Mark Messier Leadership Award (Awarded by former player Mark Messier, himself, to the player who exemplifies great leadership qualities to his team, on and off the ice, during the regular season)
Winner: Nick Foligno, Columbus Blue Jackets
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: Travis Hamonic, New York Islanders
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. Named after player, coach and team executive King Clancy)
Winner: Nick Foligno, Columbus Blue Jackets
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey. Named after Bill Masterton, the only player in NHL history to die as a direct result of injuries suffered during a game)
Winner: Craig Anderson, Ottawa Senators
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the player who exhibited outstanding sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability. Named after Lady Byng of Vimy, 40th viceregal consort of Canada, who donated the original trophy to the league)
Winner: Johnny Gaudreau, Calgary Flames
He was a finalist for the first time this year and it comes as almost no surprise that Johnny Hockey won the award. He averaged 18:29 of ice time in 72 games and was assessed two minor penalties. He had 17 points (five goals, 12 assists) in his final 16 games without being called for a penalty. Gaudreau led the Flames with 61 points (18 goals, 43 assists). His numbers were solid and he beat out guys like Vladimir Tarasenko of the Blues and Mikael Granlund of the Wild.
Frank J. Selke Trophy (Awarded to the forward who best excels in the defensive aspects of the game. Named after general manager Frank J. Selke)
Winner: Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins
This guy is almost kind of making it his personal award now a days. This is the 4th time that Bergeron has won the award, one of only two players to ever win the award that many times, joining Bob Gainey, who won the award each of the first four years of its existence. This year, Bergeron beat out Ducks center Ryan Kesler and Minnesota Wild forward Mikko Koivu. Bergeron did a little bit of everything for the Bruins. He won faceoffs, killed penalties and scored points. He can put points on the board and shut down the oppositions best forwards from doing that as well. He might be one of the most underrated all around players in the league today.
Ted Lindsay Award (Awarded to the NHL's outstanding player as selected by the members of the NHL Players Association)
Winner: Conor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers
No surprise McDavid walked away with this award. He led the NHL with 100 points (30 goals, 70 assists) this season and helped the Oilers reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2006. He joined Wayne Gretzky (1982-85, 1987) and Mark Messier (1990) as Oilers to win the award and became the youngest to win it since Pittsburgh Penguins center Sidney Crosby in 2007 as a 19-year-old. He beat out the leagues leading goal scorer Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and one of the top blueliners in the game, Brent Burns of the Sharks
Jack Adams Award (Awarded to the NHL coach adjudged to have contributed the most to his team's success. Named after player, coach and general manager Jack Adams)
Winner: John Tortorella, Columbus Blue Jackets
This marks the 2nd career win for Torts winning the award, winning the award the last time in 2004 with the Tampa Bay Lightning. This year, he beat out Mike Babcock of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Todd McLellan of the Edmonton Oilers as top bench boss in all of hockey. And with good reason. Look at what he was able to do with the Jackets this season. The Blue Jackets had their best season since entering the NHL in 2000. Columbus set its records for wins (50) and points (108), finishing third in the Metropolitan Division to reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the third time in its history. The Blue Jackets also had a 16-game winning streak, one shy of the NHL record of 17 set by the 1992-93 Pittsburgh Penguins. When a team puts up those kind of numbers, the coach does have some influence over them and Torts did a fantastic job of leading the Jackets this year. Now maybe they will take another step in the right direction soon by winning a round in the playoffs.
Calder Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the league's most outstanding rookie player. Named after Frank Calder, the first NHL President.)
