With two games left in the regular season, Nathan MacKinnon leads the NHL with 116 points.
He's appeared in 209 consecutive games.
Head coach Jared Bednar said ahead of Thursday's 4-1 loss to the Vancouver Canucks that MacKinnon will sit out the remainder of the regular season.
When pressed further about the reasoning for MacKinnon's absence, Bednar said, "he’s dealing with something, too. You get to this point in the year, all these guys are dealing with something."
"I don't think that individual accolades [matter to him]. I think they're nice. I think he's won a lot of them," Bednar said, per NHL.com. "His trophy case is huge. I don't think it matters to him. I think winning has always been the most important thing to him. Having accomplished that in 2022, I think he got a taste for it, and he wants to win again."
MacKinnon, 29, became the first player to hit the 30, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, and 110-point milestones this year.
The reigning Hart Trophy winner has only made another case for the league's most valuable player. He played a pivotal role as the MVP in Canada’s victory at the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.
MacKinnon has scored 32 goals and tallied 84 assists this season, strengthening his bid for a second consecutive MVP title. He’s currently tied with Tampa Bay’s Nikita Kucherov for the most points this season.
“He's such a valuable player,” defenseman Cale Makar said. “Every single day, what he brings to our team is pretty incredible. In my mind, he's a runaway (MVP winner).”
The Avalanche are also giving maintenance to defensemen Ryan Lindgren (upper body) and Josh Manson (upper body) and forward Jonathan Drouin (upper body).
-1744615124-q80.webp "Flyers visit the playoff-bound Ottawa Senators")
