NHL Prospect Awards: Flames’ Dustin Wolf, Habs’ Lane Hutson among the best of 2022-23

Credit: Dustin Wolf (Matt Garies / Arena du Rocket Inc.)

Cue the trumpets. Let the confetti fly. It’s awards season.

Many of hockey’s top prospects have already closed out the 2022-23 campaign. Some are getting late-season call-ups, while others are basking in the extra relaxation time after a grueling season.

It’s been an excellent year for fans of high-quality prospects. Connor Bedard alone captivated the hockey world for his exploits with the WHL’s Regina Pats. But we also saw tons of long-standing records broken across various leagues, and other players emerged from the shadows to become top-flight pieces of their teams’ futures.

So let’s have some fun. Here are Daily Faceoff’s first annual NHL Prospect Awards, looking at the best NHL-affiliated players at every position, and a few other fun nods:

Best Forward: Jordan Dumais (Columbus Blue Jackets)

Other notables: Logan Stankoven (Dallas Stars), Logan Cooley (Arizona Coyotes)

What else is there to say about Jordan Dumais at this point? Drafted 96th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets last season, Dumais followed up a tremendous 109-point sophomore season by scoring 54 goals and 140 points with Halifax of the QMJHL this year. He was the only CHLer who could hang with Bedard all season long, and he finished 30 points clear of the next highest-scoring player in the QMJHL.

Despite that, Dumais missed out on Canada’s World Junior Championship team, and there are still quite a few skeptical about what he’s capable of at the next level. At 5-foot-9, he has to do much more than the average prospect to stand out. Frankly, I think he dealt with that requirement no problem. But now, what’s next? With 240 points over the past two regular seasons, there isn’t much more for Dumais to accomplish. But can he crack the Blue Jackets’ roster? It wouldn’t hurt to give him a few games to start the year, head back to junior to play at the world juniors and see from there. But that’s a question for another day. For now, we can just admire the special season Dumais had.

For the finalists, both were outstanding. Yet another dynamite season for Stankoven showed why he’s one of the best in the game today. There’s no doubt he’ll make an immediate impact with the Stars next year. For Cooley, he had a very strong case for the Hobey Baker Award and was truly remarkable. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if he became the best prospect from the 2022 draft class.

Best Defenseman: Lane Hutson (Montreal Canadiens)

Other notables: David Jiricek (Columbus Blue Jackets), Brandt Clarke (Los Angeles Kings)

Most could agree that Hutson’s offensive abilities were going to translate well to the college game. But enough to break a 35-year-old record for the most points by a U-19 defenseman, while taking home a boatload of other honors? Not likely. But Hutson did all that after getting taken 62nd overall by the Canadiens last year, a pick many – especially myself – believed to be way too low.

With Hutson leading the way with 48 points, Boston University qualified for the Frozen Four before ultimately losing out to the University of Minnesota. Hutson wasn’t part of the Hobey Baker’s Hat-Trick finalist shortlist, but was named to the top 10. He was also named Hockey East rookie of the year, was runner-up for Hockey East’s player of the year and was HE’s tournament MVP. They started to run out of awards for the 19-year-old, who played well above his smallish frame to record one of the most remarkable Draft+1 seasons by a defenseman in recent memory.

Hutson is heading back to BU for another shot at a national title. Given what we saw this year, the sky’s the limit in 2023-24 – and beyond.

This was supposed to be a learning year for Jiricek in the AHL after coming over from his native Czechia. Instead, he emerged as one of the league’s best blueliners, and one that looks capable of being a top-pairing option in the near future. Clarke, who started the year in the NHL but struggled to be a full-timer, finished the OHL regular season with 61 points in 31 games. It was easily one of the most dominant runs we’ve ever seen, and he’s still going strong in the playoffs.

Best Goaltender: Dustin Wolf (Calgary Flames)

Calgary goaltender Dustin Wolf (32) skates away from the goal during a break in play during the first period of their game at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, Calif., Wednesday, April 5, 2023.

Other notables: Devon Levi (Buffalo Sabres), Brandon Bussi (Boston Bruins)

At long last, Dustin Wolf finally got to make his NHL debut on Wednesday in Calgary’s final game. The big question: could Wolf had saved Calgary’s season if they had been willing to call him up sooner?

