold on to are the individual things. And dammit, if Auston Matthews winning the Hart. If that could be the one ray of positivity, cool. That's fine.

Not to say that Connor McDavid doesn't deserve the Hart. And to be honest, I think that's just the nature and the culture around the award itself. Because based off the definition, it should be Connor McDavid every single year. But it's not. Justin brought this up a couple of episodes ago, usually we focus on narratives, and the narrative of the entire year was Matthews breaking the single-season scoring record. Scoring 60 goals. That's huge. That's awesome.

See it's funny, we're supposed to talk about Edmonton, we started talking with the Leafs. Anyway, back to the main point, shocked-- I'm surprised at Calgary and how they haven't really looked as secure as they were before. But you know what, all credit to Edmonton. Oh, great choice. Infinity Gauntlet, that's a solid story-- I actually whipped out some of my old comic books and been reading them a lot. How's-- Brian Michael Bendis, Jonathan Hickman, solid. If anyone here is listening to-- is into comic books and you want to find some authors, Jonathan Hickman, Brian Michael Bendis, top tier writers. Yeah. So I guess the next game, I think, will be huge for Calgary as far as how they respond. OK, you can put down your comic book, Julian.

SAM CHANG: Just-- I actually think-- I mean, props to the Edmonton Oilers, but I feel like game one geared us up for this epic, crazy battle. And I was personally hoping for more of the Brady camp. But I think the biggest shock to me so far has been how ordinary Jacob Markstrom has looked, after an incredible, regular season. He does not look anything like regular season Jacob Markstrom, and I have no idea what's going on there. But that's-- if he can't pull it together, that's a huge problem for Calgary.

- Yeah. Well, Connor McDavid is like stealing his soul every game. There have been like two games where McDavid has walked in and Titan deked him out, hard. So it's definitely tough on that aspect.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: Cuth, do you have any-- I'm sorry for the little tantrum I just put on.

JUSTIN CUTHBERT: No. I mean I'm going to go back to you for a second here. You're wrong, Auston Matthews is the deserved Hart Trophy winner.

- Yes.

JUSTIN CUTHBERT: Auston-- Connor McDavid-- Connor McDavid could win the Conn Smythe trophy, regardless of how the Oilers finish, because he's been so good in the playoffs. When in reality, during the middle of the season when Dave Tippett was still the head coach of the Edmonton Oilers, the Oilers and their superstars weren't playing very well. They weren't playing--

JULIAN MCKENZIE: They were not.

JUSTIN CUTHBERT: And for that reason, it was his best season. But statistically, or buy rate or whatever, it wasn't his best season. His best season was last season, he won the Hart Trophy unanimously. So Auston Matthews still deserves the Hart trophy, in my opinion.

JULIAN MCKENZIE: I just want to say-- I just want to say-- I just want to say-- I'm not saying Auston doesn't deserve the Hart Trophy, I'm just saying it's going to look very funny if Connor McDavid gets to the third-- gets to whatever. If he's still in the playoffs, and we're doing the NHL awards, and Auston Matthews gets the Hart Trophy and Connor McDavid just sitting there, it's going to look funny. And someone, not me, someone is going to be like, well, why didn't he get it? Someone is going to make a stink of it? It's going to be--

SAM CHANG: --because he would wear hockey laces as his belt to the NHL awards, and that was terrible. So disqualified on that basis.