Half a season over 4 seasons is absolutely cherry picking. How did he do the first half? Or the other 3 seasons?
He did fine all season long and improved the last half of the season. I know this is hard to believe but first overalls are like other players that improve. He's 22 years old so his latest production is not cherry picking random games. It's a young player improving. Taking the LAST 41 games he played is not random in the slightest. Maybe if we took some random 41 game sample size in his second season sure. But he was good in the first half but wasn't getting the same production as he did in the second half. He gained chemistry with his linemates and improved as a player. And once again, over the course of the ENTIRE season 57 points, most of them at even strength is 1st line production. Is he currently a superstar? No. He's also 22. Give it a rest. I know you have your ego at stake here but you will look awfully silly pretty soon.
As I said, if I came into the Rangers board and told you by the end of year 4 his career high would be 57pts and he would have been passed by up to 4-5 players in the draft I would have been banned for trolling.
His first three seasons are relevant as MacKinnon's 2-4 seasons. Not at all. Has he been a disappiontment in his first 3 seasons? Most Rangers fans would agree. Does it matter in 2024? No. Does it matter in the history of hockey board on HF if we're analyzing his whole career? Sure, maybe? But no one really cares about that at this point.