Roman Josi
The argument for: Roman Josi is putting very impressive point totals, which isn’t surprising. That has been his calling card for the past few seasons. In 17 games this season, Josi has 14 points. It’s worth noting he missed several games due to an injury. The Predators are a team who rely on their blueline to be productive, and Josi is certainly a guy who can take advantage of that.
If you create a “checklist” of things you want to see in a Norris contender, he has a lot of them. Points? Check. Plays during all situations? Check. Faces tough competition? Check. Gobbles up minutes like Pac-man? Check.
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Josi’s possession game has usually been a weakness for him. But so far, he ranks third among all defensemen in relative expected goals for percentage. As of Nov. 21, Josi’s relative CorsiFor percentage is over 10 percent, which shows the Predators are generally a much better team when he’s on the ice.
The argument against: The perception of Josi is that he’s a great, but not elite, defenseman. Why that is, I don’t know. Josi consistently puts up points at a rate that puts him among the cream of the crop. Maybe his bad possession numbers have hurt him. Also, Josi has this teammate named P.K. Subban who is thought of very highly. And rightfully so. Can Josi emerge from his shadow? He has so far.
Outlook: I’d give Josi good chances of winning if he keeps this up. One thing to watch, though – will Ryan Ellis’ return be a good thing or bad thing for Roman? He’s done darn well with Mattias Ekholm, whose defensive game seems to perfectly complement Mr. Josi and his gifts with the puck. But will Ellis be with Roman once he comes back? It’s worth noting Ekholm and Subban were an elite shutdown pairing during the Stanley Cup Playoffs, so that’s probably something Peter Laviolette wants to bring back.