It was a disappointing postseason for the Pittsburgh Penguins, but it's hard to forget how dominanting Evgeni Malkin was during the regular season. The Russian scored 50 goals and added 59 assists to help the Penguins earn more than 100 points in the regular season.
Malkin was even more impressive because superstar Sidney Crosby missed most of the regular season recovering from a concussion.
Malkin will be the favorite to take home MVP honors Wednesday night in Las Vegas as the NHL hands out its awards.
Here's our picks:
NHL Awards Expert Picks | ||
Award | Brian Stubits | Adam Gretz |
Hart Trophy--Most valuable player Henrik Lundqvist, Evgeni Malkin, Steven Stamkos | Malkin | Malkin |
Vezina Trophy--Best goalie Henrik Lundqvist, Jonathan Quick, Pekka Rinne | Quick | Lundqvist |
Norris Trophy -- Best defenseman Zdeno Chara, Erik Karlsson, Shea Weber |
| Chara |
Calder Trophy -- Best rookie Gabriel Landeskog, Adam Henrique, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins | Landeskog | Landeskog |
Lady Byng Trophy -- Best sportsmanship Jordan Eberle, Matt Moulson, Brian Campbell | Campbell | Campbell |
Selke Trophy -- Best defensive forward David Backes, Patrice Bergeron, Pavel Datsyuk | Bergeron | Bergeron |
Jack Adams Award -- Coach of the Year Ken Hitchcock, Paul MacLean, John Tortorella | Hitchcock |
|
Masterton Trophy -- Comeback award |
| Lupul |
Lindsay Award -- MVP vote by players Henrik Lundqvist, Evgeni Malkin, Steven Stamkos | Malkin | Malkin |
GM of the Year: Doug Armstrong, David Poile, Dale Tallon |
| Armstrong |