Lane Hutson is not a Norris Trophy finalist

Charles-Alexis Brisebois
Lane Hutson is not a Norris Trophy finalist
Credit: Matt Garies/NHLI via Getty Images

After Nick Suzuki for the Selke, Cole Caufield for the Lady Byng, and Ivan Demidov for the Calder, all eyes were on Lane Hutson and the Norris Trophy.

But in the end, that wasn't to be: he isn't a finalist.

The NHL announced just moments ago that Rasmus Dahlin, Cale Makar, and Zach Werenski are the three finalists for the 2025-2026 season.

The Habs defenseman undoubtedly received some votes, but not enough to make the top three.

In fact, as Pierre LeBrun notes, several candidates would have deserved to be among the finalists. We imagine Lane Hutson is among them.

As we can see, it's not just offensive production that counts. Otherwise, Evan Bouchard (95 points, the only defenseman above the 82-point mark) would have been a finalist.

Dahlin, meanwhile, wasn't in the top 5 in points. He was sixth, with 74 points.

(Credit: NHL.com)

I imagine the voters felt that Lane Hutson's 200-foot game wasn't on the same level as Makar, Werenski, and Dahlin—three defensemen who are among the elite.

Given how the Canadiens defenseman has played, it's safe to assume that, sooner rather than later, he'll get his chance in the coming years. It's undoubtedly just a matter of time.


In a nutshell

– Great news.

– Mikko Rantanen suffered a major injury at the Olympics.

– Pressure from Montreal: it destroyed Patrice Brisebois. [TVAS]

– Well done.

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