Post by MarmotMike on Jun 10, 2004 2:51:19 GMT -5
St. Louis leads awards nominees
Source: Canadian Press
6/9/2004
TORONTO (CP) - Let's be honest, Martin St. Louis didn't have the kind of playoffs many expected despite helping the Tampa Bay Lightning win the Stanley Cup.
Teammates Brad Richards and Nikolai Khabibulin and Calgary Flames stars Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff all had more outstanding post-season campaigns than St. Louis, and Richards deservedly got the nod for the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP.
But Thursday night's NHL gala event at the Metro Convention Centre in Toronto is about rewarding those who excelled during the 82-game regular season, where St. Louis was clearly the league's most dynamic force.
A look at CP's picks for the NHL awards:
Hart Trophy, MVP:
Nominees: St. Louis, Iginla, Martin Brodeur (New Jersey).
Synopsis: St. Louis led all scorers with 96 points (38-58) and tied for first with a mind-boggling plus-35 rating. Iginla tied for the league-lead with 41 goals and once again carried his team on his back, tallying 10 game-winners. Brodeur led all netminders with 38 wins, his NHL-record ninth consecutive 30-win season.
CP's Pick: St. Louis. While he had a stronger supporting cast than Iginla, the Lightning would not have finished first in the Eastern Conference without his prolific scoring.
Norris Trophy, top defenceman:
Nominees: Zdeno Chara (Ottawa), Scott Niedermayer (New Jersey), Chris Pronger (St. Louis).
Synopsis: Few would argue with any of these choices. Chara tallied a career-high 41 points (16-25), ranked third in the NHL with a plus-33 and punished the opposition with bone-crushing checks. Pronger was second among NHL blue-liners with 54 points (14-40) and was also second in the league in ice time at 27:27 per game, having to pull in too many minutes because of the injuries to Al MacInnis and Barrett Jackman.
Niedermayer, amazingly a first-time nominee, tied Pronger with 54 points (14-40), had a plus-20 rating and took over the captaincy for the injured Scott Stevens.
``Who's going to be the favourite? It's tough to say, all three of us had a good season,'' Chara said recently. ``But my pick would be Scott Niedermayer. He's been in the league for many years and it would be a great career achievement for him. And when Scott Stevens got hurt, he really carried New Jersey.''
CP's Pick: Niedermayer.
Calder Trophy, top rookie:
Nominees: Trent Hunter (New York Islanders), Andrew Raycroft (Boston), Michael Ryder (Montreal).
Synopsis: Hunter led all rookies with a plus-23 rating and seven game-winning goals while tying for the lead with 25 goals. Raycroft beat out veteran Felix Potvin for the No. 1 job en route to a 29-18-9 record with a 2.05 GAA and .926 save percentage in 57 games. Ryder, the first Habs nominee for this award since Kjell Dahlin in 1986, was an integral part of Montreal's surprising season, leading all rookies with 65 points (20-45).
CP's Pick: Raycroft. This should be a no-brainer. Any rookie goalie who backstops his team to a division crown should always be recognized.
Vezina Trophy, top goaltender:
Nominees: Brodeur (New Jersey), Miikka Kiprusoff (Calgary), Roberto Luongo (Florida).
Synopsis: Brodeur, last year's winner, backstopped the league's stingiest team, leading all netminders in shutouts (11) and posting the league's fourth-best GAA at 2.03. Kiprusoff was nominated despite playing in only 38 games but his numbers speak for themselves: 24-10-4 with a 1.69 GAA and .933 save percentage. His GAA was the lowest since Dave Kerr's 1.54 with the 1939-40 New York Rangers. Luongo, Canada's world championship hero, set all-time league records after facing 2,475 shots and making 2,303 saves, managing to post seven shutouts, a 2.43 GAA and .931 save percentage on the lowly Panthers.
CP's Pick: Luongo. Common wisdom would lean towards Brodeur since he's also nominated for the Hart, but it says here that the Panthers would have been the Penguins without Luongo's sensational puck-stopping.
Jack Adams Award, top coach:
Nominees: Darryl Sutter (Calgary), John Tortorella (Tampa), Ron Wilson (San Jose).
Synopsis: Sutter led the surprising Flames to a 42-30-7-3 record, a 19-point improvement over last season, helping them earn their first post-season berth in eight years. Tortorella, nominated for the second straight year, led the 46-22-8-6 Lightning to first place in the Eastern Conference. Wilson coached the young Sharks to a surprising Pacific Division title with a 43-21-126 record, a 31-point improvement over last season.
CP's Pick: Sutter. Come on, raise your hand if you thought the Flames would make the playoffs this year.
Selke Trophy, top defensive forward:
Nominees: Kris Draper (Detroit), John Madden (New Jersey), Alyn McCauley (San Jose).
Synopsis: A long-deserved nomination for Draper, who tied for second in the NHL with five short-handed goals while spearheading Detroit's No.1-rated penalty killing unit. He was also plus-22. Madden, the 2001 winner, had a career-best 53.3 per cent faceoff record and was an integral part of why New Jersey allowed the fewest goals in the NHL. McCauley blossomed into a first-rate checking centre this season, posting a plus-23 rating.
CP's Pick: Draper. The Team Canada player has been overlooked for this award for too many years.
Lady Byng Trophy, most gentlemanly player:
Nominees: Daniel Alfredsson (Ottawa), Brad Richards (Tampa), St. Louis (Tampa).
Synopsis: Let's not waste too much time on this one. Alfredsson had 24 PIMs, Richards had 12, while St. Louis posted 24.
CP's Pick: Richards.
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Marmot's Notes: Agree or disagree with the picks?
