NHL Awards Preview

At the dawn of every NHL season comes the NHL awards which are handed out to the best players, coaches, goalies, defenseman and forwards. Wednesday will be the official big show for the awards so in honour of tonight's award show it's time to preview it and give you my selections on who should win each award.

Now just like the NHL Draft I am not a huge fan of the award show, it's not that I don't like honouring players who had kick butt seasons, it's more the fact that much like the draft the award show becomes long and boring. The NHL often finds themselves trying to hard to make it entertaining thus making it more boring. So I will skip over all the comedians un-funny jokes and puns, the girls in ridiculously short dresses and the celebrities that are making appearances and get right down to the meat and potatoes, the actual awards.

The Hart Trophy
Nominees- Henrik Lundqvist, Evgeni Malkin and Steven Stamkos
Who I pick to win: Evgeni Malkin

Seriously how could Evgeni Malkin not win the Hart trophy after single handedly carrying the Penguins this year while Crosby was hurt. Malkin proved a lot of critics wrong including myself and showed that he is the real deal. Without Malkin's standout play the Penguins would not have been in the playoffs, he is the epitome of what the Hart trophy is about a teams MVP. Without an MVP a team can not excel, without Malkin the Penguins would not have excelled.

Sure Stamkos is an exciting flashy player who scored 60 goals, but did his team make the playoffs because of his goal scoring/play? No, the Lightning failed to make the playoffs despite the success Stamkos had. Malkin scored 50 goals and had over 100 points and his team still made the playoffs in large part due to his play. Which is why Malkin should be leaving the awards show with the Hart Trophy.

Vezina Trophy
Nominees- Henrik Lundqvist, Pekka Renne and Jonathan Quick
Who I pick to win: Jonathan Quick
I can't figure out why but I really fell in love with Quick's game this season, and not just during the playoffs but the whole season. After watching him for the last couple of seasons, I knew he was bound to have a breakout year very soon and apparently it was this year.
The only hitch between Quick leaving with a Vezina trophy was the amazing year Henrik Lundqvist had for the Rangers. He became 1 of only 2 goalies to have 7 straight 30 win seasons and backstopped his team to first place in the Eastern Conference.

But when looking for the Vezina winner you need to look over their body of work during the regular season: Quick led the league with 10 shutouts, finished second with a 1.95 Goals Against Average and finished 5th with a .929 Save Percentage. Not to mention he was in net for 35 of the Kings 40 wins this season and helped carry them for the majority of the season when they couldn't score.


James Norris Trophy
Nominees- Zdeno Chara, Erik Karlsson and Shea Weber
Who I pick to win: Zdeno Chara
Out of all the categories or awards this year this one is the closest. By definition the Norris Trophy is handed out to the defenseman who demonstrated the best over-all game. Meaning his play in both his defensive end and in the opponents end.

Sure Karlsson had a heck of a season from an offensive standpoint (19 goals and 59 assists) but for my liking he was to offensive and didn't show enough all around game effort.

Zdeno Chara has always been a solid consistent player and a nightmare to play against. He scored 12 goals this season and added 40 assists all while averaging 25 minutes of ice time. He also led the Bruins with 166 hits. Add the fact he's been nominated for this award 4 times and won it once before, he easily becomes one of the most consistent defenceman in the league.

So I'm handing this one to Zdeno Chara but just barely over Karlsson


Calder Trophy
Nominees- Adam Henrique, Gabriel Landeskog and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins
Who I pick to win: Gabriel Landeskog
Anytime a rookie can account for 25% of the goals a team scored and help them win an extra 11 games you know he's the real deal. Landeskog scored 22 goals and put up a huge 52 points while playing all 82 games and finishing with a plus-20.


Lady Byng Trophy
Nominees- Brian Campbell, Jordan Eberle and Matt Moulson
Who I pick to win: Jordan Eberle
Anytime a player manages just 12 penalty minutes all season you know he plays the game the right way. Sure he may get a rep for being soft, but when you score the type of highlight goals Eberle is capable off, his team is glad he's on the ice more than in the box.


