Nick Suzuki receives second place vote for Selke

Before the NHL draft in the sphere in Vegas, it was the presentation of the individual NHL trophies.

An absolutely ~~impressive~~ and catastrophic spectacle.

Here are the winners:

Hart – Nathan MacKinnon
Ted Lindsay – Nathan MacKinnon
Calder – Connor Bedard
Vézina – Connor Hellebuyck
Norris – Quinn Hughes

As for the Selke Trophy, we already knew which player had won (Aleksander Barkov). The same goes for the trophy awarded to the best GM of the year (Jim Nill) and the best coach of the year (Rick Tocchet).

But for the Selke, Barkov may have won hands down, Nick Suzuki still had 14 votes, including one runner-up. Steve Carp(The Sporting Tribune) gave the podium vote to the Canadiens’ captain.

You can see all the votes right here.

In the interest of complete transparency, @ThePHWA has revealed all 194 ballots received for the 2024 NHL Awards.

Every vote for Hart, Norris, Calder, Selke, Byng, Masterton, All-Star and All-Rookie teams.

Available here: https://t.co/gGyr9YEAMS

– Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) June 29, 2024

In addition to the second-place vote, journalists awarded five fourth-place and eight fifth-place votes to the Montreal center.

He also received two votes (fourth and third) for the Lady Bing Trophy, awarded to the player who has demonstrated the best sportsmanship. As for this rather rewarding trophy, another Canadiens player was honoured. With 16 penalty minutes, Cole Caufield received a fourth-place vote from Toronto Sun reporter Terry Koshan.

To date, it’s not as if the Habs’ protégés have received any mentions from Quebec fefan journalists. It’s good to know that Suzuki and Caufield are recognized league-wide.

Finally, the last Tricolore player to receive votes was Joel Armia, for the ~~Hart~~ Bill Masterton.

The Bill Masterton Trophy, won by Carey Price in 2022 despite no French-speaking votes, is an award given to a player who has shown the most perseverance and team spirit. Armia received two second-place votes (none from a French-speaking journalist), having been submitted to the waivers at the start of the season and having played with the club-school.

The Finn, who is paid $3.4 million per season until July 1, 2025, finished the 2023-2024 season with 25 points in 66 games. He had a good end to the season under the circumstances.

Note that Mike Matheson received no votes for the Norris Trophy.

Overtime

– Another A+ for the Habs.

#NHLDraft Class Grades for all 32 teams: https://t.co/GTnxbmAeGy

– Chris Peters (@chrismpeters) June 29, 2024

– One less name on the market.

Another post-draft note: Matt Duchene and Dallas are working towards an extension, taking him off the market.

– Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) June 29, 2024

– Bill Armstrong is indeed busy.

Juuso Välimäki signs a two-year extension with Utah HC carrying a $2M AAV.

Busy day for Bill Armstrong.

– Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 29, 2024

– Michael Hage praised everywhere.

An NHL scout late in the season on Habs pick Michael Hage: “He’s good. Really good speed, he’s got skill. a little bit flighty…he needs to work on his defensive game but woah, he can fly. He’s probably 6-1…a good player. He probably goes top 15. 20 at the latest.”

Hage had… pic.twitter.com/fWA5mxnSOL

– Grant McCagg (@grantmccagg) June 29, 2024

– And with good reason.

Michael Hage won the E.J. McGuire Award on Thursday, which goes to the prospect who best exemplifies commitment to excellence through strength of character, competitiveness & athleticism.

The last two winners include Connor Bedard (2023) & Lane Hutson (2022).

pic.twitter.com/2ljhS0a2SA

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) June 29, 2024

– It’s clear.

With 15 players selected, the QMJHL avoided the humiliation of doing worse than last year. But that’s not necessarily positive.

“I want this to serve as a wake-up call for us,” believes commissioner Mario Cecchini.https://t.co/7VzF373JL5

– Kevin Dubé (@KDubeJDQ) June 29, 2024

– Oh yes!