Nathan MacKinnon brushes off reaching 1000 career points milestone in Avs' shutout win over Blackhawks

Nathan MacKinnon reached 1,000 career points on Monday in the Colorado Avalanche’s 3-0 win against the Chicago Blackhawks. He became the 100th player in NHL history to reach the milestone.

MacKinnon recorded two assists in the game. His 1,000th point came as a secondary assist on Artturi Lehkonen’s goal 31 seconds into the third period. The assist also extended MacKinnon’s home-point streak to 20 games. MacKinnon also assisted Martin Necas's goal minutes later.

After the game, MacKinnon spoke to the media about the milestone.

"Not a whole lot (of feelings right now). It's cool. It's fun to accomplish something with friends and teammates," MacKinnon said. "It's a number, It's a cool milestone, for sure. And, something to reflect on, I guess."

MacKinnon has scored 27 goals and 75 assists this season for 102 points, which leads the league. He now has 362 goals and 639 assists in his career. He is the third player in Avalanche/Nordiques history to reach 1,000 points. Joe Sakic (1,641) and Peter Stastny (1,048) are the other two.

Nathan MacKinnon’s longtime teammates Erik Johnson and Gabriel Landeskog were there for the milestone.

“Yeah, him and Landy both,” MacKinnon said. “I mean, um, yeah, it’s been a long time—obviously 11, 12 years. And, um, it’s great to have him back and share that moment with him.”

MacKinnon’s teammates celebrated by coming off the bench.

"I think, yeah, the other night they said something about maybe coming out, and I don’t know if I wanted that. But yeah, obviously, I appreciate it—doing it twice," he said.

Colorado swept a six-game homestand for the first time in franchise history. Martin Necas and Joel Kiviranta also scored for the Avalanche. Scott Wedgewood made 21 saves for his second shutout of the season.

Coach Jared Bednar talked about Nathan MacKinnon's 1000-point milestone

Colorado Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said he is proud of Nathan MacKinnon for reaching 1,000 career points. He discussed MacKinnon’s growth and gradual change over time.

"I'm really, really proud of him because you see players grow and change in so many different ways," Bednar said. "When you're around them every day, you don’t always notice it. It’s like having a baby—you’re there every day, and it doesn’t seem like they’re changing much, but then you leave for a week, and all of a sudden, they’re completely different." [6:30]

Bednar praised his strong defensive play in the 2022 playoffs. He said opponents struggled to create scoring chances against him. Bednar also noted that MacKinnon cares more about winning and it's "what drives him."

The Avalanche have a record of 39-24-2 and are sitting third in the Central Division. Next, Nathan MacKinnon and the Avalanche will face the Minnesota Wild on Tuesday.