Frank J Selke Trophy
Nominees- David Backes, Patrice Bergeron and Pavel Datsyuk
Who I pick to win: Pavel Datsyuk
Can anyone other than Datsyuk win this award, the guy is a beast. He can do things on the ice other players can only dream of. If he's nominated just give the award to him.


Jack Adams Award
Nominees- Ken Hitchcock, Paul MaClean and John Tortorella
Who I pick to win: Ken Hitchock
What Hitchcock was able to do by transforming the Blues into a playoffs team is remarkable in itself.


Bill Masterton Trophy

Nominees- Daniel Alfredsson, Joffrey Lupul and Max Pacioretty 
Who I pick to win: Joffrey Lupul
It's about time a Leaf won something right?
But in all seriousness the way Lupul was able to bounce back from his serious back injuries from his days with the Ducks to turn into a Leafs superstar is remarkable. Lupul deserves this award full fledged.



Ted Lindsay Award
Nominees- Henrik Lundqvist, Evgeni Malkin and Steven Stamkos
Who I pick to win: Evgeni Malkin
This season helped establish the fact that Malkin is the best player on planet earth, he should take home trophies for every category he is nominated for. Yes he's that good.


Bridgestone Messier Leadership Award
Nominees- Dustin Brown, Ryan Callahan and Shane Doan
Who I pick to win: Dustin Brown




NHL Foundation Award
Nominees- Mike Fisher, John Michael Liles and Matt Moulson
Who I pick to win: Mike Fisher


General Manager of the Year Award
Nominees- Doug Armstrong, David Poile and Dale Tallon
Who I pick to win: Doug Armstrong.


William M. Jennings Trophy
Winners Brian Elliott and Jaroslov Halak


Maurice Richard Trohpy
Winner- Steven Stamkos


Art Ross Trophy
Winner- Evgeni Malkin

Sabres Deadline Craze

Trade deadline 2012 has come and gone, and much to the joy of Sabres fans Darcy Regier ACTUALLY made a move. Shocking I know. Despite much talk leading up to the deadline, Roy, Stafford, Miller and Boyes all ended the day with the blue and gold and we weren't able to land Nash, Hemsky or Ryan. So what did Regier manage to do?

I ended up watching the trade deadline coverage from 8 right till 4, and I got a tell you, from 8-2 it was extremely boring, it was like watching a race between paint drying and grass growing! But at 2 stuff started getting interesting, twitter started blowing up as people wanted to catch the last hour of the deadline and with Darcy Regier having not done anything to that point, Sabres fans were panicking. The clock was ticking and it looked like no major trades would happen in Buffalo, and as the analysts pointed out, Regier's asking prices were way to high. We all Knew that no one liked Darcy's players as much as Darcy. Sabres fans were getting ready to burn down First Niagra Centre as nothing had been done, and as the 3 o'clock deadline hit there were still no definitive Sabres moves to report. But due to the crazyness of deadline day, things get backed up at the NHL offices so there was still hope that something (anything) had been done. Then TSN analyst Bob MaCkenzie tweeted saying that no deal had been made for Derek Roy before the deadline, which sent the fans into a further frenzy of anger towards Darcy. Six minutes after the deadline news broke that Paul Gaustad had been traded to Nashville, this deal although not shocking, brought some grief for fans as Gaustad was a huge crowd favorite Buffalo. What was shocking was that Darcy actually got a first round pick in this years draft for the big winger. Although the Sabres attached a forth rounder it was still  steal for the Sabres. I was okay with the Gaustad trade but I was hoping for something bigger, a blockbuster deal of sorts for the Sabres. I waited another half hour and was seconds from turning off the TV, when news broke that Zack Kassian had been traded to Vancouver. My heart skipped a beat as this deal really came out of no where. No one knew Kassian was on the market (truth be told he probably wasn't). But the best part of the Kassian deal, was TSN took forever to tell us who was coming back from Vancouver. They reported that Cody Hodgson had been traded, but everyone believed it was a separate deal. Then finally they put 2 and 2 together and announced that Zack Kassian and Marc-Andre Gragnani were traded for Cody Hodgson and Alexander Sulzer in two separate deals. Now this was the type of trade I was hoping would be made, as little or insignificant this deal seems it's actually a small blockbuster deal for the Sabres. It was also the biggest trade of the day.

