By Jonathan
Moncrief
Saturday, June 5th, 2004
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It appears as though hockey fans will have only three more chances to cheer in 2004 after Lord Stanley's Cup is paraded about. One of those comes with the NHL draft later this month, when the Washington Capitals will be expected to take Alexander Ovechkin from the Moscow Dynamo. Another, which could be the last hockey we see for a while, will take place in late August and September at the World Cup of Hockey.
The third of these will be the NHL Awards show, coming up on Thursday, June 10th in Toronto. We already know that Martin St. Louis of Tampa Bay will be awarded the Art Ross Trophy as NHL points leader, Martin Brodeur of New Jersey will receive the William Jennings Trophy for fewest goals against during the season, and that the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, presented to the top goal-scorer in the league, will be shared by Calgary's Jarome Iginla, Atlanta's Ilya Kovalchuk, and Rick Nash of Columbus.
In addition, the Bill Masterson Trophy for perseverance and dedication to hockey, as well as the King Clancy Trophy for community leadership and contribution, will also be awarded. Theresa Gould, a Minnesota Wild fan from Ramsey, MN, has already been award the Seventh Man of the Year by the league.
Here now is an unscientific preview of the other awards to be presented, with the nominees listed, followed by who should win, and/or who will win:
Hart Memorial Trophy
Most valuable to their team
Nominees: Brodeur, Iginla, and St. Louis.
Who should/Will win: Without question, the surprising rise of Martin St. Louis from afterthought free agent signing by Tampa Bay in 2000 to one of the game's elite players make him the feel-good choice. His tremendous speed and stick-handling allows him to have a chance to score anytime he's on the ice. In addition to the points title, he also led the NHL in shorthanded goals and points, as well as tying for the lead in plus-minus.
James Norris Trophy
Outstanding defenseman
Nominees: Zdeno Chara of Ottawa, Scott Niedermayer of New Jersey, and Chris Pronger of St. Louis.
Who should/Will win: Chara had a great season and stepped up his leadership, but Niedermayer did the same on a team that lost its heart and soul to injury (Scott Stevens). He led the Devils in ice time, and while being matched up against other clubs' top lines, he finished second in the league in scoring among rearguards. Actually, I felt that Sheldon Souray of Montreal should have been the third nominee, not Pronger.
Calder Trophy
Outstanding rookie
Nominees: Trent Hunter of NY Islanders, Andrew Raycroft of Boston, and Michael Ryder of Montreal.
Who should win: Not many picked Boston to win the Northeast Division at the beginning of the season, and fewer still expected to do so with an unheralded net minder. Raycroft, who played only six games combined the previous two seasons, was 29-18-9 with a 2.05 GAA and a .926 save percentage in leading the Bruins to the top of the best division in hockey this year.
Who will win: Despite Raycroft's numbers, it's hard for most of the old guard of the NHL writers to ignore a member of the Canadiens leading the league in rookie scoring. Add in the fact that Ryder was a ninth-round selection in the 1998 draft, and you have the resume of a Calder winner.
Frank Selke Trophy
Outstanding defensive forward
Nominees: Kris Draper of Detroit, John Madden of New Jersey, and Alyn McCauley of San Jose.
Who should win: San Jose's turnaround season was due to coach Ron Wilson's attention to defense, and McCauley was a key factor. The Sharks allowed 183 goals, fourth fewest in the league.
Who will win: Most of the Canadian writers wrote for months about how Toronto should trade for Owen Nolan last year, so they aren't going to make themselves look bad by saying McCauley (who was traded for Nolan) is the Selke winner. Kris Draper has been a consistent defensive forward and unsung hero for Detroit for a decade, and he was major reason why Detroit led the league in penalty killing.
Lady Byng Trophy
Most gentlemanly player
Nominees: Daniel Alfredsson of Ottawa, Brad Richards of Tampa Bay, and Richards' teammate, Martin St. Louis.
Who should win: I don't disagree with CBC's Don Cherry too often, but he's totally off-base in saying that Alfredsson looks like Krusty the Clown from The Simpsons, that is totally unfair and cruel. The truth is, he looks more like Sideshow Bob's brother Cecil from The Simpsons. He's also a terrific two-way forward, with just 24 PIMs as a center.
Who will win: This is an award that usually is easy to figure out. Richards had just 12 PIMs all season, so the award is his.
Vezina Award
Outstanding goaltender
Nominees: Brodeur, Miikka Kiprusoff of Calgary, and Roberto Luongo of Florida.
Who should win: Kiprusoff posted the lowest GAA for a season in 64 years with a 1.69 average in 38 games. Ask Vancouver, Detroit, and San Jose who they'd vote for.
Who will win: Luongo put up Dominick Hasek numbers this year for an awful team. He set league marks for most shots faced and most saves. He is just as deserving as anyone.
Jack Adams Award
Outstanding coach
Nominees: Darryl Sutter of Calgary, John Tortorella of Tampa Bay, and Ron Wilson of San Jose.
Who should win: The Flames had been in disarray for a long time before Sutter's arrival. They took on his personality, and played with a discipline and passion that resulted in their first postseason appearance in eight years.
Who will win: Ironic that two of the three nominees wound up in the Stanley Cup Finals. Tortorella could have lost his team in mid-season over his squabble with superstar Vincent Lecavalier. Instead, they played better and finished first overall in the Eastern Conference.
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