Thoughts on the Finals and Awards

I picked the Chicago Blackhawks to win the Stanley Cup in October and they made me look smart but actually it was an easy pick. They are the best team in the league and a modern day , salary cap dynasty.

The Hawks Big 3 is the best in hockey. Jonathan Toews is the game's best captain and is now in the Yzerman , Messier class. Patrick Kane is the game's premier scoring winger and Duncan Keith is the best all around defense in the league. You add future Hall of Famer Marian Hossa and steady D man Brent Seabrook and the Chicago core is as good as it gets.

The BlackHawks 3rd and 4th defensemen are finally getting their due Johnny Oduya and Niklas Hjalmarsson are both warriors with more offense skill than they are given credit for.

Chicago GM Stan Bowman started the Western Conference 2nd line center arms race by acquiring former Conn Smythe winner Brad Richards, Ryan Kesler, Jason Spezza, Paul Stastny went to rivals but Richards proved to be the right man coming up big when it mattered most in the Finals.

Patrick Sharp maybe on the way out but Brandon Saad is not a star in the making but a star right now. Teuvo Teravainen is right behind Saad on the star meter.

Antoine Vermette was the most prized trade deadline day acquisition and came thru with two game winning goals in the Finals

Steven Stamkos's reputation needs to take a hit after the Finals. Yes he battled and competed but legends like Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux's and Jaromir Jagr score on all of those chances or at least the breakaway.

Victor Hedman showed why he's was a number two overall all pick and may become this decade's Zdeno Chara.

Jon Cooper had a hell of a year but was out coached by Joel Quenneville in the Finals. Cooper had the Dan Blysma , standing firm on a sinking ship quality thing going. He never mixed up the top lines to find a spark and he relied to much on the Brandon Morrows and Matt Carle and not enough on Stamkos and Hedman.

Usually Brian Boyle steps up in big games, he had a disappointing Finals.

Nikita Kucherov's injury early in game five changed the series more than anything Jon Cooper did or didn't do.

Ben Bishop is still a question mark for me, he made so HUGE saves but he once again came up injured. Hate to blame a kid for injuries but you need to stay healthy.

The Awards--

Hart/ MVP ( Alex Ovechkin, John Tavares, Carey Price) Price is out to me because the Vezina is the goalie award, I love Tavares but the Islanders faded down the stretch. I 'd vote Ovechkin . He scored his usual ton of goals but this year he played defense. He threw big hits without being out of place. In general he bought what new Coach Barry Trotz.was selling.

Vezina/ Best Goalie ( Carey Price, Devan Dubnyk, Pekka Rinne ) Notably absent- Andrew Hammond Dubnyk ressurected his career and the Minnesota Wild and was lights out but he only did it for half a year. Ditto Hammond in Ottawa. Rinne was never the same after his mid season injury. Price was stellar all season and gets my vote.



Norris/ Best Defenseman ( Drew Doughty ,Erik Karlsson, P K Subban ) Notably absent - Duncan Keith , Shea Weber. The Norris always prefers offensive defenseman and this year is no different. Doughty played too many minutes this year and his play suffered. This was not Subban's best year. Karlsson was great in the half when his partner Marc Methot came back but its about all eighty two games. Duncan Keith is the best overall defenseman in the leauge but I vote for Shea Weber who played amazing on the overachieving Nashville Predators.


Calder/ Rookie ( Aaron Ekblad, Mark Stone, Johnny Gaudreau ) Notably absent - Filip Forsberg. Forsberg dropped out of running when Stone and the Ottawa Senators exploded. I'd love to give the award to Eckblad . He played remarkably steady defense for a rookie but Johnny Hockey led the Calgary Flames charge that burned so hot it knocked the Kings out of defending their title. Johnny Hockey gets my vote.

Selke/ Defensive Forward ( Patrice Bergeron, Anze Kopitar, Jonathan Toews ) Notably absent- Marian Hossa. This award is almost always given on reputation. This year in no different. Bergeron and Kopitar's teams didn't even make the playoffs. Toews is a magnificent leader who wins faceoffs but I'll take the best backchecker in the league, Marian Hossa.

Lester Patrick / Coach ( Bob Hartley, Peter Lavoilette, Alain Vigneault) Notably absent - Paul Maurice. Vigneault had a good year but he had a good team. Lavoilette took Nashville back to the playoffs by getting Ribiero to play hard and James Neal to score after Easter. Maurice navigated a minefield in Winnipeg and made the playoffs but I vote Bob Hartley , he tok an AHL team to the playoffs

GM- ( Glen Sather, Bob Murray, Steve Yzerman) Notably absent - Stan Bowman . Sather paid way to much for the skirt Keith Yandle. Sather should be embarrassed he's up for this award. Murray acquired Kesler from Vancouver for peanuts and Stevie Y runs a nice ship in Tampa but giving this award to anyone but Stan Bowman is ludicrous.

Lady Byng / Gentlemanly play ( Pavel Datsyuk, Anze Kopitar, Jiri Hudler) I always found this award to be kinda of a backhanded compliment but any excuse to praise the witch Datsyuk is cool.


Mark Messier / Leadership ( Jonathan Toews, Ryan Getzlaf, Andrew Ladd ) Jonathan Toews is the modern day Mark Messier without all of Mess's snarl, Ryan Getzlaf is Messier without all of Mess's rings but this season Andrew Ladd in Winnipeg led the Jets to playoffs for the first time since relocating to Winnipeg while enduring a plethora of injuries, big trades and the Evandaer Kane drama. Ladd gets my vote. 

Ted Lindsay / Outstanding Player ( Jamie Benn, Carey Price, Alex Ovechin) I gave Price the Vezina. and Ovi the Hart. Jamie Benn carried Dallas after Tyler Seguin got hurt. It appeared Dallas''s season was over but Benn kept them in it down to the wire. Benn gets Terrible Ted's award.

Bill Masterton / Perseverance ( Kris Letang ,Andrew Hammond, Devam Dubnyk) Letang makes too many comebacks, he needs to stay healthy. Hammond turned the Ottawa Senator season around in miraculous fashion but Ottawa made other roster moves and changed head coaches. Dubnyk did the same thing in Minnesota but with no major roster changes. I vote for him.