Winner: Auston Matthews, Toronto Maple Leafs
Talk about a hell of a season. First pick overall in the draft, score four goals opening night and make the playoffs all in the same year. Not a bad way to start a career for Auston Matthews. Matthews was up against fellow finalists Patrik Laine of the Winnipeg Jets and Zach Werenski of the Columbus Blue Jackets to become the first Maple Leaf to win the Calder since Brit Selby in 1966. Matthews is the 10th Maple Leaf to win the award, joining Syl Apps (1937), Gaye Stewart (1943), Gus Bodnar (1944), Frank McCool (1945), Howie Meeker (1947), Frank Mahovlich (1958), Dave Keon (1961), Kent Douglas (1963) and Selby. Matthews is the first United States-born player to win the Calder since defenseman Tyler Myers in 2010 with the Buffalo Sabres. Matthews had 40 goals and 29 assists in 82 regular-season games and four goals and one assist in six games in the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Toronto lost to the Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference First Round. Only way for him to go is up from here. He's no doubt the leader and brightest young star on this Leafs team and this is a great way to cap off an incredable year.
James Norris Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position. Named after team owner James E. Norris)
Winner: Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks
This marks the first career win for not only Brent Burns, but it also marks the first time that a Sharks player has snagged the award. This is a bit of a reprive almost for Burns, who finished 3rd in Norris voting last year. He was able to gain more votes then Erik Karlsson of the Senators and Victor Hedman of the Lightning. Burns had 76 points (29 goals, 47 assists) in 82 games, leading defensemen in goals and points. On Feb. 18, he had 27 goals but didn't score for 16 games. During his scoring drought the Sharks fell out of first place in the Pacific Division and finished third at 46-29-7. Burns played this year like a man on a mission. He had the bitter taste in his mouth from the Sharks losing to the Penguins in the Finals and wanted to get back. He did all that he could for the Sharks, who are getting a little older and might not be as competitive a team as they once were. And when you look at Bruns, you see a guy who has the all around ability to dominate a game on any given night, as his scoring numbers show. Same argument too can be made for both Karlsson and Hedman, who each had outstanding years in their own right, but they weren't as good as Burns this season.
Vezina Trophy (Awarded to the league's top goaltender. Named after goaltender Georges Vezina)
Winner: Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets
This marks the 2nd time in the last five years that Bob has snagged the top goalie award, having won it in 2013. Bob took the award over Brayden Holtby of the Capitals and Carey Price of the Canadiens. And just look at the numbers that Bob posted this year. Bobrovsky led the NHL this season with a 2.06 goals-against average and .932 save percentage, and was second with a Blue Jackets-record 41 wins in 63 games. His seven shutouts were tied for third, trailing Holtby (nine) and Tuukka Rask of the Boston Bruins (eight). Bobrovsky's 14-game winning streak from Nov. 29-Jan. 3 is tied with six other goalies for second-longest in League history; Gilles Gilbert of the Bruins won 17 straight in 1975-76. Now don't get me wrong, both Holtby and Price put up outstanding numbers this season. But Bob not only put up numbers, in some regards at least, that were better then those two guys, he was a MAJOR factor as to why the Blue Jackets were as good as they were this season.
Hart Memorial Trophy (Awarded to the league's most valuable player. The original trophy was donated to the league by Dr. David A. Hart, father of coach Cecil Hart)
Winner: Conor McDavid. Edmonton Oilers
McDavid beat out both Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and Sergei Bobrovsky of the Blue Jackets to snag the honor of being the best player in the game during the 2016-17 regular season.This marks the first MVP for McDavid and he is the first Oilers player to snag the award since Mark Messier in 1990 to take home the trophy. Its an honor that is richly deserved for McDavid. The 20-year-old center is the third-youngest player in League history to win the Hart. Wayne Gretzky (1980) and Sidney Crosby (2007) each won the award at age 19. McDavid led the League with 100 points (30 goals, 70 assists) in 82 games in his first full NHL season, winning the Art Ross Trophy and helping the Oilers qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2005-06. The award is designed to honor the best player in the game during the regular season and that was McDavid this year. He was the leading scorer in the NHL and if it wasn't for him the Oilers would have continued their playoff drought this year. Hell just look at the Oilers comparing last year to this season. Edmonton was a mess last year and McDavid missed a large chunk of playing time because he had a broken collar bone in his left shoulder. This year, he was healthy and really on his game, leading the charge in Oiler Country. If this year was a sign of things to come, then Edmonton is going to be in great shape for a long long time with this kid at the helm for this team on the ice.
So there you have it, the award winners in the NHL this season!
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