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The Art Ross is the most clear-cut trophy in the NHL. While pundits love to go round after round debating who should have won the Norris Trophy or the Calder, the Art Ross is simple. Score the most points during the regular season, and you get one on your mantle. There are no PHWA votes to devour on Twitter. No input from the general managers. Since 1947, it has simply been awarded to the player who compiles the most points.

That’s what makes it such a pure trophy. Accumulating the highest point total doesn’t make you the best player in the NHL, but it’s a pretty outstanding feather to have in your cap — or line in your Wikipedia bio. The dog days of the offseason are upon us, but we still have a pretty good idea of who should be contending for the Art Ross trophy in 2016-17 barring injury.

Here’s a look at our five front-runners to win the prestigious award next summer.

Patrick Kane

We’ll start with last year’s winner in Patrick Kane. The Chicago Blackhawks forward had a campaign for the ages, blasting to the top of the point leader board in October and never looking back. He did slow down towards the end of the season, but it’s nearly impossible to keep up the sort of pace the 27-year-old established early on.

He notched points in 26 consecutive contests, and it was the longest scoring streak since the 1992-93 season. It was also the longest such streak ever put together by an American NHL player and the longest in Blackhawks history. When the Colorado Avalanche finally shut Kane down on Dec. 15, he seemed well aware of how rare runs like that are. He told Brian Hedger of NHL.com the following on that night:

“I think you never know what’s going to happen with the streak, or there’s a lot of games when it seemed like we were down and out, and you end up getting something at the end, whatever it may be.”

Therein lies the problem with Kane being able to defend his scoring title. While he is without a doubt one of the league’s most talented NHL players — and he will be playing with the same linemates as he did last year — it’s highly improbable that the forward will be able to match the 26-game streak he put together in 2015-16.

He’s due to fall from the 106-point perch he climbed to last season, but will still be in the mix to be the leading point getter.

Jamie Benn

The Dallas Stars have something special going on, and it all starts with the team captain, Jamie Benn. He won the Art Ross Trophy with an 87-point campaign two years ago and finished second to Kane last season. Entering his age-27 season, the towering forward could be poised to put forward his best point total yet.

He got a monster eight-year extension worth $76 million this summer (it won’t kick in until 2017-18) which will make him one of the most well-compensated players in the league. Benn will be worth every penny of the new contract, as he’s been among the most prolific scorers across the last three seasons.

Only Sidney Crosby has been more productive since 2013, and there’s no reason to believe that Benn won’t be able to push into the 90-plus point range in 2016-17. His point total has increased in each of the last three seasons and expectations are starting to rise in Dallas after making it to the second round last year.

Look for Benn to be up to the task, potentially leading the NHL in points when it’s all said and done.

John Tavares

When people talk about the best players in pro hockey, the likes of Crosby, Kane and Benn will come up in almost every conversation. One forward who tends to get lost in the shuffle is John Tavares. The New York Islanders center seems to always be in contention for the Art Ross — he finished just one point behind Benn in 2015-16 — but he hasn’t really had that definitive offensive season just yet.

The 86 points he produced two years ago is the most he’s ever put up in a single campaign, but it seems like the uber-talented center still has another gear shift he could hit within the next year or two. During the most recent playoffs, it became pretty clear just how reliant the Islanders are on Tavares for production.

He’ll turn 26 in September, and New York’s captain still has at least another three or four years worth of high-end point totals. Tavares is one of only six point-per-game players across the last three years, and he seems due for another pop. Like Benn, he’s flirted with 90 points before but never crossed the barrier. We could see him do so in 2016-17, which would potentially put him in line for the Art Ross.

The Islanders look a bit different heading into next season, but there’s a good chance Tavares will end up on a line with free agent pickups Andrew Ladd and P.A. Parenteau. It’s not the most star-studded line in the NHL, but there’s enough offensive talent in place there to get excited about if you’re an Isles fan.

Tyler Seguin

It seems like Tyler Seguin has been around forever. He made his debut with the Boston Bruins six years ago and already has 426 regular season games under his belt. Despite having the presence of a veteran at this point, the Brampton, Ontario native won’t turn 25 until January.

There’s a bit of a correlation between scoring and age, and it’s clearly better to be younger than older in today’s blazing fast NHL. Seguin seems to be tailor-made for the way the game is played right now, with his smooth skating stride and vision. Seguin has been among the most consistent point producers since 2013-14, but he’s struggled to stay healthy over the last two seasons.

He’s missed a total of 21 games in the last two campaigns, clipping his ability to score at the highest level. Injuries take some time to bounce back from, and rink rust has robbed him of even more goals and assists. If Seguin can stay healthy for a majority of 2016-17, he has a very good chance of winning his first Art Ross Trophy.

Erik Karlsson

It’d be no fun if we had five forwards on this list, right? Who wouldn’t love to see a defenseman take home the Art Ross Trophy? If anyone can do it, it’s Erik Karlsson of the Ottawa Senators. He finished fifth in overall scoring a year ago, and while Ottawa’s roster hasn’t seen any major improvements, there’s one change that will greatly benefit the blueliner.

New head coach Guy Boucher has a knack for rolling out creative offensive attacks, and it’s likely that he’ll be running everything through the blue line and Karlsson. He’s the most talented player on the roster and notched 82 points in 82 games while skating for Dave Cameron a year ago.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see Boucher take the reins off of Karlsson entirely, allowing the high-end offensive defender to take risks while creating offense. This could lead to another bump in points and a defenseman winning the Art Toss Trophy for the first time since 1974-75.