Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images for NHL
Pavel Datsyuk will leave Las Vegas with two more trophies added to his resume. The Red Wings’ forward won his second Frank J. Selke Trophy and fourth consecutive Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, becoming the first NHL player to win both honors in two straight years.
A List of Winners
The NHL’s Russian stars took the stage for a variety of awards, hitting the jackpot at the awards show according to Dan Barnes of the Montreal Gazette. Here’s a breakdown of who won and by how much (if vote totals available):
Hart Trophy (league MVP) — Alexander Ovechkin (1,264 points) over Evgeni Malkin (787 points)
Lester B. Pearson Award (MVP as voted by the players) — Alexander Ovechkin
Norris Trophy (top defenseman) — Zdeno Chara (1,034) points over Mike Green (982) and Nick Lidstrom (733)
Vezina Trophy (top netminder) — Tim Thomas (127) over Steve Mason (33)
Jack Adams Award (coach of the year) — Claude Julien (224) over Andy Murray (135)
Calder Trophy (top rookie) — Steve Mason (1,268) over Bobby Ryan (829)
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (most gentlemanly) — Pavel Datsyuk (933) over Martin St. Louis (662)
Frank J. Selke Trophy (best defensive-forward) — Pavel Datsyuk (945) over Mike Richards (942)
Clancy Trophy (humanitarian contributions) — Ethan Moreau
Lifetime Achievement Award — Jean Beliveau
Art Ross Trophy (leading scorer) — Evgeni Malkin
Rocket Richard Trophy (most goals) — Alex Ovechkin
Jennings Trophy (fewest goals allowed) — Tim Thomas, Manny Fernandez
NHL Fan Fav Award — Roberto Luongo
Messier Award (leadership) — Jarome Iginla
Lidstrom’s streak ends
Captain Nick Lidstrom’s bid for a four-peat ended Thursday night when Boston’s Zdeno Chara took home the Norris Trophy. Lidstrom was gracious in his loss, accompanied by his wife and four sons. Detroit’s captain came in fifth for the Lady Byng and 17th for the Hart Trophy.
The Other Wings
Chris Chelios left empty-handed as he finished third in the voting for the Masterton.
Henrik Zetterberg finished fourth in the Selke voting and 21st for the Hart. Teammate Marian Hossa came in 13th for the Selke and 24th for the Hart. Defenseman Brian Rafalski also earned some votes for the Lady Byng (8th) and Norris (9th).
The Fans React
Matt Saler of On the Wings wrote that the highlight of the evening for him was seeing former Wing Vladimir Konstantinov take the stage with Igor Larionov as they presented the Lester B. Pearson award. Kyle, the blogger behind Babcock’s Death Stare, believed Lidstrom was robbed of his fourth straight Norris. Over at Puck Daddy, they thought that Chara was deserving of the honor, they loved the montage that opened the show, and also enjoyed Vladdie’s appearance on stage. To read more opinions by fans of the show, you can view the Twitter #nhlawards feed.
Seeing Vladdy up there with Igor Larionov was very touching! I think that was one of the best moments of the evening!