Hockey Award Time

The Stanley Cup has been awarded, and I think Alex Ovechkin is still drunk.  That party's going to continue all summer long, and I'm enjoying every minute of it!  Now there's one last bit of NHL business before the draft.  They presented the Stanley Cup in Las Vegas, so why not give out all the other awards there, too?

Adams: Gerard Gallant, Golden Knights-I'm starting with the easiest one.  It's cute how they announced two other "finalists," as if there was any chance someone other than Gerard Gallant was going to win the award.  I hope the other two didn't waste too much time on their speeches.  Because this should be unanimous.

GM of the Year: George McPhee, Golden Knights-This one should also be unanimous.  In fact, I'd even be willing to say McPhee deserves more credit than Gallant for the Knights' extraordinary inaugural season.  After all, he's the one who picked the players...and made those shrewd moves to stockpile draft picks and guarantee this wouldn't be a one-year thing.

Hart: Taylor Hall, Devils-Honestly, I have no idea who's going to win the Hart Trophy.  These aren't the three guys you would've expected to be the finalists when the season started, that's for sure.  In fact, Anze Kopitar isn't even a finalist for the Ted Lindsay Award, the players' MVP.  So, I think it's safe to say he didn't win.  I give Taylor Hall the nod over Nathan MacKinnon because the Devils don't make the playoffs without him.

Vezina: Andrei Vasilevskiy, Lightning-Any of the three finalists could win, and it would be deserving regardless.  This is perhaps the most competitive award of the night.  I'm going with Vasilevskiy because he played Vezina-quality goal night in and night out all season.  Pekka Rinne and Connor Hellebuyck put up ridiculous numbers, too, but the Lightning were the best team in hockey for most of the season, and their goaltender was a big reason why.

Norris: Victor Hedman, Lightning-Make that two awards for the Lightning.  Because I think Victor Hedman is in line for his first Norris Trophy.  Drew Doughty and Mr. Lindsey Vonn were their typical brand of brilliant, but Hedman took his game to another level in 2017-18.  He had 17 goals, 63 points, was a +32 for the season, and was on the ice nearly half the game.  That's an all-around defenseman alright.

Selke: Patrice Bergeron, Bruins-They might as well rename this the Patrice Bergeron Trophy.  They won't, but you could understand why if they did.  The Bruins center is a finalist for the seventh straight year and is looking to win for the fifth time, which would be the most ever.  While he might not have the numbers of the other two finalists (Sean Couturier and Anze Kopitar), he's developed a reputation as one of the toughest penalty killers in the league.

Calder: Brock Boeser, Canucks-Not surprisingly, the three Calder Trophy finalists are from teams that didn't make the playoffs.  My choice is the Canucks' Brock Boeser, who was named MVP of the All-Star Game at the ripe old age of 21 (as crazy as it sounds, he's the oldest of the three finalists).  He had 29 goals, and it likely would've been more if he hadn't missed the last 16 games with an injury.  We'll see how much that affects his vote total.  This award could very well end up going to the Islanders' Mathew Barzal as a result.

Lady Byng: Aleksander Barkov, Panthers-An award unique to the NHL, the Lady Byng is the sportsmanship trophy.  I wish the other leagues would have something similar.  Ryan O'Reilly of the Sabres took ONE! penalty all year.  One!  Think about that.  That alone could give O'Reilly the honor, but I'm going with the Panthers' Aleksander Barkov, an all-out thug in comparison with his seven penalties.  Seven penalties, 78 points, 22 minutes on ice per game.  That's a lot of time on ice to behave yourself so frequently while also being productive.

Masterson: Brian Boyle, Devils-"Sportsmanship, perseverance and dedication to hockey."  Those are the three criteria for the Masterson Tophy.  Brian Boyle checks all three boxes.  He was diagnosed with cancer during training camp, yet somehow managed to make his way back quickly enough to make his season debut on Nov. 1.  If that wasn't enough, he scored 10 goals in his first 25 games and made the Metropolitan Division All-Star Team.  One of the best feel-good All-Star stories in a long time.

King Clancy: Daniel & Henrik Sedin, Canucks-We've actually got four finalists for this one because, even after 17 years, the NHL still considers the Sedins to be one person.  This was their final season with the Canucks, and this effectively serves as a lifetime achievement award for all their community work, primarily to help children, since their arrival in Vancouver.

Mark Messier: Deryk Engelland, Golden Knights-Another deserving honor for the NHL's expansion darlings.  The Mark Messier Award is for leadership on & off the ice and plays a role in growing the game in the community.  Is there anyone who fits the bill more than Deryk Engelland?  The Golden Knights didn't have an official captain, but it would've been him if they did (he got the Clarence Campbell Bowl for a reason).  His stats are irrelevant.  He meant so much more to that team than his numbers.  He already lived in Las Vegas and was engaged in the community even before Oct. 1.  Then, after the tragedy, Engelland led the charge in the healing process.

Ted Lindsay: Taylor Hall, Devils-Kinda like Offensive Player of the Year and MVP in the NFL, the Ted Linsday Award and Hart Trophy go to the same player more often than not.  Just like I have no idea which way the writers are siding for the Hart, I don't know where the players are leaning for the Lindsay.  Since I said Taylor Hall for that one, I'll say Hall for this one, too.