NHL Award Predictions

The NHL will announce its awards tonight, and several Bruins have good chances of bringing home some individual hardware

Norris Trophy (best defenseman):
Nominees:
Zdeno Chara - Boston Bruins
Nicklas Lidstrom - Detroit Red Wings
Mike Green - Washington Capitals

Winner:
Zdeno Chara, at least he should win. Lidstrom's a great all around player, and I think his reputation will give him his 7th Norris Trophy, and 4th in a row. But Chara, Boston's big man, was nothing short of a defensive force this season. Often pitted against the opponents' top lines, his numbers aren't staggering, but as both a leader and an enforcer, there were few players more imposing and more annoying to opponents as Zdeno Chara.



Jack Adams Award (best coach):
Nominees:
Andy Murray - St. Louis Blues
Claude Julien - Boston Bruins
Todd McLellan - San Jose Sharks

Winner:
Claude Julien, and not because he was the NHL's best coach, but because he's the best among these three nominees. Certainly a guy like Dan Bylsma, who took over a Pittsburgh team struggling for a playoff berth and helped turn it into a contender, and eventual Champion, deserves more consideration than he got. But I think among the 3 nominees, Julien did the best. He was also the only one of this trio to win a playoff series.

Hart Trophy (MVP):
Nominees:
Evgeni Malkin - Pittsburgh Penguins
Pavel Datsyuk - Detroit Red Wings
Alex Ovechkin - Washington Capitals

Winner:
Alex Ovechkin. As much as I dislike him, he's simply the best player in the NHL. Moreover, he's Washington's primary weapon. The Caps have Semin and Green out there as well, but how much of their offense is a benefit of Ovechkin's play? Meanwhile, take Malkin off the Penguins and you've still got Crosby. Take Datsyuk off the Red Wings and you've still got Zetterberg and Hossa.

Ovechkin is simply the best in the world right now.



Selke Trophy (best defensive forward):
Nominees:
Mike Richards - Philadelphia Flyers
Ryan Kesler - Vancouver Canucks
Pavel Datsyuk - Detroit Red Wings

Winner:
Mike Richards. This Award doesn't have the same flare as the others, but you can bet that whoever takes it home is proud to win it. The only reason i think Richards will win is because he's the only one of the three I saw a decent amount of times this year. And I was impressed.



Vezina Trophy (best goalie):
Nominees:
Tim Thomas - Boston Bruins
Niklas Backstrom - Minnesota Wild
Steve Mason - Columbus Blue Jackets

Winner:
Tim Thomas. He led the NHL with a 2.10 GAA, as well as a .933 SV%. The big knock on him is that he only played in 54 games, as opposed to say the 71 that Backstrom played for Minnesota. And that's not unfair. But perhaps Tim Thomas' playoff performances will make up for that. But Thomas had a 1.85 GAA and .935 SV% in his 11 Stanley Cup games. Steve Mason, in his 4 playoff games, was lit up by Detroit. Backstrom didn't see any playoff action.



Calder Trophy (best rookie):
Nominees:
Bobby Ryan - Anaheim Ducks
Steve Mason - Columbus Blue Jackets
Kris Versteeg - Chicago Blackhawks

Winner:
Steve Mason gets his hardware here. He had a 2.29 GAA and registered 10 shutouts. Only Thomas had a lower GAA, and nobody had more clean slates.

Lady Byng Trophy (sportsmanship):
Nominees:
Martin St. Louis - Tampa Bay Lightning
Pavel Datsyuk - Detroit Red Wings
Zach Parise - New Jersey Devils

Winner:
I have no clue. I'll guess Martin St. Louis. We all know it won't be Crosby.

-The Commodore