The First Half Bizarro NHL Awards

Dec 17, 2014; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild head coach Mike Yeo during the second period against Boston Bruins at Xcel Energy Center. The Bruins defeated the Bruins 3-2 in overtime. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

The Rick Bowness Award: Mike Yeo, Minnesota Wild

Yeo isn’t a bad coach really.  Obviously he’s coached his team into the playoffs the last two seasons, and with expectations high this year, Yeo and the Wild have fallen flat on their faces.  They’re 20-19-5 heading into Monday, good for last place in the Central Division.  After beginning the season with wins in seven of their first 10 games, the Wild have fallen apart.  Yes, Yeo hasn’t had help from his goalies and there are too many high-priced Wild players not living up to their contracts, but Yeo is the puppeteer pulling the strings and the man most likely to fall if changes are made.

They are middle of the pack scoring with 2.75 goals a game, in the bottom-third in goals against allowing 2.91 goals a game, and boast the 26th ranked power play.  This just isn’t a very good hockey team and Yeo basically played his final card recently when he “blew up” at practice on his players.  Recent quotes from the players make it sound like the team has quit, and when that happens, it’s time for the coach to go.

So congrats Mike Yeo, at least you’ll have some hardware for your trouble.  Just don’t put it up in office just yet…

Next: A Living Legend?

Jun 30, 2013; Newark, NJ, USA; New Jersey Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello speaks on the phone during the 2013 NHL Draft at the Prudential Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

The Mike Milbury Award: Lou Lamoriello, New Jersey Devils

Before the season Lou Lams would have been considered a long-shot for this prestigious award.  But after assembling a roster filled with aging vets and few dynamic players, the Devils have sputtered along with a 16-22-8 record, good for seventh in the Metropolitan Division.

The forwards are generally vanilla and there isn’t a game-breaker to be found.  There are a few pieces to work with here as the team has some young defensemen in Jon Merrill, Adam Larsson, Eric Gelinas, and Damon Severson that may be worth a damn one day.  But for now the young defense is playing as you would expect a young defense would, making costly mistakes and not being bailed out by Cory Schneider whose seven-year, $42 million contract doesn’t expire until 2022.  Yikes…

The team needs to completely rebuild, and whether Lamoriello should be the one calling the shots is debatable.  It’s quite a fall from grace for the man who helped build three Stanley Cup winners.  I guess he can at least hang his Milbury Award on the mantle next to his Hall of Fame ring.

Next: A Complete Fall from Grace?

Jan 18, 2015; Winnipeg, Manitoba, CAN; Arizona Coyotes goalie Mike Smith (41) makes a save during the second period against the Winnipeg Jets at MTS Centre. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Fedyck-USA TODAY Sports

The Tommy Soderstrom Award: Mike Smith, Arizona Coyotes

Why, oh why, has Mike Smith been so terrible this year?  What happened to the goalie that carried the Coyotes to a Western Conference Finals just three years ago?

The numbers this year are heinous: 7-20-2, 3.45 goals against average, .887 save percentage (tied for 42nd amongst qualifying goaltenders).  The man was being badly outplayed by Devan Dubnyk before Dubnyk was dealt to the Wild last week to try and fix their porous goaltending situation.

He’s dropped his last four decisions and while many people didn’t expect the Coyotes to make the playoffs this year, they did finish with 89 points last season and Smith was a big part of that reason.

This year?  He’s a huge reason why the team only has 37 points through 45 games and in position for the Connor McDavid sweepstakes.  Hey, and he only makes the most money on the team, so that’s something too.

As Smith tries to maintain his lead in losses by a goalie this season, hopefully he’ll take comfort in knowing that he’s locked up the Soderstrom Award for the first half of the year.  Congrats.

Next: Only the Flyers...

Nov 26, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Andrew MacDonald (47) skates with the puck against the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

The Rumun Ndur Award: Andrew MacDonald, Philadelphia Flyers

Perhaps Garth Snow‘s shrewdest move over the last year was trading MacDonald to a division rival for a couple of draft picks which they then used to snag Johnny Boychuk.  Talk about an upgrade.

Despite his reputation as a great shot-blocker, Islander fans and management knew he just wasn’t cut out to be in the top-four.  The Flyers thought they knew better and lavished him with a six-year, $30 million extension before free agency.  Great for MacDonald, bad for the Flyers who have already made him a healthy scratch several times this season, not something they expected to do with a $5 million a year defenseman.

So yes, he blocks shots.  Of course that just means he doesn’t have the puck a heck of a lot and teams are firing away towards the net.  He’s tallied two goals and seven assists in 34 games this season to go along with a minus three rating and has this nasty habit of dropping to the ice too quickly, often putting himself out of position.

While it hasn’t been all his fault, the Flyers didn’t expect to have a bottom-ten defense when they signed MacDonald and while he may not be the worst defenseman in the league, his poor play and horrendous contract help him snag the Ndur Award this season.

Next: Any Bets Who is Next?

Dec 29, 2014; Winnipeg, Manitoba, CAN; Minnesota Wild forward Thomas Vanek (26) looks to head the puck during the second period against the Winnipeg Jets at MTS Centre. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Fedyck-USA TODAY Sports

The Mitch Fritz Award: Thomas Vanek, Minnesota Wild

When he signed a three-year, $19,500,000 contract with the Wild over the summer, he was expected to be the final piece of an offensive puzzle to contend against the elites of the Western Conference.  Instead the Wild got a player that through 44 games has scored only 8 goals and added 19 assists to go with a minus 10 rating.  And only half of those goals are at even strength.

It goes beyond numbers with Vanek who also has a tendency to, how shall I put it, not play his hardest?  When you aren’t producing, aren’t winning, and look lethargic doing so, it’s a bad combination.  At least he hasn’t been involved in any off-the-ice shenanigans.  Oh wait…

There was a reason why during the Canadiens’ playoff run last year he became such a topic of conversation.  The natural ability is there, no question.  The effort and heart, well, that’s another story, and is what makes him so frustrating as a fan.

Hopefully Vanek can take solace in the fact that his combination of poor play, lackluster effort, and off-the-ice distractions has earned him this season’s first half winner of the Mitch Fritz Award.

And what would have been the odds of that before the season?  Actually, don’t answer that Thomas and come get your award instead.