What we got:
The Sabres got a 6-foot forward who was a first round draft pick (2008), and is tied for second in rookie scoring and 5th for rookie points. This fellow Sabres fans would be Cody Hodgson. A kid I am extremely excited to welcome to Buffalo. I have been following Hodgson since before he was drafted (I even played some shinny hockey and practiced with him). As soon as I heard how amazing he was I started following him, wanting to see where he would land. Hodgson is a natural talent, starting back from his days in minor AAA hockey were he racked up 99 points in just 59 games, he knows how to put the puck in the net and is a hard working kid. He played on both the World Junior and under 18 Canadian teams winning gold with both.  You may have heard of a couple of his teammates from those days, Tyler Myers and Tyler Ennis. A couple more feathers in his cap so to speak; CHL player of the year and OHL's most outstanding player. Hodgson is having a great first NHL season  in which he already has 33 points (16 goals and 17 assists) and was named rookie of the month in January. This acquisition was amazing and Regier deserves a pat on the back for this one. Hodgson will likely be the number one center of the future that we can build a team around, he has so much upside and potential it's crazy. Imagine if the at the end of the season the Sabres were to have the Calder winner on our team, that would be awesome! Without even playing a game for the blue and gold Hodgson is already 4th in team scoring! This isn't Brad Boyes or even Daniel Briere, this is a legitimate talent whose best days are in front of him.

Sulzer appears to be a big defenceman that can help our blueline. I see this move more as Regier not needing a player but more a complimentary deal in that Gragnani has much more upside than Sulzer. Since the Sabres were able to steal the Canucks prized Hodgson away, I think Regier evened it out with Sulzer. He was drafted back in 2003 in the third round by the Nashville Predators, he's played 74 games with 3 NHL teams (Predators, Panthers and Canucks). As much as I hate bagging on a player, there is really nothing about this guy that says anything more than career call-up, maybe change in scenery will give him a spark but there's no guarantee the Sabres will keep him in the bigs. An interesting note is that the Sabres now have easily the most German nationals in their organization.

In another amazing deal pulled off by Regier he managed to get a first round draft pick for Paul Gaustad!
We now have their first round pick in the upcoming 2012 draft, I'm not a huge fan of draft picks as they don't always work out, but a first-rounder for Gaustad I'll take it! This gives us 4 of the first 44 picks in the 2012 draft. Not too bad, not too bad at all.

What we lost:

Fan favorite Paul Gaustad. I never personally understood all the hype around Gaustad. When he first came up he was a tough gritty player but he has turned into a face off and penalty kill specialist that doesn't really contribute much on the scoreboard. In 7 seasons in Buffalo he's failed to score more than 12 goals or move up from the 3rd line. I'm okay seeing him go and was absolutely shocked we managed a first round pick for him.

Zach Kassian and Marc-Andre Gragnani, this deal hurts me a bit more as I really liked Kassian and I thought he would have a bright future in Buffalo. But he's an UNPROVEN winger where as Hodgson has been able to prove himself in the NHL. We may have lost grit with Kassian but frankly since his first couple of games he's really looked a bit lost on the ice. We also got smaller but more talented. However, with players like Luke Adam, Marcus Foligno and Brayden McNabb very close to being ready for the show, losing Kassian is worth the gamble. One thing that concerns me is this mostly proves that we're leaning toward a rebuild as we've almost eliminated ourselves from the playoffs this season.
I'm also ok with that because the goal is to win the Stanley Cup, not make the playoffs and as I've said before the current roster did not have what it takes to win it all.

