Mark Messier Leadership Award: (Awarded to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season. Awarded by Mark Messier, himself)
Winner: Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks
William M. Jennings Trophy (Awarded to the goaltender(s) having played a minimum of 25 games for the team with the fewest goals scored against it in the regular season)
Winners: Corey Crawford (CHI) and Carey Price (MTL)
Art Ross Trophy (NHL Scoring Champion)
Winner: Jamie Benn Dallas Stars (87 points)
Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy (Top Goal Scorer)
Winner: Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals (53 Goals)
NHL Foundation Player Award (Awarded to the player who applies the core values of hockey to enrich the lives of people in his community)
Winner: Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks
King Clancy Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the player who best exemplifies leadership qualities on and off the ice and has made a noteworthy humanitarian contribution in his community)
Winner: Henrik Zetterberg, Detroit Red Wings
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the player who exhibited outstanding sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability)
Winner: Jiri Hudler, Calgary Flames
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey)
Winner: Devan Dubnyk Minnesota Wild
Ted Lindsay Award (Awarded to the NHL's outstanding player as selected by the members of the NHL Players Association)
Winner: Carey Price Montreal Canadiens
NHL General Manager of the Year Award (Awarded to the top National Hockey League General Manager)
Winner: Steve Yzerman Tampa Bay Lightning
There were a couple of other guys who were up for this award that it could have gone to. Look at Glen Sather of the Rangers, for assembling them into a Presidents Trophy winning team. You could mention Bob Murray of the Ducks, for getting that team to the best in the West. You could even have looked at Garth Snow for building the Islanders into a playoff team. But they got this one right by giving it to Yzerman. Just llok at what he has been able to do. Yzerman has turned the team around in the last five seasons. He made the moves to help propell this Tampa team into the Eastern Conference Champions.
Jack Adams Award (Awarded to the NHL coach adjudged to have contributed the most to his team's success)
Winner: Bob Hartley Calgary Flames
I think the biggest reason the Award went to Hartley is because nobody had the Flames going where they did in the playoffs. Calgary hadn't made the playoffs since 2009, they got there this year. Clagary hasn't won a playoff series since their run to the finals in 2004. Guess what? They did that this year too, before they lost to the Ducks in the 2nd round. Bob Hartley had a big factor in that. He managed to take this team of young players to buy into the system and made it work. Work well it did.
Frank J. Selke Trophy (Awarded to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game)
Winner: Patrice Bergeron Boston Bruins
For the 3rd time in his playing career, Bergeron takes home the Selke as the top defensive forward in all of hockey. Bergeron is quickly establishing himself as one of the best two way centers that the game has to offer. He can do it all. He can win faceoffs, score and shut down the opposition. This marks the 2nd straight year, and 3rd time in the last four years, that Bergeron has captured the trophy. In fact, Bergeron joins Jere Lehtenen, Pavel Datsyuk and Guy Carbonneau as three-time winners. They all still trail behind Bob Gainey, who holds the Selke record with four wins.
Calder Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the league's most outstanding rookie player)
Winner: Aaron Ekblad, Florida Panthers
You could have made the argument for Mark Stone of Ottawa, or Johnny Gaudreau of Calgary, or even Filip Forsberg of the Predators. But it went to Ekblad of the Panthers. He had one of the best seasons by an 18-year-old defenseman in NHL history. His 39 points were just two short of the record for points by an 18-year-old rookie defenseman. Ekblad played a significant role on his team after being picked first overall last June.
James Norris Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position)
Winner: Erik Karlsson, Ottawa Senators
To a degree I think this award is taking on a bit more of an offensive touch to it. It is for the best defenseman in the entire league. this year, for the 2nd time in his career, it went to Erik Karlsson of the Sens. The offensive-minded defenseman had 66 points in 82 games this season while helping the Sens reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs. He was one of the big reasons that the Senators made their late season push to make it into the post season. Karlsson also had a bounce back year personally, after missing a good chunk of time last year to the leg injury. His performance on the Snes blueline this year made him worthy of the award.
Vezina Trophy (Awarded to the league's top goaltender)
Winner: Carey Price Montreal Canadiens
This award looked like it may have been a runaway for a different netminder at the start of the season. For a chunk of the season, it appeared that Pekka Rinne of the Predators was going to have the trophy. He was standing on his head in the early part of the season and he kept the Preditors near the top of the division all year long. Sadly for him, Rinne had to deal with injuries, and wasn't quite the same goalie in the latter half of the year. You could also have made an argument for Devan Dubnyk of the Wild, who turned his game, and maybe his career, around after coming to Minnesota. The Wild rode his stellar play into a solid playoff run, making it into round two. Price, on the other hand, was the most consistent netminder of any goalie in the entire league. Price had the best season of NHL goalie by a mile and is the single biggest reason the Canadiens finished with the second best record in the league in the regular season. He lead the league with 44 wins, a 1.96 GAA and a .933 save percentage. This is Price's first Vezina win and probably won't be his last.
Hart Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the league's most valuable player)
Winner: Carey Price Montreal Canadiens
Carey Price became the first goaltender since Jose Theodore to win the Hart Trophy as league MVP. He finished off an impressive haul that includes the Vezina and Jennings Trophies and Ted Lindsay Award. It was a historic season for the goaltender. Price received 139 of 157 possible votes. It was a landslide win for the Habs netminder who could be adding plenty more trophies to his bustling case over his career. You cloud have made the argument for the other two finalists, Alex Ovechkin and John Tavares as well. With Ovechkin, he scored 53 goals and helped lead the Capitals into the a 2nd place finish in their division. With Tavares, he lead the Islanders from a team last year who missed the playoffs, to this year making the playoffs. He scored big goals, made big plays and finished second in the league in scoring, just one point behind Jamie Benn for the scoring crown.
My reasoning for why Price should have won is sort of the same reason as to why he won the Vezina. He lead the league in wins, the best save percentage and lowest goals against average in the NHL. Montreal won the division, riding the back of their workhorse netminder. The reason for the award is you are the most valuable player to not only your team but to the league as well. Without Price healthy and between the pipes for the Habs, Montreal doesn't sniff the playoffs. He was the best player in the league by a longshot. Price becomes just the 3rd goalie in history to win the Vezina and Hart in the same year. The other three are Jacques Plante in 1962, Domink Hasek in 1997 and 1998, and Jose Thedore in 2002.
So there you have the NHL award winners for the 2014-15 season!
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