MacKinnon vs. Barkov

[Mr. Met]

#1 and #2 in 2013

Who would you rather have on your team?

Click to read more...

 

[BB88]

Barkov.

But as we all know Mack has the offensive stats for this year, he's really beasting.

 

[HammerTime44]

I'll take both please. Can't choose between them.

 

[freecheese]

Barkov easily. 2-way player with 90+ point potential

 

[Meeqs]

They are both godly. That's a win/win if there ever was one

 

[hoga]

To me it feels like if they were on the same team Barkov would be considered the number one center in the same sense as Crosby is the number one in Pit.
Now this doesn't mean that Mac is any worse. Probably better weapon offensively than Barkov but still I think overall Barkov is the better and safer bet..

 

[blinds]

^ 4th post in 13 years, nice.

I feel like this should be as close a poll as you can find, I honestly can't pick one. I think it comes down to team needs, MacKinnon has that extra offensive gear but Barkov is going to be better without the puck.

 

[cgf]

Gimme both and watch me win all of the cups with the perfectly complimentary 1-2 punch. If this MacK is here to stay it's him, but Sasha's amazing in his own right and was ahead heading into the season; MacK will have to stay ridiculously good to stay ahead of Barkov moving forward.

Barkov.

But as we all know Mack has the offensive stats for this year, he's really beasting.

This makes it sound like Barkov is playing better this season and just isn't putting up the same numbers...which would be incorrect, even with how astonishingly well Sasha is playing.

Barkov easily. 2-way player with 90+ point potential

MacK is going to break 90 this season and is a good 2-way player

He won't win a selke like Barkov, but he's a 2-way player with 90+ point production

 

[The Moose is Loose]

Barkov. Has been producing at this high level for years now, and is the only top u23 center with Selke potential. McDavid, Matthews, Eichel, Barkov, Mackinnon, Draisaitl and Monahan are all star young centers but really only Barkov stands out for his defense. The fact he keeps up with the rest of them offensively is what makes me vote for him.

 

[The Moose is Loose]

Barkov. Has been producing at this high level for years now, and is the only top u23 center with Selke potential. McDavid, Matthews, Eichel, Barkov, Mackinnon, Draisaitl and Monahan are all star young centers but really only Barkov stands out for his defense. The fact he keeps up with the rest of them offensively is what makes me vote for him.

 

[EK47]

Barkov easily.

 

[StatisticsAddict99]

Barkov has gotten out of control overrated.

This is easily Mackinnon.

I don’t see how Mackinnon can significantly better than Scheifele and Matthews and then Barkov comes in and is somehow significantly better than Mackinnon as Barkov is better than Matthews but he’s not better than Scheifele. This is not Rock Paper Scissors, Mackinnon is a beast and he should not be overlooked.

 

[GlitchMarner]

Wouldn't the argument for Barkov ("better overall") be the same as the argument for Matthews against MacKinnon?

And if people really expect MacKinnon to continue being a highly prolific point-producer, shouldn't he be winning like he is against Matthews? How good do you expect Barkov's defense to become?

Wouldn't favoring Barkov be a case of giving him the Toews treatment?

 

[cgf]

Barkov. Has been producing at this high level for years now, and is the only top u23 center with Selke potential. McDavid, Matthews, Eichel, Barkov, Mackinnon, Draisaitl and Monahan are all star young centers but really only Barkov stands out for his defense. The fact he keeps up with the rest of them offensively is what makes me vote for him.

Barkov has 62 points in 61 games...MacKinnon has 77 points in 57 games...

Barkov is a monster and every bit the Thornton-Kopitar hybrid I hyped him up to become; but he's not keeping up with MacKinnon this season. It isn't even really close right now, to put it in perspective: MacK's on pace to score 25+ points more than Sasha over 82 games right now...and that's with his full-season rate; not using the rate MacK's been at since those first 5 points in 10 games, to prognosticate what he'll do the rest of the way. Sasha is averaging a point a game; only getting one point today brought MacK's rate down & qualified as Nashville doing a great job of keeping him quiet.

I'm a huge Barkov fan and get why the Avs brass struggled to choose between him & MacKinnon, but that is simply an untrue statement in a season where MacKinnon has scored 15 more points in 4 less games

 

[22FUTON9]

Love both can't go wrong with either

I'll always probably have a soft spot for the top 4 of the 2013 draft, Love watchig drouin (with halifax and in that one playoff run) and barkov

Don't get to watch seth jones that much but it sounds like he's doing good as well

 

[BB88]

64 in 62 now for Barkov.

Wouldn't the argument for Barkov ("better overall") be the same as the argument for Matthews against MacKinnon?

And if people really expect MacKinnon to continue being a highly prolific point-producer, shouldn't he be winning like he is against Matthews? How good do you expect Barkov's defense to become?

Wouldn't favoring Barkov be a case of giving him the Toews treatment?

The consistency of elite level play.

I don't mind if someone votes Mack, but that vote is based on shorter sample size.

 

[cgf]

64 in 62 now for Barkov.



The consistency of elite level play.

I don't mind if someone votes Mack, but that vote is based on shorter sample size.

So he's on pace to score only ~20 points less in 6 more games than MacK this season!

No doubt, Sasha had this in the bag before the season. But MacK has blown past him this year. If he stays at this level...or even just close....then Sasha will have to get even more amazing than he already is, somehow.

Last Edit, I promise:
God damn do I wish we could just have both...ugh. How about we leverage our cap space, owning Ottawa's pick, and other assets to get Karlsson before flipping him to you for Sasha? EK is magic & this way the rest of the league can enjoy watching what a MacKinnon & Barkov 1-2 punch could do!

 

[BB88]

So he's on pace to score only ~20 points less in 6 more games than MacK this season!

What a waste of a 2nd overall pick, sadly the good old motor racing saying doesn't go in hockey,
"if you want to win employ a Finn".

 

[DudeWhereIsMakar]

Hard one, maybe Barkov because he's stronger and not as injury-prone.

 

[cgf]

Hard one, maybe Barkov because he's stronger and not as injury-prone.

...umm...

What a waste of a 2nd overall pick, sadly the good old motor racing saying doesn't go in hockey,
"if you want to win employ a Finn".

Eh, that Mikhail Rintintin kid who's riding MacK's coattails ain't too shabby

 

[StatisticsAddict99]

What a waste of a 2nd overall pick, sadly the good old motor racing saying doesn't go in hockey,
"if you want to win employ a Finn".

Nobody implied Barkovs a slouch, Barkov is Elite but Mackinnon performance this season is arguably the best in the league and he’s proved he’s better.

 

[cgf]

Nobody implied Barkovs a slouch, Barkov is Elite but Mackinnon performance this season is arguably the best in the league and he’s proved he’s better.

That post was very tongue in cheek

 

[BB88]

Nobody implied Barkovs a slouch, Barkov is Elite but Mackinnon performance this season is arguably the best in the league and he’s proved he’s better.

That was sarcasm. I knew cgf would get it.

Mack has been offensively better this year, Barkov the years before that, Mack in his rookie season.
They are overall about even.

 

[barkovcanfinnish]

I’ll take Barkov because of the obvious love I have for him, but the truth is I can’t be mad if someone chooses MacKinnon over him. Both are having incredible seasons.

If a team has them as a 1-2 punch it would be top-3 in the league, possibly #1.

 

[Ainec]

Barkov for me

both 22 year old top 10 centers