What these trades mean:
These trades mean we're looking ahead to the future, let's face it although it's possible the chances of squeaking into the postseason are slim at best, which is why I believe they traded Gaustad. He would have been a great asset in the post season with his face-off skills and toughness. Right now this team is healthy (or healthier), Miller is playing like Miller again, lines are starting to gel (hands off Ruff!) and this team is playing the kind of hockey everyone expected them to play 62 games ago. We're 5-3-2 in our last 10 games and are battling hard each game, giving themselves a chance to skate away with the two points. I see the moves made at the deadline as a minor rebuild, getting rid of an unproven prospect and a gritty veteran in return for picks and a gem from Vancouver. With the addition of Cody Hodgson and a healthy team next season we are going to be better, and be right back in the playoff hunt and be closer to the cup. Not to overlook the fact we now have 2 first round picks and 2 second round picks for the 2012 draft, these picks can be used to draft prospects OR bundled to bring bigger fish to the Sabres. Imagine sending a couple of picks and a player to Anaheim for Bobby Ryan or Los Angeles for Dustin Brown! This summer could be another active one for Mr. Pegulia's wallet, hopefully Darcy will keep the contracts within reason. We have now filled the void at center and it's now looking like a pretty fantastic center lineup (Roy, Ennis, Hodgson). Darcy Regier pulled a rabbit out of somewhere on Monday with these deals, and likely saved his job until next season. We are building toward a cup, and to be honest I could see us winning one in the next few seasons!

Rookie's deliver

Hey everyone it is Christmas, a happy time of year so I've decided to make my last blog before Christmas a positive one. In this season of giving I am giving credit to the rookies around the NHL that have stepped up, and are continually helping their teams. To make my list of top 10 rookies so far, the rookies don't necessarily have to be scoring; many rookies have stepped up and answered the bell for ice-time, toughness and leadership. So brace yourself for a blog that will contain; no coaches, no concussions and no Sidney Crosby! Here we go!

1. Ryan Nugent-Hopkins; 13 goals, 21 assists; 34 points

Let's start with a obvious rookie, who currently sits atop the list of candidates for the Calder Trophy; The Nuge, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. This kid has been unbelievably good for the Oilers so far. Nugent-Hopkins is absolutely dominating and showing everyone that he not only deserved to be drafted 1st overall, but that he was ready to play in the show, right away! Let's look at what he has accomplished through 35 some odd games; He scored in his very first NHL game, recorded a hat trick in his 3rd game and on November 19, he became the first ever 18 year old to record 5 assists in a game. Not to mention he leads all rookies in goals, assists and points, is in the top 20 in points in the NHL and leads the Oilers in scoring! If Nugent-Hopkins can keep up this pace or even a pace similar to this, there is almost no question that he will be holding the Calder Trophy at the end of the season. But perhaps more remarkable, is the fact that Nugent-Hopkins can take a slumping Oilers team and put them back into position to be in the post-season for the first time in 5 years. Not to mention 2 of those 5 years were spent finishing at the bottom of the league. If the Oilers make the playoffs after finishing 30th in the last 2 seasons, it will be quite remarkable and may even be one for the record books. As of right now, I think i'ts safe to say, the Calder Trophy is Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to lose.

2. Adam Henrique; 8 goals, 17 assists; 25 points
Well to be fair and impartial in my list of top 10 rookies, I did some research on the rookies that are playing well right now, and I'm glad I did. I'd never even heard of this guy! Considering he is second to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins for rookie point totals and has so far been left off all "experts" charts for Calder Trophy considerations, I decided to do some research and see where Henrique came from. Henrique was drafted by the Devils 82nd overall in the 2008 draft but hadn't dressed for a game until early April last season. Despite the fact most have never heard of him, he has actually had quite a successful OHL career; He won two Memorial Cups with the Windsor Spitfires in 2009 and 2010, won the Wayne Gretzky award for OHL playoff MVP and was part of the 2010 Canadian World Junior Team that won silver. You'd think a kid who won 2 Memorial Cups and was a member of the world junior squad, would be someone I'd have known was coming. Henrique came within 1 game of snapping the Devils record for longest rookie point streak, having his streak ended at 7 games. Henrique really started to turn heads at the start of November when he began a point-per-game streak. Not only can he score, he can also handle some pretty extensive ice time, averaging over 20 minutes a night, he was runner up to Nugent-Hopkins for November's rookie of the month he had 5 goals 9 assists, while Nugent-Hopkins had 6 goals 10 assists. Flip I'm still trying to figure out how I missed this kid? In all likely-hood Henrique will finish runner-up at best to Nugent-Hopkins for the Calder Trophy.

