Calder: if Lane Hutson won, the way he reacted surprised the NHL

By next Thursday, we’ll know whether Lane Hutson has won the Calder Trophy, awarded to the NHL’s top rookie. Remember that this year, the league is announcing the recipients of individual honors in a different way: it is publishing videos in which the trophies are presented to the players.

This morning, Sean Monahan was presented with the Bill Masterton Trophy by Johnny Gaudreau’s widow.

And of course, the video of the day was quite touching. Monahan was moved and couldn’t hold back a few tears, and the people who watched it were moved in turn. For the league, which wanted a good reaction, it was a winning bet.

But on today’s episode of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, Elliotte Friedman and Kyle Bukauskas chatted to Steve Mayer, the NHL’s head of content, and Friedman asked Mayer which reaction was the best in the recorded videos… and his answer was interesting:

The Masterton reaction is really good. The reaction to the Calder was different from what we expected, and it was really good. – Steve Mayer

Elliotte Friedman: “Of all the (NHL awards) you’ve tapped so far, which one had the best reaction? That people are gonna look at & say either ‘wow’ or ‘I love this.’”

Steve Mayer: “I think the Masterton (Sean Monahan) is really good. The Calder was also a different reaction than… pic.twitter.com/hx1lEdMOdO

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) June 6, 2025

All this is interesting in that Lane Hutson is the favorite to win the trophy. The question is, did he have the reaction? And if so, what did it look like?

It also means that if Hutson won the Calder, he knows about it by now.

Mayer notes that both the Calder and Masterton reactions were full of emotion, and it will be interesting to see what the Calder winner’s will be like.

Because this morning’s was quite something.

The good news is that we’re now less than a week away from finding out whether Hutson will become the first Habs player since Ken Dryden to win the Calder Trophy.

And, by the same token, whether he’s the one who had the reaction that surprised the NHL.

Overtime

– David Reinbacher is happy to have spent part of the year with the Habs.

David Reinbacher today on being around the Habs team earlier this season:

“It was a really nice opportunity for me when I had the injury, to be so close to the (Montreal Canadiens) coaching staff & the players, seeing how they work, what are the small details you gotta take… pic.twitter.com/IqXSWwcIvi

– /r/Habs (@HabsOnReddit) June 5, 2025

– The Stars would like to keep Mikael Granlund.

Friedman on 32TP says the Stars would like to keep Mikael Granlund, Nill has some big decisions to make there.

– NHL Watcher (@NHL_Watcher) June 5, 2025

– K’Andre Miller is on the market.

One player whose name keeps popping up at the Combine is K’Andre Miller.

I’m told the Rangers have let teams know he’s available, but clubs are weighing that option versus the Offer Sheet route.

Appears to be significant interest in the 25-year-old.

– Cam Robinson (@Hockey_Robinson) June 5, 2025

– Zach Fucale stays in Russia.

He’ll play in the KHL again next season after attempting a return to the NHL https://t.co/e7eor6Fhyd

– TVA Sports (@TVASports) June 6, 2025