The National Hockey League announced the finalists for the Hart Memorial Trophy, which is awarded “is awarded annually to the “player judged most valuable to his team” on Tuesday, which kind of got lost in the LBC shuffle with the announcement of the playoff broadcast schedule.
Here are the three finalists for the Hart Trophy, in alphabetical order:
Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton Oilers
Draisaitl led the league in scoring with 110 points (43 goals, 67 assists) in 71 games when the 2019-20 season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. The 24-year-old Edmonton Oilers center also was first in points per game (1.55), assists and power-play points (44), and was first among forwards in ice time per game (22:37). He tied Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak for first in game-winning goals (10), and his 66 even-strength points (Panarin, 71) and 16 power-play goals (Pastrnak, 20) were second. Draisaitl had 33 multipoint games, and at least one point in 56 games.
Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche
MacKinnon finished fifth in the NHL with 93 points (35 goals, 58 assists) in 69 games, and third in even-strength points (62). The 24-year-old Colorado Avalanche center had 29 multipoint games, and at least one point in 53 games. He helped the Avalanche to the second-best record in the Western Conference (42-20-8, .657 points percentage) and they will play in the round-robin of the Cup Qualifiers along with the St. Louis Blues, Vegas Golden Knights and Dallas Stars to determine the top four seeds in the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Western Conference.
Artemi Panarin, New York Rangers
Panarin, who signed a massive seven-year contract with the New York Rangers on July 1, 2019, tied Pastrnak for third in scoring with 95 points (32 goals, 63 assists) in 69 games. The 28-year-old forward ranked first in the NHL in even-strength points (71) and first among forwards in plus/minus (plus-36). He had at least one point in 54 games, including 28 multi-point games.
Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning won the Hart Trophy last season.
Who will win the Hart Trophy
| Leon Draisaitl | 14 |
| Nathan MacKinnon | 11 |
| Artemi Panarin | 2 |
Panthers
In a bit of Florida Panthers news, Aaron Ekblad missed practice yesterday. Hopefully, it was either a maintenance day or nothing serious if he is injured. Chase Priskie, who left practice early on Tuesday was also not on the ice.