Canucks' Nikita Zadorov names $100,800,000 star he'd like to build his team around & it's not Quinn Hughes

Vancouver Canucks defenseman Nikita Zadorov surprised everyone by naming the best player in the world, according to him. Zadorov was interviewed before the game against the Colorado Avalanche.

Zadorov was asked about his plans for the game. He explained their strategy and then brought up Avalanche center Nathan MacKinnon, hailing him as the best player in the world.

"Best player in the world up there, and he’s humming right now, so we need to stop him for sure," Zadorov said about MacKinnon.

Many in his place might have named their teammates, like Quinn Hughes, but not Zadorov.

Hughes, who received the Canucks reigns before the start of the season, has stood up to the expectations. He has scored a total of 76 points this season, which includes 13 goals and 63 assists. Defensively, he has performed the second-best in the league with a plus-minus of 36. But he was not Zadorov's choice.

MacKinnon carries one of the biggest contracts in the league, having signed a $100,800,000, eight-year deal on September 20, 2022.

Furthermore, Nikita Zadorov was asked about his experience playing against Connor McDavid, Auston Matthews and Mackinnon, and he was asked to comment on whether he sees MacKinnon as the best player or not.

Zadorov agreed with the reporter and said that if he were to make an NHL team, he would do so around Nathan MacKinnon.

"If I would have started build a team I would have built around him over those two guys because he is the winner. He won the Stanley cup, for sure," Nikita Zadorov said, referring to McDavid and Matthews.

With an impressive 113 points (41 goals, 72 assists) this season, MacKinnon is one of the best players in the league.

Nikita Zadorov's Canucks won against Jets

The Vancouver Canucks commanded a 5-0 victory over the Winnipeg Jets on Saturday, witnessing goaltender Thatcher Demko exit midway through the second period after delivering an impeccable performance, stopping all 12 shots he faced.

Casey DeSmith stepped in, turning away 10 shots to secure the win for Vancouver, marking their fourth consecutive victory and bolstering their record to 42-17-7.

DeSmith praised the team's resilience.

“Obviously, not the circumstances I like to be a part of a game, but that’s a heck of a win against a really good team,” DeSmith said (h/t ESPN). “And just to go drop of the puck all the way to the end of the game and really take it to them, that was an impressive win for the team.”

Quinn Hughes notched two assists.

The Canucks will face the Colorado Avalanche on Wednesday at 10:30 p.m. ET.