NHL: 25 worst award snubs in the history of hockey

25 Worst award snubs in NHL history: 11. Paul Coffey Norris Trophy 1984

Another defenseman who was snubbed out of his award was Paul Coffey. He is probably the best offensive defenseman in the history of the league. He left some to be desired in his own end. In 1984, the Edmonton Oilers might be one of the best teams of all time. The team already had Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Grant Fuhr, and Jari Kurri, but add in Paul Coffey who took another step in his legacy, and we see how he should have won the Norris Trophy.

Coffey scored 40 goals and had 126 points. That was second in the entire league behind Wayne Gretzky’s 206 points. Coffey should have won the Norris Trophy in a landslide. Instead, the voters picked Washington Capitals defenseman Rod Langway. They went with a defensive defenseman over a premier offensive defenseman.

This was clearly a difference of opinion. There was a player who was such an impact on the offensive side of the puck. You know, the one where they score the goals and stuff. On the other end, it wasn’t like the Oilers allowed a ton of goals. They were too busy scoring to allow the goals.

Some say that voters have made points too important in awards voting. In this instance, points weren’t important enough. Langway made a huge impact on the Capitals, but Coffey likely lost some of his shine because of how much talent was on the Oilers.