Former Avs player compares Nathan MacKinnon to Michael Jordan, says he's a demanding leader
While we have known for quite some time that Colorado Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon is an absolute beast on the ice, most may not know how meticulous and demanding he is as a leader in practice and off the ice as well.
For most competitors, the desire to win rises above everything else, which makes it much more of a priority for a true competitor to eat clean, work hard and to not waste time and energy in practice covering up the mistakes of others - instead, holding them accountable and working hard to help teammates improve as well.
During an interview with a Russian media outlet, former Avs defenseman Nikita Zadorov provided a bit of his insight into what MacKinnon does for himself to ensure optimal performance every night and how much he demands from his teammates both in games, at practice and away from the rink.
Per Zadorov, MacKinnon shells out hundreds of thousands of dollars per season on a personal dietician, a live-in doctor/physiotherapist and a chef to prepare all of his meals.
While these sort of luxuries are not really affordable to those in a lower payscale, according to Zadorov, MacKinnon makes it a point to share the tips he learns with all of his teammates, expecting that they too buy in to maximize their potential and get everything they can out of their bodies in service of the same goal - to win.
Zadorov compared MacKinnon to Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan in terms of what he expects from himself and what he expects from each of his teammates. MacKinnon has apparently come off as a bit of a jerk in the past, but those in Colorado who have tolerated MacKinnon's demanding persona have all benefited from his guidance and leadership in one way or another.
One detail that I found particularly interesting is how MacKinnon treats passes in a practice setting. MacKinnon demands that every pass in practice connects with him tape-to-tape. Any pass that is even the slightest bit ahead or behind his tape, he does not work to correct the mistake and accept the inaccurate pass. Instead, he fires the puck back to the individual responsible and runs the drill again until a tape-to-tape pass is completed.
It's interesting to have this glimpse of what goes on behind closed doors in Denver. It's no wonder why MacKinnon is revered as one of the absolute best players in the game right now. It's because everything he does is in service of greatness and of achieving the ultimate goal of winning a Stanley Cup.
With this type of commitment, MacKinnon and the Avs will undoubtedly be one of the Stanley Cup betting favourites again this season.
| G | A | PTS | ||
| Zachary Werenski | - | 4 | 4 | |
| Artturi Lehkonen | 3 | - | 3 | |
| Mitch Marner | 3 | - | 3 | |
| Alex Tuch | 3 | - | 3 | |
| Dmitry Voronkov | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
| Cam Fowler | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Kirill Marchenko | 1 | 2 | 3 | |
| Nathan MacKinnon | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Alex Pietrangelo | - | 3 | 3 | |
| Sean Monahan | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Robert Thomas | 2 | - | 2 | |
| Brent Burns | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Dylan Cozens | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Evgeny Dadonov | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jack Eichel | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Brett Howden | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Luke Hughes | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Wyatt Johnston | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jordan Kyrou | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Jonathan Marchessault | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| Complete stats | ||||
| STANDINGS 2024-2025 | ||||||
TOP 10 | GP | W | L | OL | PTS | |
Golden Knights | 35 | 24 | 8 | 3 | 51 | |
Jets | 36 | 25 | 10 | 1 | 51 | |
Devils | 38 | 24 | 11 | 3 | 51 | |
Capitals | 34 | 23 | 9 | 2 | 48 | |
Wild | 36 | 22 | 10 | 4 | 48 | |
Maple Leafs | 36 | 22 | 12 | 2 | 46 | |
Panthers | 36 | 22 | 12 | 2 | 46 | |
Oilers | 34 | 21 | 11 | 2 | 44 | |
Avalanche | 37 | 22 | 15 | - | 44 | |
Kings | 34 | 19 | 10 | 5 | 43 | |
| Conference | Cumulative | ||||||