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NATIONAL Hockey League (NHL) superstar Connor McDavid has won a pair of trophies in the league's awards night on Monday (Tuesday in Manila) in Nashville, Tennessee.
McDavid won the Ted Lindsay award for being the league's most outstanding player in the regular season, which is given by the players association. He had also won the Hart memorial trophy for being the league's regular season most valuable player, which is voted by members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association (PHWA), wherein he had received an almost unanimous first place vote, with 195 out of 196 writers voting for him.
Filipino American Jason Robertson of the Dallas Stars finished fourth in the voting, while 2022 Hart recipient Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs finished at 16th place.
This is McDavid's third Ted Lindsay award, after winning it in 2017 and 2018, as well as his third Hart trophy, after having won in 2017 and 2021. He had beaten David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins and Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers for the Hart.
As captain of the Edmonton Oilers, the star forward had a career-best 64 goals and 89 assists, totaling 153 points in the 2022-23 regular season and also tallied eight goals and 12 assists (20 points) in 12 playoff games, before losing to the eventual Stanley Cup champions Vegas Golden Knights in the second round.
In addition, he also won the Maurice “Rocket” Richard trophy for the most goals in the regular season and the Art Ross Trophy for the most regular season points for three seasons in a row and his fifth career trophy, having won it in 2017, 2018, 2021, and 2022. These awards were given after the NHL regular season.
Bruins get awards
Meanwhile, several members of the Boston Bruins, after a historic 65-win regular season that saw them take the President's Trophy, had also taken some hardware.
Head coach Jim Montgomery, in his first head coaching gig after coming from rehab in 2020 for alcohol abuse, which he had addressed in his acceptance speech, won the Jack Adams award for Coach of the Year.
“For those who struggle out there, you can change. You can effect change within yourself. And it doesn't happen alone. You need a team,” Montgomery said.
Montgomery beat New Jersey Devils head coach Lindy Ruff and Seattle Kraken coach Dave Hakstol for the award. Bruce Cassidy, who was Montgomery's predecessor in Boston and coach of the 2023 Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights, finished in fourth place, while 2022 Stanley Cup champion coach Jared Bednar of the Colorado Avalanche came in fifth.
Meanwhile, veteran forward Patrice Bergeron, who has 1,040 points in 1,294 NHL games in 20 years with the Bruins, won his sixth Frank J. Selke trophy for the best defensive forward, which is a league record. Devils captain Nico Hischier and Leafs forward Mitchell Marner were the other nominees.
Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark is the third Swedish goaltender to win the Vezina trophy, which is awarded to the league's best goaltender, having beaten Winnipeg Jets netminder Connor Hellebuyck and New York Islanders' Ilya Sorokin.
Ullmark had 40 wins, six losses, and one overtime loss in 49 regular season games, splitting the crease with Jeremy Swayman. He also had a.938 save percentage.
Prior to the awards night, the Bruins have traded 2018 Hart trophy winner Taylor Hall alongside veteran forward Nick Foligno to the Chicago Blackhawks, in exchange for minor league forward Ian Mitchell and defenseman Alec Regula.
Other awards
Veteran defenseman Erik Karlsson of the San Jose Sharks had clinched his third James Norris memorial trophy, having been the best at his role, beating out fellow winners Adam Fox from the New York Rangers and Cale Makar from the Avalanche. Karlsson had previously won the Norris while a member of the Ottawa Senators in 2012 and 2015.
Two-time Stanley Cup champion Anže Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings received the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, for being the most gentlemanly player of the season, beating out Jack Hughes from the Devils and fellow Stanley Cup winner Brayden Point from the Tampa Bay Lightning. Kopitar, who also serves as captain of the Kings, had 74 points (28 goals, 46 assists) in 82 regular season games.
Tampa Bay Lightning captain and two-time Stanley Cup champion Steven Stamkos won the Mark Messier leadership award, which is recognized for being a “superior leader” within the sport, having supported charitable works in Tampa Bay.
Veteran Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman and three-time Cup champion Kris Letang won the Bill Masterton trophy, which exemplifies dedication in hockey. This season, Letang, despite suffering a stroke, still managed to put up 41 points in 64 regular season games. Other nominees were forward Clayton Keller from the Arizona Coyotes and goaltender Alex Stalock of the Buffalo Sabres.
Swedish forward Mikael Backlund of the Calgary Flames clinched the King Clancy Memorial Trophy for his charitable roles in the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Society of Alberta. Other nominees were Islanders captain Anders Lee and defenseman Darnell Nurse of the Oilers.
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