Source: Canadian Press
6/9/2004
TORONTO (CP) - Let's be honest, Martin St. Louis didn't have the kind of playoffs many expected despite helping the Tampa Bay Lightning win the Stanley Cup.
Teammates Brad Richards and Nikolai Khabibulin and Calgary Flames stars Jarome Iginla and Miikka Kiprusoff all had more outstanding post-season campaigns than St. Louis, and Richards deservedly got the nod for the Conn Smythe as playoff MVP.
But Thursday night's NHL gala event at the Metro Convention Centre in Toronto is about rewarding those who excelled during the 82-game regular season, where St. Louis was clearly the league's most dynamic force.
A look at CP's picks for the NHL awards:
Hart Trophy, MVP:
Nominees: St. Louis, Iginla, Martin Brodeur (New Jersey).
Synopsis: St. Louis led all scorers with 96 points (38-58) and tied for first with a mind-boggling plus-35 rating. Iginla tied for the league-lead with 41 goals and once again carried his team on his back, tallying 10 game-winners. Brodeur led all netminders with 38 wins, his NHL-record ninth consecutive 30-win season.
CP's Pick: St. Louis. While he had a stronger supporting cast than Iginla, the Lightning would not have finished first in the Eastern Conference without his prolific scoring.
Norris Trophy, top defenceman:
Nominees: Zdeno Chara (Ottawa), Scott Niedermayer (New Jersey), Chris Pronger (St. Louis).
Synopsis: Few would argue with any of these choices. Chara tallied a career-high 41 points (16-25), ranked third in the NHL with a plus-33 and punished the opposition with bone-crushing checks. Pronger was second among NHL blue-liners with 54 points (14-40) and was also second in the league in ice time at 27:27 per game, having to pull in too many minutes because of the injuries to Al MacInnis and Barrett Jackman.
Niedermayer, amazingly a first-time nominee, tied Pronger with 54 points (14-40), had a plus-20 rating and took over the captaincy for the injured Scott Stevens.
``Who's going to be the favourite? It's tough to say, all three of us had a good season,'' Chara said recently. ``But my pick would be Scott Niedermayer. He's been in the league for many years and it would be a great career achievement for him. And when Scott Stevens got hurt, he really carried New Jersey.''
CP's Pick: Niedermayer.
Calder Trophy, top rookie:
Nominees: Trent Hunter (New York Islanders), Andrew Raycroft (Boston), Michael Ryder (Montreal).
Synopsis: Hunter led all rookies with a plus-23 rating and seven game-winning goals while tying for the lead with 25 goals. Raycroft beat out veteran Felix Potvin for the No. 1 job en route to a 29-18-9 record with a 2.05 GAA and .926 save percentage in 57 games. Ryder, the first Habs nominee for this award since Kjell Dahlin in 1986, was an integral part of Montreal's surprising season, leading all rookies with 65 points (20-45).
CP's Pick: Raycroft. This should be a no-brainer. Any rookie goalie who backstops his team to a division crown should always be recognized.
Vezina Trophy, top goaltender:
Nominees: Brodeur (New Jersey), Miikka Kiprusoff (Calgary), Roberto Luongo (Florida).
Synopsis: Brodeur, last year's winner, backstopped the league's stingiest team, leading all netminders in shutouts (11) and posting the league's fourth-best GAA at 2.03. Kiprusoff was nominated despite playing in only 38 games but his numbers speak for themselves: 24-10-4 with a 1.69 GAA and .933 save percentage. His GAA was the lowest since Dave Kerr's 1.54 with the 1939-40 New York Rangers. Luongo, Canada's world championship hero, set all-time league records after facing 2,475 shots and making 2,303 saves, managing to post seven shutouts, a 2.43 GAA and .931 save percentage on the lowly Panthers.
CP's Pick: Luongo. Common wisdom would lean towards Brodeur since he's also nominated for the Hart, but it says here that the Panthers would have been the Penguins without Luongo's sensational puck-stopping.
Jack Adams Award, top coach:
Nominees: Darryl Sutter (Calgary), John Tortorella (Tampa), Ron Wilson (San Jose).
Synopsis: Sutter led the surprising Flames to a 42-30-7-3 record, a 19-point improvement over last season, helping them earn their first post-season berth in eight years. Tortorella, nominated for the second straight year, led the 46-22-8-6 Lightning to first place in the Eastern Conference. Wilson coached the young Sharks to a surprising Pacific Division title with a 43-21-126 record, a 31-point improvement over last season.
CP's Pick: Sutter. Come on, raise your hand if you thought the Flames would make the playoffs this year.
Selke Trophy, top defensive forward:
Nominees: Kris Draper (Detroit), John Madden (New Jersey), Alyn McCauley (San Jose).
Synopsis: A long-deserved nomination for Draper, who tied for second in the NHL with five short-handed goals while spearheading Detroit's No.1-rated penalty killing unit. He was also plus-22. Madden, the 2001 winner, had a career-best 53.3 per cent faceoff record and was an integral part of why New Jersey allowed the fewest goals in the NHL. McCauley blossomed into a first-rate checking centre this season, posting a plus-23 rating.
CP's Pick: Draper. The Team Canada player has been overlooked for this award for too many years.
Lady Byng Trophy, most gentlemanly player:
Nominees: Daniel Alfredsson (Ottawa), Brad Richards (Tampa), St. Louis (Tampa).
Synopsis: Let's not waste too much time on this one. Alfredsson had 24 PIMs, Richards had 12, while St. Louis posted 24.
CP's Pick: Richards.
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Marmot's Notes: Agree or disagree with the picks?