The battle for the NHL’s most valuable player might be shaping up to be more than just a two-horse race.

A lot of the Hart Trophy conversation has been centered around Colorado Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon and Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl, and deservedly so. MacKinnon became the first player in the NHL this season to crack 100 points and has a good lead on Draisaitl in overall scoring, though the longtime Oiler has a huge lead in the goal-scoring race.

However, there are other names that have been having MVP-caliber seasons, especially Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck, who is well on his way to another Vezina Trophy while leading his team into the race for the President’s Trophy.

On Friday’s edition of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discussed how many honest contenders there are for the Hart Trophy.

Tyler Yaremchuk: I do agree that it’s Draisaitl/MacKinnon at one and two. I always struggle with the goaltending side of it. You see Connor Hellebuyck at number two on the board…I’m saying I wouldn’t have Hellebuyck on my ballot, but I think I would have Zach Werenski there.

Frank Seravalli: To answer the question in our title of the show, how many true MVP candidates are there? I think the answer is four. I think it’s Draisaitl, MacKinnon, Hellebuyck and Werenski. Then after that, I think you have to squint real hard. Jack Eichel just set a new franchise record for the Vegas Golden Knights in points. He’s been excellent, but I think when you consider the level that Eichel is at, and the level that those other guys are at, it’s there’s probably a pretty clear gap…I think Werenski certainly deserves consideration. Hellebuyck – we’ve talked about his numbers, we’ve talked about how it’s not even a conversation for the Vezina, but Hellebuyck also has more wins in net than a team like the Oilers do all season long, just himself. He certainly is gonna be deserving of that consideration, I think, when it comes to adding the goalie into the mix. You have to really transcend the position.

You can watch the full segment and entire episode here…