We’ll never know. But once the Calgary Wranglers’ season comes to a close, that should be the end of Wolf’s time in the AHL. He simply has nothing else to prove. The 21-year-old won the AHL’s goaltender of the year award with Stockton last year and has followed it up with one of the best season-long performances we’ve seen in decades. He’s 13-0-1 in his past 14 starts and 41-9-2 with seven shutouts and an incredible .932 save percentage with the Wranglers this season, which is absurd. The Flames had Jacob Markstrom and Daniel Vladar and didn’t want to budge on either, but Wolf could slide into the No. 1 slot quite quickly next season if the Flames are able to move one of the veterans.

Levi’s college accomplishment list is utterly ridiculous, and he capped it off by winning the Mike Richter Award as the top collegiate goaltender. We’re already seeing what he’s capable of with Buffalo, where he’ll look to assume No. 1 duties next year. And then there’s Bussi, who, after starting the year in the ECHL, took over as one of the best goaltenders in the AHL in a special year for the Bruins franchise. There’s an argument for him to be in the NHL next year, but Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman have other plans.

Best European: Alexander Nikishin (Carolina Hurricanes)

Other notables: Marat Khusnutdinov (Minnesota Wild), Nikita Grebyonkin (Toronto Maple Leafs)

After Nikishin recorded just 12 points with Spartak Moskva a year ago, nobody could have seen the offensive explosion he was destined for in 2022-23. He joined SKA St. Petersburg, where he had 11 goals and 55 points in the regular season, far beyond the rest of the league’s top defensemen. He finished second in scoring for SKA, which is impressive on its own.

There are questions about when the 21-year-old will come to the NHL, if ever. He’s signed until 2025, so there’s a bit of a waiting game here. Nikishin stands tall at 6-foot-4 and 216 pounds, and the offensive explosion was far beyond what anyone could have imagined. So, now the Hurricanes will have to play the waiting game, and watching him pummel the competition has to make GM Don Waddell excited – if not overly jealous.

Most improved: Amadeus Lombardi (Detroit Red Wings)

Amadeus Lombardi of the Flint Firebirds. Photo by Natalie Shaver/OHL Images

Other notables: Stanislav Svozil (Columbus Blue Jackets), Aatu Jamsen (Los Angeles Kings)

This one could have gone many different ways, depending on how you value “most improved.” Was it a late-round pick exceeding predictions? A player moving overseas and excelling? Someone jumping up a bit offensively?

In this case, here’s a fourth-rounder in 2022 who was taken as an overager before becoming one of the best players in major junior. Lombardi had a decent 18 goals and 59 points in 67 games as a rookie in 2021-22 after missing the 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. This year? Lombardi potted 45 goals and recorded 102 points to finish third in league scoring. That’s an improvement of 43 points, which is absolutely absurd.

Lombardi, 19, is already signed to his entry-level contract and is finishing off the year with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins. And, now, Lombardi has emerged as one of Detroit’s best prospects. Not everyone develops at the same rate, but Lombardi is excelling at the right time.

Connor Bedard received all the attention in Regina, but Svozil was the backbone of that blueline. He often controlled the pace of play and was used in all situations. The 69th pick from the 2021 NHL Draft looks like he could be something precious for the Blue Jackets in the coming years in what is shaping up to be quite the blueline.

And then there’s Jamsen, a seventh-round pick by the Kings in 2020. He turned pro full-time this year and scored a remarkable 14 goals and 32 points in 43 regular season games. No NHL-drafted player had more points or a better point-per-game average than Jamsen in the top Finnish league this year. The Kings have done an excellent job of drafting in the past few years, and this could be another slam dunk.

Some might wonder why Jiri Kulich isn’t here. Sabres fans: there was no reason one of the best shooters from the 2022 class should have fallen to 28th overall. This was exactly the type of season I, and many others, expected. Kulich was one of the best international junior players on the planet last year, and a big reason for his lack of production can be boiled down to usage among U-18 players in European pro leagues. Smart NHL teams are willing to use their top young prospects as much as possible in the AHL. Maybe some couldn’t see him hitting 45 points in the regular season, but compared to other truly MIP performances, this wasn’t too crazy to predict before the season.

Best NHL Draft Prospect: Connor Bedard

Jan 25, 2023; Langley, British Columbia, CAN; Highlights from the CHL Kubota Top Prospects game at the Langley Events Centre. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-CHL

Other Notables: Adam Fantilli, Matvei Michkov

Well, duh.

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