Avalanche’s Nathan MacKinnon notches 140th point, breaks franchise record

Move aside Peter Stastny, there’s a new name atop the Colorado Avalanche leaderboard.

After picking up his second assist of the game, superstar Nathan MacKinnon notched his 140th point this season. That allowed him to pass Stastny, the Quebec Nordiques great, for the most points in a single campaign for the franchise.

It came on a quick feed to Valeri Nichushkin in front of the net on the power play, building the Avalanche’s lead up to 3-0 over the Edmonton Oilers on Thursday night.

It’s been a career year for the centreman, as he’s hit career highs in goals with 51, assists with 89 and points with 140.

His former career highs were all from last season when he had 42 goals, 69 assists and 111 points.

Stastny set the record for the franchise — which was the Nordiques before they relocated to Colorado — in the 1981-82 season, scoring 46 goals and dishing out 93 assists for 139 total points.

Despite Tampa Bay Lightning forward Nikita Kucherov leading the league in points with 144, MacKinnon leads the league in goals created per game with 0.62 and goals on-ice for. He also was atop the NHL in shots 404 going into the game on Thursday.

The Avalanche are set to face the Winnipeg Jets in the first round of the playoffs.