By Bryan Reynolds -
With the end of the NHL regular season comes the debate surrounding who should win the NHL's storied awards. Does the Norris automatically go to Lidstrom? Does a young buck step in and take the torch? Who is the league's best goaltender? Are they really the best, or is it the system they play in? What decides who is the best? Wins? Save %?
Does the Hart trophy go to best player in the league, or does it go to the player who is the most important to their team? Does the Masterson trophy have to go to the comeback player, or can it go to someone who meets the description of the award? Does the Masterson trophy actually matter?
So many questions, very few with a right or wrong answer. NHL awards, from what I can tell, spark a debate not seen in other sports. NBA players have full out campaigns to win the MVP award. In baseball, the winner if often criticized rather than celebrated. The NFL, well, in the NFL the awards are about as important as the Pro Bowl. No one really cares much.
With that, I present to you Hockey Wilderness' picks for each of the NHL awards, and for the Wild team specific awards. We will also present who will actually win it, despite the fact that we may not agree with that selection.
Make the jump.
NHL AWARDS (with official award description):
Buddha: Ilya Bryzgalov
Who Actually Wins: Alexander Ovechkin
Chosen by: NHL GMs
Nathan: Ryan Miller
Chosen by: PHWA
Buddha: Duncan Keith
Chosen by: PHWA
Nathan: Tyler Myers
Who actually wins: Tyler Myers
Chosen by: PHWA
Nathan: Andrew Brunette
Buddha: Andrew Brunette
Chosen by: PHWA
Buddha: (barf) Alex Burrows
Who actually wins: Pavel Datsyuk
Selected by: NHL Broadcasters' Association
Nathan: Dave Tippett
Buddha: Dave Tippett
Who actually wins: Dave Tippett
Chosen by: PHWA
Buddha: Greg Zanon
Who actually wins: No idea. No one really cares, I don't think.
Chosen by: NHLPA members (the players)
Nathan: Ilya Bryzgalov
Who actually wins: Alex Ovechkin
Hart:
Nathan: Mikko Koivu
Vezina:
Norris:
Nathan: Greg Zanon
Calder:
Lady Byng:
Nathan: Andrew Brunette
Selke:
Nathan: Mikko Koivu
Buddha: Mikko Koivu
Jack Adams:
Nathan: Todd Richards
Buddha: Mike Ramsey
Masterson:
Pearson:
Nathan: Mikko Koivu
Buddha: Mikko Koivu
Other people's selections:
Do you agree? Disagree? Who would you pick?
-Buddha
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