3. Craig Smith; 8 goals, 16 assists; 24 points
Smith is currently sitting 3rd in the rookie points race, 1 point behind the mysterious Henrique. The 22 year old Smith was taken in the 4th round in the 2009 draft. Now most of us probably know Craig Smith for his inability to shoot a puck into a wide open net, yes on November 17 against the Leafs, Smith was the guy who sent the puck flying over top of the wide open net. Luckily for Smith his rookie season is going better than his open net aim! He currently leads the Predators in points, and is having quite a nice rookie season. He might not have all the flash and flair of a Nugent-Hopkins, but he is certainly in the mix for top rookie.

4. Luke Adam; 10 goals, 10 assists; 20 points
Did you really think I wasn't going to have a Sabres rookie on this list? What can I say about Luke Adam, I absolutely love this kid, and he's producing and giving it his all night in and night out. He is tied for top 4 in the rookie point totals, but he does it on less ice time than the rest of the high scoring rookies. Adam is averaging right around 13 minutes of ice time a night, some games he didn't even reach 13 minutes, but yet is still producing at a top level rate for a rookie. Plus Adam started the season on the top line playing between Vanek and Pominville, not to mention he fit in quite well and did not look out of place. I'm really starting to like Luke Adam, he is going to turn out to be a very good player for the Sabres in the future, the 22 year old from Newfoundland was drafted in the 2nd round in the 2008 draft. Through all the injuries the Sabres have and are enduring, Adam has not only stayed healthy, but is having an impact on the score sheet, forcing the Sabres to keep him in the show. Needless to say I think Adam has turned out to be a pleasant surprise for the Sabres, the kid battled hard through training camp and pre-season to prove he belongs, and hasn't let up. It's only a matter of time before he start gaining more trust from his coaches and his ice time rises. In Fact, my editor donmanski, said prior to the season, that Adam would be the number 1 new addition on the Sabres roster. So far he's right!

5. Jake Gardiner; 0 goals, 8 assists; 8 points
This is the type of guy I was referring to when talking about, not necessarily scoring, but still contributing in other ways.When Leafs training camp opened up, I knew the Leafs had something special in this kid and there was no way he was going back to the Marlies. Despite not putting the puck in a ton of points, he is 2nd in points amongst rookie defenseman. The Leafs are extremely lucky to have Gardiner, he was the Ducks 1st round pick in 2008, and came to Leafs in a trade that only Brian Burke could have made. Leafs acquired Gardiner for Francois Beauchemin. He has been a big part of the Leafs success this season, he is poised for a rookie defenseman, and is paired with veteran defensman Luke Schenn. This paring see's Gardiner getting roughly 21 minutes of ice time a night. In a sense Gardiner has "skated" his way into head coach Ron Wilson's good books, he is highly praised for his fluent skating style and his knack for skating himself out of trouble. Wilson, says it's almost like he never gets tired. Gardiner has made quite an impact with this young Leafs squad, considering he was supposed to start and perhaps finish the season in the Marlies. But so far this season Gardiner has looked anything but a rookie, and has earned high praise from coaches and teammates. Like all young defenseman he still has some rough patches ahead of him this season, but in the end could be a dark horse to win the Calder Trophy.

