Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

Opinion : Wyatt Johnston is the hottest player in the NHL right now

Originally posted on Dose.ca | Last updated 5/14/24

The Stars lead their series 3-1 over the Avalanche.

Dallas will have the opportunity to eliminate Colorado tomorrow…

The game will be played at the Stars’ home. It’s going to be tough for the Avalanche, especially with the distractions surrounding Valeri Nichushkin’s suspension.

The Stars are exciting to watch because they have a complete line-up.

But the team’s success since the start of the current playoffs must be attributed to Wyatt Johnston.

I remember writing an opinion piece during last year’s playoffs saying that Matthew Tkachuk was the best player in the world at the time.

Having said that, I’m not going to shout out loud and say that Wyatt Johnston is the best player in the world right now… But in my eyes, he’s clearly the hottest player in the NHL at the time of writing.

Just yesterday, he was excellent in Game #4 against the Avalanche, finishing with two goals and an assist.

He was all over the ice… And Cale Makar looked like a novice on Johnston’s first goal:

Wyatt Johnston Game 4 pic.twitter.com/RDQ92ljGYr

– Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) May 14, 2024

It’s especially impressive when you consider that the kid is only 21 years old.

Today’s his birthday, by the way!

Johnston has collected eleven points since the start of the playoffs, and is currently tied for 3rd most goals (7) since the playoffs began.

But beyond the points, when you watch him play, you notice how smart he is because he always does the right things on the ice.

He doesn’t get his team in trouble even when taking risks, he’s excellent at puck retrieval, he produces offensively because he gets up in the big moments… And he’s Peter DeBoer’s most-used forward in the playoffs, which says a lot about his performance lately.

The bottom line is that Wyatt Johnston has a bright future ahead of him.

Because right now, he’s the most exciting player to watch in my opinion… Without necessarily being the best player on the planet.

What he’s accomplishing deserves attention, in any case.

In a gust

– A beautiful gesture.

Colton Parayko just made his new best friend. #MensWorlds @hockeycanada @StLouisBlues pic.twitter.com/CmjBKIvWOk

– IIHF (@IIHFHockey) May 14, 2024

– This could be a good game.

Game 4 in Oil Country goes down tonight! @JeffMarek and @Mattymar89 preview tonight’s Canucks vs. Oilers matchup on the Line Change presented by @SIASport.

The Jeff Marek Show on @FAN590: https://t.co/DpXSnBR0C3 pic.twitter.com/PVScgSKuSV

– Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 14, 2024