Can Connor McDavid hit 200 points? + Hat tricks galore for the Panthers

Connor McDavid’s torrid start to the NHL season continued over the weekend with a five-point night against the Mammoth on Saturday night, bringing his point total to 23 in eight games. The guys discuss McDavid’s chances of reaching the 200-point plateau, if he has any Hart Trophy competition so far, and if he’s truly the most skilled player to ever play the game. Plus, the Panthers becoming the first team in NHL history to record at least one natural hat trick in 3 straight games, Brady Tkachuk’s return to Ottawa for the first time on Wednesday night, the latest on Connor Hellebuyck’s situation with the Jets, and excellent starts to the season for Jake Oettinger and Linus Ullmark. #hockey #nhl #nhlhockey #oilers #mcdavid #panthers 0:00:00: Intro 0:00:32: Connor McDavid is scoring at a 242-point pace over his first eight games 0:05:57: Is a McDavid Hart Trophy win inevitable this season? 0:11:30: Jack Eichel has had a fantastic start in Vegas for the Golden Knights 0:14:49: Brady Tkachuk records back-to-back natural hat tricks 0:20:59: Brady’s return to Ottawa with the Panthers on Wednesday night 0:26:45: What happens when Connor Hellebuyck’s suspension ends? 0:30:28: Linus Ullmark has led the Senators to a solid start 0:34:39: Jake Oettinger has re-emerged as a workhorse for the Stars Follow The Athletic Hockey Show wherever you listen to podcasts: https://podfollow.com/the-athletic-ho... Follow our hosts on Bluesky: Max Bultman: https://bsky.app/profile/mbultman.bsk... Mark Lazerus: https://bsky.app/profile/marklazerus.... Jesse Granger: https://bsky.app/profile/jessegranger... Sean Gentille: https://bsky.app/profile/seangentille... Sean McIndoe: https://bsky.app/profile/downgoesbrow... Hailey Salvian: https://bsky.app/profile/haileysalvia... Scott Wheeler: https://bsky.app/profile/scottcwheele... Chris Peters: https://bsky.app/profile/chrismpeters... Follow our hosts on X: Max Bultman: https://x.com/m_bultman Mark Lazerus: https://x.com/MarkLazerus Jesse Granger: https://x.com/JesseGranger_ Sean Gentille: https://x.com/seangentille Sean McIndoe: https://x.com/DownGoesBrown Frank Corrado: https://x.com/frankcorrado22 Hailey Salvian: https://x.com/hailey_salvian Corey Pronman: https://x.com/coreypronman Chris Peters: https://x.com/chrismpeters Scott Wheeler: https://x.com/scottcwheeler Subscribe to The Athletic: https://theathletic.com/hockeyshow Photo credit: AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill