5 players that can win the Calder Trophy with Connor Bedard out
With Connor Bedard out 6-8 weeks, the Calder Trophy is wide open.
The Chicago Blackhawks are going to be without Connor Bedard for 6-8 weeks. He injured his jaw in a game last week and now he had successful surgery to repair it.
Bedard was the clear frontrunner for the Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie. He has 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points in 39 games played. He is the youngest player in the league which makes this very good offensive production.
Now, there are going to be close to two months without him so a lot of players are going to be involved in the Calder Trophy race.
There are some really good rookies in this league right now and it won't take them long to close the gap with Bedard playing no games for a while. These are the five rookies that can be the Calder Trophy winner with Bedard out:
Luke Hughes of the Devils is in the best Calder Trophy spot right now
Luke Hughes is a defenseman who is amongst the rookie scoring leaders. It has been a very good season for him so far. His New Jersey Devils have dealt with some terrible injury luck as well this season but he has managed to put up points.
The points have started to come in even more over the last handful of weeks. He has taken over as the top offensive defenseman on the team and it shows in the stats.
Right now, Hughes has 7 goals and 16 assists for 23 points. He is a teenage blue-liner who is the fourth-leading rookie scorer. He has an amazing case to be known as the best rookie of the season.
There have been "teenage defenseman" mistakes but he has overall been good at defending as well. The Devils have a superstar in the making.
They also have a very interesting second half of the season coming up. If they are going to stay in the race with their injury luck, Luke Hughes is going to be a big part of it.
Brock Faber is the other defenseman that could win the Calder Trophy
Luke Hughes is not the only defenseman that has a chance to win the Calder Trophy. It is really hard to be a rookie defenseman in the NHL and Brock Faber has also been very good at it. He may have even been "all around" better than Hughes.
The Minnesota Wild blue-liner got into two games at the end of last year and then has been a big part of the team this year from the start. In 39 games played, he has two goals and 17 assists for 19 points.
Once he starts scoring some goals, he will be known as one of the best defensemen in the NHL. He is also supremely talented when it comes to playing actual defense which complements his offensive abilities well. His ceiling in the league is very high.
It won't be long before Faber is right there with the best defenseman in the NHL. He might not be as flashy as the Hughes brothers on the blue line but he will produce points and play well in his end for a long time.
Adam Fantilli could get really hot and win the Calder Trophy
Adam Fantilli was the third overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft. He was up against Connor Bedard as the 1-2 punch going into the draft. Leo Carlsson was selected in between them and he would be on this list if he was a bit healthier this season.
Fantilli, however, has been healthy and he's been amazing. So far this year, he's played in 42 games where he's scored 11 goals and 13 assists for 24 points.
This also comes with the Columbus Blue Jackets who are horrible. The Blackhawks are bad but at least Luke Richardson is a good coach that knows how good Bedard is.
Fantilli should be leading Blue Jackets not named Johnny Gaudreau in ice time yet he only averages 15:49 per game. He barely even plays in overtime when they get there. Pascal Vincent seems like a bad fit there right now but he was thrown into the fire during training camp because of Mike Babcock.
It is time for Fantilli to take that next step. He has been very good with his limited ice time and it is clear that he is going to be a star in this league.
Right now, his 24 points rank third in the league for rookies and a big run could have him finish on top. It would be nice to see him play more so he can reach this potential.
Marco Rossi is having an incredible rookie season after some hard years
Brock Faber is not the only Minnesota Wild rookie who has a case for the Calder Trophy. Marco Rossi has been incredible as well.
After being drafted in 2020, Rossi had a hard time getting into the NHL due to inconsistencies and health issues. The talent was always there but his development was halted because he had to be away from hockey.
It is clear now that he has put it all together. With the Wild this season, he has played in 39 games and scored 12 goals with 12 assists for 24 points. He is second on the rookie scoring list with these numbers.
Rossi is also very responsible in his own end compared to a lot of offensive-minded rookies. The Minnesota Wild have a stud with him and there are a ton of other good forwards that surround him. There are also more good players coming in the future.
Rossi is in a good spot right now when it comes to his points. If he keeps it up and ends up leading the class in scoring, he will have a shot at the Calder. Does another Wild player being in the conversation take votes away? It shouldn't.
Connor Zary of the Flames is becoming a true Calder Trophy dark-horse
The Calgary Flames probably didn't think they were coming into the year with a legit Calder Trophy threat but they have one here in January.
Connor Zary was a first-round pick (24th overall) in the 2020 NHL Draft and he is finally in the league on a full-time basis.
His rookie season is going very well. So far, he has nine goals and 12 assists for 21 points in 31 games played. That is fifth in league rookie scoring.
The Calgary Flames are having another disappointing year but Zary is someone to be excited about for them. If he continues to play well and be amongst the rookie scoring leaders with that disappointing team, he could be in the Calder conversation.
The fact of the matter is that Bedard getting hurt opens the window for a lot of players to be in this Calder Trophy race.
There are even a few honorable mentions like Dmitri Voronkov, Luke Evangelista, and Logan Cooley as well. All of these guys are going to make the league a better place for a long time.
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