Fan In Van

Quarter Pole: NHL Awards

With a quarter of the NHL season in the books, it’s time to dish out the early hardware. Although there’s still a good 900 games left to be played before we can call it a year, these guys have earned their keep. And for those who have yet to show up, they’ve got five more months to prove their worth.

Hart Trophy Winner: Henrik Lundqvist

Call it controversial if you want, there’s no doubting the fact Lundqvist is single-handedly the most valuable player to the New York Rangers. With their leading scorer being Nikolai Zherdev with 24 points (Evgeni Malkin is the leader with 39), the Rangers have relied on a scoring-by-committee attitude. However, the Rangers are first in the Eastern Conference and at the same time are among the leaders in lowest goals against, and for good reason. Stack King Henrik up against any other competition: Sure, Iginla leads the Flames in all offensive categories, but he’s got a strong supporting cast in Phaneuf, Kiprusoff and Cammalleri. If Malkin goes down, Crosby is there. If Semin can’t score, Ovechkin is eager to do so. Lundqvist is the stand-alone star in the Big Apple.

Runner-ups: Evgeni Malkin and Jarome Iginla

Vezina Trophy Winner: Tim Thomas

He may just be the best ‘worst’ goalie in the NHL. Thomas, known for his flamboyant, fish-out-of-water style of goaltending, has been lights out for the Bruins, who emerged from their defensive shells to become offensive wizards. Their newest style of play has allowed Thomas to truly shine. Thomas is 9-3-3 with a sparkling 1.88GAA and .940 save percentage. However, had Roberto Luongo not sustained an early injury, this would be no contest. Bobby Lu still has time to earn his first Vezina award.

Runner-ups: Roberto Luongo and Henrik Lundqvist

Norris Trophy Winner: Shea Weber

Weber has made himself a household name this season. He’s got 10 goals and 13 assists this year and at the same time is a great +12. Coach Barry Trotz has put Weber out in every situation imaginable: Powerplay, penalty kill and even strength. Weber has shown no qualms with getting physical or jumping into the play. Unquestionably, Weber may ride his hot start all the way through the rest of the season.

Runner-ups: Marc-Eduoard Vlasic and Sheldon Souray

Calder Trophy Winner: Kris Versteeg

They said Steven Stamkos. I said Kyle Turris. Right now, it’s neither. Instead, Kris Versteeg took the ball and ran with it in Chicago. Perhaps he’s had super sophomores Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane to influence him, but Versteeg came out of obscurity to lead all rookies in scoring. He was a late addition to the Hawks and was drafted in the late rounds (134th overall) to become a huge player for the Windy City warriors.

Runner-ups: Derrick Brassard and Drew Doughty

Jack Adams Winner: Todd McLellan

This was extremely close between the rookie head coach and Claude Julien. Although he had a wealth of talent on his roster to begin with, the fact McLellan has the Sharks first in the NHL standings speaks volumes. He’s put the offense back into the Sharks and it has paid tremendous dividends, most notably among his blueliners. Dan Boyle, Rob Blake and Vlasic are all among the top scoring defencemen. Evgeni Nabokov has once again been spectacular and all signs point to a Sharks team returning to Western supremacy.

Runner-ups: Claude Julien and Mike Babcock

Don’t like my selections? Let me hear yours. Vote in the polls and sound off in the comments section.