2023-24 Midseason NHL Award picks: Jets’ Connor Hellebuyck on a Hall of Fame trajectory

Credit: Connor Hellebuyck (© Terrence Lee-USA TODAY Sports)

It’s nice for NHL Awards debate to feel meaningful again.

If we flash back to a year ago, so many of the discussions were settled early. Connor McDavid lapped the Hart Trophy field. Even Linus Ullmark was miles ahead of the Vezina Trophy competition. Erik Karlsson’s 100-point campaign kept him in the driver’s seat all year. Matty Beniers never had consistently stiff competition for the Calder Trophy. And how was Jim Montgomery going to miss out on the Jack Adams Award with his team riding to the highest single-season win total in NHL history?

It’s a different story this time around. Because McDavid’s Oilers stumbled so badly out of the gate and he dealt with a minor injury, he’s been playing catchup in the MVP talk. Connor Bedard’s broken jaw busts the Calder Trophy race wide open. We actually had some thinking to do when our Daily Faceoff mid-season voting panel assembled. Well, for the most part. A certain cerebral goaltender out in Winnipeg has a stranglehold on his award.

The midseason award panel: Myself, Frank Seravalli, Steven Ellis, Tyler Yaremchuk, Nick Alberga, Brock Seguin and Jason Gregor.

Each voter submitted a top three for the Hart Trophy, Vezina Trophy, Norris Trophy, Calder Trophy and Jack Adams Award. The scoring system: three points for a first-place vote, two points for a second-place vote and one point for a third-place vote.

HART TROPHY

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Avalanche (16 points)
2. Nikita Kucherov, Lightning (15 points)
3. Connor McDavid, Oilers (11 points)

Few active NHL players entertain like Nathan MacKinnon in berserker mode. When he’s dashing up the ice, he combines the speed of McDavid with the power of Alex Ovechkin. Opponents have no answer for MacKinnon, who has ripped off 14 goals and 36 points in his past 18 games to catch Kucherov for the NHL scoring lead. The result was extremely close here, the difference being a single voter who didn’t have Kucherov in his top three at all. Perhaps the concern there is that the Tampa Bay Lightning aren’t a lock to even make the playoffs. It’ll be interesting to see if MacKinnon and Kucherov can hold off the hard-charging McDavid in the scoring race.

Also receiving votes: Artemi Panarin, Quinn Hughes, Auston Matthews, David Pastrnak

VEZINA TROPHY

1. Connor Hellebuyck, Jets (21 points)
2. Thatcher Demko, Canucks (12 points)
3. Cam Talbot, Kings (5 points)

Hellebuyck was the one player to receive a unanimous first-place vote from all seven of us. He has been the best goalie on the planet no matter what lens we use to evaluate him. He’s third in starts, second in wins, second in goal-against average, third in save percentage and first in 5-on-5 goals saved above average per 60. Not only is he the easy frontrunner, he’s also starting to put together what feels like a Hall of Fame resume. He’s on track to win his second Vezina and finish as a finalist for the fourth time in his career. He should reach 300 career wins some time next season, and he’s only 30. As for his competition for the Vezina: Demko has been one of many star players powering the Canucks’ turnaround, while Talbot has shaken off durability concerns and provided vital stability for the Kings in goal.

Also receiving votes: Jeremy Swayman, Joey Daccord, Sergei Bobrovsky, Ilya Sorokin

NORRIS TROPHY

1. Quinn Hughes, Canucks (19 points)
2. Cale Makar, Avalanche (14 points)
3. Noah Dobson, Islanders (6 points)

Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby, drafted one year apart, have spent their entire careers viewed as counterparts. It really feels Hughes and Makar, also drafted one year apart, have embarked on a similar journey, constantly mentioned in the same breath. Makar edged out Hughes for the Calder Trophy in 2019-20 and has a Stanley Cup, Conn Smythe Trophy and Norris already, too. But Hughes might swing the pendulum back his way with a banner season in which he’s leading all blueliners in scoring, tracking for 100-plus points and playing the best two-way hockey of his career. The generationally gifted Makar still feels like first defenseman you’d take to build a franchise, but his propensity to get hurt has, and might to continue to, cost him some Norris wins. How about that Noah Dobson? He’s been an absolute horse on a badly depleted Isles D-corps.

Also receiving votes: Jaccob Slavin, Victor Hedman, Evan Bouchard, Josh Morrissey, Roman Josi

CALDER TROPHY

1. Connor Bedard, Blackhawks (20 points)
2. Brock Faber, Wild (13 points)
3. Luke Hughes, Devils (4 points)

It’s anyone’s game now with Bedard’s fractured jaw knocking him out for six to eight weeks. But the midseason award factors in what the players have accomplished to date, making Bedard the clear Calder choice. He was on pace for the highest rookie goal total since Auston Matthews scored 40 and Patrik Laine had 36 in 2016-17. Faber, the Minnesota Minute Munching Machine, might be the favorite now. Among rookies with at least 15 games played, his 24:41 of average ice time is the highest in NHL history. The Wild are entrusting him with all the important assignments. Hughes was expected to put up numbers in a sheltered role, but New Jersey’s injuries on defense have forced him to take on more. He’s north of 20 minutes a game and tracking to easily lead all freshman blueliners in scoring.

Also receiving votes: Pyotr Kochetkov, Adam Fantilli, Marco Rossi

JACK ADAMS AWARD

1. Rick Tocchet, Canucks (18 points)
2. Rick Bowness, Jets (8 points)
3. John Tortorella, Flyers (7 points)

All hail the overachievers! Each of these bench bosses leads a team vastly exceeding expectations in 2023-24. Tocchet carried over the momentum he built late last season and seems to have all the Canucks’ talented stars playing career-best hockey at the same time. The Jets were supposed to be taking a step back on paper after trading Pierre-Luc Dubois and buying out Blake Wheeler but have done the opposite. And it’s amazing how much juice the fiery Torts squeezes out of a supposedly rebuilding Flyers team that refuses to quit the playoff race.

Also receiving votes: Kris Knoblauch, Spencer Carbery, Paul Maurice, Andrei Tourigny

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