Heading into the Stanley Cup Final, which players are the favorites to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, awarded to the MVP of the Stanley Cup Playoffs?
Every league has some form of a postseason MVP award, whether it’s for the final series or for the playoffs overall. Of the four major sports leagues (MLB, NBA, NFL, and NHL), only the NHL awards it for the entire Stanley Cup Playoffs. Each year, the Conn Smythe Trophy goes to the postseason MVP.
Last year, Ryan O’Reilly won the Conn Smythe less than 12 months after being traded from the Buffalo Sabres to the St. Louis Blues. Past winners include Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby (twice), Duncan Keith, Patrick Kane, and Justin Williams.
Who will be this year’s top playoff hero? This year’s postseason has featured numerous heroes for both teams. It should be a lot of fun to see how voters vote on the Conn Smythe.
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With the Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Dallas Stars set to start on Saturday, let’s take a look at the top five Conn Smythe Trophy candidates.
Honorable Mention
Nikita Kucherov has been terrific for the Tampa Bay Lightning and actually leads them in points in the postseason with 26. However, he was less than stellar (though still pretty good) without Brayden Point as his center. Also, the Lightning have more important players. This isn’t a knock on Kucherov, it’s a testament to how darn good the Bolts are.
5. Brayden Point
It’s weird seeing Brayden Point this low in the rankings. After all, when he’s been on the ice, he’s more often than not been the best player on the ice. Point has been especially clutch this postseason, as two of his nine goals have been overtime game-winning goals.
However, let’s talk about why he might not win it. Point has been playing injured and he had to miss two games due to injury in the Eastern Conference Final. Will his injury flare back up in the Stanley Cup Final? Who knows. But it’s worth pointing out Point still looked pretty darn good in Game 6 against the Islanders.
Usually, Point would be the favorite or darn close to it. But with a loaded team, there are more deserving candidates on the Lightning. And boy, does that say a lot about how great they are.