NHL Awards: Carey Price Not Winning Hart Trophy

Carey Price is having a masterful season and it’s undeniable the Montreal Canadiens net minder is going to win the Vezina Trophy.  You can root for Pekka Rinne or Braden Holtby or, if you like the feel good story root for Devan Dubnyk.  They are playing for second place.  You can engrave “Carey Price” on the Vezina now.

What about the Hart Memorial Trophy?  That’s how strong of a season Carey Price is having.  With league leading numbers in wins, goals against average, save percentage and tied for the top spot in shutouts Price  has forced his way into the conversation for the league MVP.  Can Price be the first goaltender since Jose Theodore did it wearing the same sweater in 2001-02?

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There is little doubt in my mind Price will be nominated for the honor.  Statistically he is so far ahead of his peers that separation can’t be ignored.  There are two problems Price faces if he plans on doing the Vezina/Hart double.  One of whom is the leagues favorite whipping boy, Sidney Crosby.  The other is the player billed as Crosby’s arch-enemy for years and the eventual winner of the Hart Memorial Trophy.

Crosby took the NHL points lead Saturday night with 74 and continues to be the catalyst for much of the Penguins offense.  As much as fans like to rage against the machine that is #87 in black and yellow the fact is Crosby is arguably the best and most complete player in the NHL.  His reputation for elite-level play and the fact he is the defending Hart Trophy winner help him to edge out teammate Evgeni Malkin and equally deserving John Tavares.

None of those players are winning the award.  Alex Ovechkin is.  Tied for the league lead in points with Tavares, Ovechkin is tops in goals scored with 47.  When he gets to that magical number 50 – and he will – that signals something special in a league filled with blocked shots, potentially oversized equipment and the trap.  Offense isn’t dead and now Ovechkin is the best in the league at producing it.

Helping matters is the fact Washington is good this year, holding the first wild card playoff spot.  Coming into Saturday night Ovechkin’s Capitals were tied with Crosby’s Penguins, both collecting 88 points.  Should one of these teams falter over the last weeks of the season and miss the playoffs that will complicate matters and open the door for Tavares or Steven Stamkos to receive a nomination.

Using that same logic the case for Carey Price gets stronger.  The Canadiens are leading the Eastern Conference with 99 points and Price has dominated opponents this season as well as any player in the league, regardless of position.  And when you are the best player on the best team that typically lines up with being the league most valuable player.

But that’s not happening.  The nominees will be Ovechkin, Crosby and a very deserving Carey Price.  In a league dominated by defensive strategies and low scoring, Ovechkin is far enough ahead in the Rocket Richard trophy race that he will earn the honor as the most valuable player in the NHL.  That won’t stop the goaltender in me from rooting for Carey Price to pull the upset and win.  Because I will be. I just know I’m rooting for a lost cause.

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