With the season at a pause, let’s take a look at the Nashville Predators and hand out some awards for the 2019-20 season.
Currently, the NHL season is at a pause due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. This is as good of a time as any to take a look back at this season and see who stood out for the Nashville Predators. Though their season didn’t start off the way they expected it to, they’ve been better under new head coach John Hynes.
Should the season get back underway, they’ll most likely qualify for the postseason. Considering where they were as recently as January, that’s a huge accomplishment. Let’s take a look back at the Predators this season and hand out some awards.
We’ll hand out the traditional awards like the Hart Trophy (team MVP), Norris Trophy (team’s best defenseman), Vezina Trophy (best goaltender), Selke Trophy (team’s best two-way forward), and Calder Trophy (best rookie). On top of that, we’ll hand out some other fun awards too.
More from Puck Prose
- Detroit Red Wings 2023 Rookie Camp Has Plenty of Ups and Downs
- This Columbus Blue Jackets rookie doesn’t want to be forgotten
- 2 trades the Boston Bruins must make to secure the Stanley Cup
- 3 reasons the Avalanche won’t win the Stanley Cup in 2024
- This is a big year for Alex Turcotte and the Los Angeles Kings
Stats provided by Evolving Hockey, NHL.com, and Natural Stat Trick.
Calder Trophy
Finalists: Dante Fabbro, Yakov Trenin
Winner: Fabbro
Only two rookies have played more than 10 games for the Predators this season, so the pickings are slim. Going into this season, Fabbro was the heavy favorite. After all, he was virtually guaranteed a regular spot in the lineup.
Though Fabbro is in the lead by a comfortable margin, Trenin deserves some credit for making it at least somewhat interesting. Among Predators forwards with at least 200 minutes played, only Colin Blackwell has a higher WAR/60 (wins above replacement per 60 minutes). Had Trenin played in more games, this race might have gotten interesting.
Fabbro has 11 points this season while playing 19:02 per game. His possession stats haven’t been impressive, but he’s been a constant member of a veteran lineup.
Vezina Trophy
Finalists: Pekka Rinne, Juuse Saros
Winner: Saros
This race wasn’t particularly close. For years, Rinne has owned the Nashville Predators net. This season, Saros has made it his. Not only has he played more games than Rinne, he’s also outperformed him by every metric.