6. Cody Hodgson; 6 goals, 10 assists; 16 points

Heck I knew Hodgson was having a pretty decent season over in Vancouver, but when I re-looked at his stats, I realized he is have a very amazing season. I expected big things from Hodgson coming into this season, seeing him play junior hockey and play for team Canada, we all knew what he was capable of, and that he hadn't been given an opportunity to showcase his talent. When injuries puzzled the Canucks to begin the year, Hodgson was given every opportunity to excel, and excel he has. The 21 year old finally cracked the Canucks roster out of training camp after being drafted 3.5 years ago. Despite some obvious tension between Hodgson and head coach Vigneault, Hodgson has been producing and showing toughness throughout his minimal 4th line role. Like Adam, Hodgson receives minimal playing time, as he is averaging 12 minutes a game. But it is what Hodgson is doing with his time on the ice; he is producing and making a difference, which is why he finds himself on my list for top rookies. He is having in his own way a break out year, despite not putting up the points of a Nugent-Hopkins, Hodgson finds himself on pace for a 40 point season, not bad for a 3rd or 4th liner who averages minimal ice time. Do I think Hodgson can win the Calder? No, but he is still amongst the top rookies so far this season.

7. Matt Read; 11 goals, 9 assists; 20 Points
The only reason I put Matt Read so low, is because of his age, he is 25 not the normal age for a rookie, he has already had time to mature and go through a lot of trials, so he has more of a reason to be playing well, in a sense. Read was signed by the Flyers as an undrafted free agent out of college. Unlike most, Read decided to finish school, before joining the NHL, so he would have something to fall back on in case this hockey thing didn't work out. Well right now it is working out, he is tied for 4th in the rookie point race, and is quarterbacking the Flyers number 1 power play. He is helping fill a big role now that the Flyers are without Chris Pronger on the power play and penalty kill. He's played well and is among the top scorers for the Flyers despite his age and my baises he maybe deserves to be a hair higher on the list.

9. Gabriel Landeskog; 6 goals, 9 assists; 15points
Despite being the 2nd overall pick behind Nugent-Hopkins, and cracking the roster right away, I haven't been all that impressed with Landeskog. It's going to be a hard few years for him, being constantly compared to the kid who got drafted before him, but it's something he is going to have to get past. 6 points from the 2nd overall pick in 34 games, leaves me wanting more, good news is he is only going to get better, he plays all situations and sticks up for his teammates, he needs more practice at scoring goals, but other than that, he's having a decent rookie season. He's averaging roughly 8 more minutes a game than Luke Adam, shouldn't he have more goals and points? He's going to turn out to be an amazing hockey player, but needs time to develop, he is one rookie, I wouldn't have minded seeing sent down.

10. Jhonas Enroth; 2.54 GAA, .918 Save percentage and 8 wins.
The only goalie on this list, and of course a Buffalo Sabre. He leads all rookie goaltending categories with the stats listed above and played well in absence of Miller. Shoot he was even playing better than Miller when Miller got injured. He started a tiny goalie controversy early in the season, but has since fallen into place since Miller has started playing well again. Bottom line he is the top rookie goalie in the league right now. It's rare that a goalie is up for a Calder Trophy and he will not win, but his numbers earn him a spot on this list right now.

Honourable mention; Players that just didn't crack my top 10;
Adam Larsson; 2 goals, 11 assists; 13 points
Marc-Andre Gragnani; 1 goal, 8 assists; 9 points
Colin Greening: 8 goals, 8 assists; 16 points
Jared Cowen: 4 goals, 6 assists; 10 points
Zach Kassian; 3 goals 3 assists; 6 points

There you have it folks my top 10 choices for the rookie of the year award (Calder Trophy). I think the trophy is Nugent-Hopkins' to lose, as the first overall pick is cleaning house and putting up record breaking points. I think if Nugent-Hopkins wasn't around Luke Adam would have a very good chance to hold that trophy. Congrats to all the rookies who have managed to stay with their teams through 34 games this season.

Remember to vote in my poll on the right, today is the last day to do so. Merry Christmas to all have a fun and safe holidays with family and friends! See you sometime after Christmas!