NHL Mid-Season Awards Heading Into The All Star Game
After 4 games were played last night, the NHL season is now put on hold for a few days for the NHL All Star Game. Everything that teams and players have done up to this point is obviously important for getting them to the position they’re in today, but the real push for the playoffs starts as soon as actual league action picks up again on Tuesday. The first half of the season is in the books, and that second half is about to begin. But before the puck drops on Tuesday, let’s take a look back on who have been the most impressive players/coaches/teams so far this year and hand out some mid-season awards.
Hart Trophy (League MVP): Patrick Kane – Chicago Blackhawks – (53 GP, 30 G, 43 A, 73 pts)
I really just don’t see how you give this award to anybody else at this point. To think about what Patrick Kane has done one the ice so far this season is incredible. He has a 15 point lead on Jamie Benn who currently sits in 2nd in the league. He went on that 26-game point streak, had led the Blackhawks during their 12-game win streak, has his team sitting pretty at 1st in the Central division and has been making his linemates around him better. Anisimov seemed to be a lost cause in the NHL but you throw him on a line with Patrick Kane, all of a sudden the kid has life again. Panarin was a huge question mark heading into the season but you throw him on a line with Patrick Kane, he’s a total stud. Patrick Kane has been doing it all so far through the first half of the 2015-16 NHL season and unless he runs into any injury problems, I don’t see how he doesn’t end up with this award at the end of the year.
Vezina Trophy (Top Goaltender): Braden Holtby – Washington Capitals – (39 GP, 30 W, .929 S%, 2.07 GAA)
Braden Holtby is one of the main reasons why the Washington Capitals have been able to quiet some of the haters through the first half of this season. The Caps have only played 47 games so far but Holtby has played in 39 of them. And in those 39, he’s only lost 5 in regulatoin. It’s ridiculous. I get that the Caps have a ton of firepower on offense and they could probably afford to have a goalie back there not as competent as Holtby and still get by. But he’s proven that with Carey Price out with an injury, he is the best goalie in the league right now. The only problem with Holtby is that the Caps have a league high 35 more games left to play after the All Star Break. And you have to imagine with how often they play him to begin with, this last stretch of the season is going to have to take a toll on his body. But Holtby played a shit ton last year and it’s not like he got completely dominated by Lundqvist in the playoffs. So at this point in the season, I’m done doubting Holtby’s abilities.
Norris Trophy (Top Defenseman): Drew Doughty – Los Angeles Kings – (49 GP, 10 G, 18 A, 28 pts)
Now it’s a little difficult to not put Erik Karlsson here just because he’s currently 4th in the league in points with 52. But when you think of the players that are in the Norris Trophy conversation, you have Erik Karlsson, Drew Doughty, PK Subban, maybe even Ryan Suter? Well the only one in that pack who has their team in playoff contention right now is Drew Doughty and the 1st place in the Pacific LA Kings. There are definitely a couple more defensemen in this league that you can make the case for, but at this point in the season, Drew Doughty has been the best blueliner on a team who has been playing extremely well. Plus, it’s about time the guy wins this award anyway.
Calder Trophy (Top Rookie): Dylan Larkin – Detroit Red Wings – (48 GP, 15G, 18A, 33pts)
I know that Panarin has the most points out of this rookie class so far. Trust me, I know this. But the way I look at Larkin vs Panarin right now is that you have to see which player would be better on their own. Make no doubt about it, Panarin has played a huge role in Patrick Kane’s success so far this year. But if you put him on a line with anybody else? Well who knows what you get from him. With Larkin, however, you can tell that this kid is destined to be a stud in this league. He’s the kind of player who makes you hold your breath every time he touches the puck. And the fact that he’s doing all of this AND is 5 years younger than Panarin can’t be over looked. Plus, he’s American. And in my opinion, America is always > Russia.
Jack Adams Trophy (Top Coach): Gerard Gallant – Florida Panthers
Most of the Panthers’ success this year has come from GM Dale Tallon. He’s done an excellent job at putting all the right pieces in place for the Florida Panthers. They have a great mix of young talent and veteran leadership. But even the old guys like Jagr and Luongo are key contributors to this team night after night. So while Gerard Gallant has been put into a pretty nice situation, he’s still the one behind the bench that has this team believing in themselves. According to the metrics, the Florida Panthers should have never gone on that 12-game run. But when you have confidence in your team and confidence in one another, that allows you to go out there, grind out for a little and pick up some wins that you really shouldn’t get. And that all comes back to Gerard Gallant and his ability to facilitate that confidence in the locker room. Imagine what could happen if Tallon gives him another offensive weapon to work with at the deadline?
Selke Trophy (Top Forward Defensively): Honestly, I don’t have a concrete answer to this one so far. I mean, I feel like this is always Bergeron’s award to lose year in and year out. And if anybody is going to take it from him, it would be Jonathan Toews or Anze Kopitar. But there are also a few young budding nominees this year in Aleksander Barkov and Sean Couturier. So if you put a gun to my head (which I’m sure plenty of you would like to do after my Wideman blog), I give the award to Bergeron right now. 2nd half of the season should be plenty of fun to watch, though, and it would be great to see the Selke get passed around.
Team To Win The East: Washington Capitals
At this point, they’ve earned it. They have an 11-point lead on the rest of the conference and it doesn’t seem like anybody is going to be able to match up with them. And believe me, I HATE picking the Caps here more than anything. I just threw up on my keyboard from writing this. But unless the Canadiens are able to turn it around once Price is healthy, the Caps are the best team in this conference. Sidenote though: I really do believe that a healthy Price immediately puts the Habs back in contention again. I know that they’ve fallen off and fallen off drastically. But they’re a team playing without any confidence right now. Their forwards aren’t scoring, their defensemen can’t generate any offense from their own zone. The team is a mess but Price will bring stability to that locker room.
Team To Win The West: Los Angeles Kings
I know that Chief is going to murder me for this but I have to go with the Kings. The only reason, of course, being that Luke Schenn and Vinny Lecavalier have been traded to Los Angeles from Philly. What happened the last time 2 former Flyers ended up in LA together? Well I’m pretty sure we all remember Carter and Richards skating around with Lord Stanley’s Cup over their heads.
For what it’s worth, I picked a Lightning vs Ducks Cup Final on the first day of the season and that’s obviously not gonna happen. So take those picks with a grain of salt and let’s hope it just ends up being a mush.
Just over 4 weeks left until the Trade Deadline. Let the chaos ensue.