The nominees for the NHL Awards are always controversial and this year is no different. Here are this year’s biggest NHL Awards snubs.
The NHL Awards are always controversial. Trying to keep the votes unbiased is difficult and often players who deserve it are not even on the list.
This year, there have been many questionable nominations and many players have been snubbed yet again from what they deserve. Here are the biggest NHL Awards snubs:
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Vezina Trophy
Nominees: Ben Bishop, Robin Lehner, Andrei Vasilevskiy
The Vezina Trophy is awarded to the best goaltender in the league. Ben Bishop had a phenomenal season, with the league-best save percentage (.934) and second-best goals-against average (1.98).
Robin Lehner had an amazing bounce-back season and was the biggest reason why the New York Islanders made it to the playoffs. But Andrei Vasilevskiy? Really? The only stat he was first in was wins (39) and that’s in large part because of the team in front of him.
Snubs: John Gibson, Frederik Andersen
John Gibson had a phenomenal season on a horrible Anaheim Ducks team. A .917 save percentage on a team that finished third-last in the Western Conference Finals is incredible and he was the one bright spot on the team for the whole season. If it wasn’t for Gibson bailing out the Ducks with his highlight reel saves, they could have easily been the worst team in the NHL.
Frederik Andersen is the biggest reason why the Toronto Maple Leafs even made it to the playoffs. The team is filled with offensive stars, but when it comes to defense, they often leave that on the back-burner.
Andersen bailed the Leafs out constantly and keeps them in games until the offense woke up to win the game. Without Andersen, the team was far worse off and it showed every time backup goalie Garret Sparks laced up for a game.
Norris Trophy
Nominees: Brent Burns, Mark Giordano, Victor Hedman
According to the NHL, the Norris Trophy is awarded to the defenseman who: “demonstrates the greatest all-round ability in the position”. Brent Burns is only on this list because of his point production (83 points).
Victor Hedman didn’t have a strong season but still got nominated anyways because of how dominant the Tampa Bay Lightning was. The only nominee that actually deserves this nomination is Mark Giordano.
Snubs: John Carlson, Seth Jones
John Carlson is by far the biggest snub for the Norris Trophy for the second straight year. He is a workhorse for the Washington Capitals, averaging over 25 minutes a game. Powerplay, penalty kill, even strength, you name it, Carlson is on the ice.
He is their top defenseman and is always expected to shut down the other team’s top line. And not only does he shut them down, but he also puts up points (70 this season).
At 24 years olf, Seth Jones is already establishing himself as one of the premier defensemen in the NHL. He’s big, he’s physical, and has a strong two-way game that many defensemen his age do not have.
Jones played the fourth-most minutes per game among defensemen this season (25:49) and even though playoff play isn’t a factor in voting, he played over 38 minutes in Game 1 against the Boston Bruins. This goes to show how much trust the coach has in him and how important he is to his team.
Selke Trophy
Nominees: Patrice Bergeron, Ryan O’Reilly, Mark Stone
Snub: Aleksander Barkov
These three candidates are all very deserving, but one player that needs to be here is Aleksander Barkov. Aleksander Barkov is one of – if not the best – defensive centers in the league and according to an NHL player poll, he is the most underrated player in the league. This says a lot about the player that Barkov is and the fact that he’s not in the top three again is ridiculous.