NHL Awards Watch: The final rankings

(Ed. Note: This is a weekly feature on Puck Daddy in which we vote on the major NHL Awards. “We” being Wyshynski, Leahy, Mooney, Yahoo! NHL editor Sam McCaig and Yahoo! NHL scribe Nick Cotsonika. Voting is completed Monday night. The results will run every Tuesday on this very blog. Enjoy.)

Sidney Crosby’s injury limited him to 36 games this season. He hasn’t seen the ice since March 30. That absence cost him the Art Ross, which went to Marty St. Louis of the Tampa Bay Lightning despite Crosby dominating the League in points per game (1.56).

What else has his broken jaw cost him?

Apparently, some additional postseason hardware.

Coming up, the leaders for the major NHL awards, for the final time this season.

A note on the voting: All four panelists ranked the top five for each award, and point values were assigned to each player. Ties were broken by how high a player was ranked on the majority of ballots.

Hart Trophy

1. Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals (25)
2. John Tavares, New York Islanders (17)
3. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins (14)
4. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks (7)
5. Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets (5)

And so it is. Ovechkin’s incredible run to finish the season – 22 goals since March 17 – was enough to get him his third Hart Trophy, according to our panel. If Corey Perry could win the award with a second-half surge, so can Ovechkin. Tavares moves past Crosby into the Top 3 after dragging the Islanders to their first playoff berth since 2007.

Norris Trophy

1. Ryan Suter, Minnesota Wild (23)
2. P.K. Subban, Montreal Canadiens (18)
3. Kris Letang, Pittsburgh Penguins (10)
4. Duncan Keith, Chicago Blackhawks (6)
5. Francois Beauchemin, Anaheim Ducks (5)

In the end, Ryan Suter’s ice time and ability to elevate the players around him (see: Brodin, Jonus) was enough to earn him the top spot in the final tally. No Shea Weber, Ryan Suter with the Norris … oh, you cheeky hockey gods.

Vezina Trophy

1. Sergei Bobrovsky, Columbus Blue Jackets (25)
2. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers (14)
3. Antti Niemi, San Jose Sharks (13)
4. Tuukka Rask, Boston Bruins (12)
5. Jimmy Howard, Detroit Red Wings (4)

The de factor MVP for goalies goes to the only goalie with MVP credentials: The Bob will be honored for his stellar season with the League’s top honor for netminders, according to our panel. Henrik Lundqvist made a late push into the second slot, while Jimmy Howard hit the board for perhaps the first time this season.

Calder Trophy

1. Brendan Gallagher, Montreal Canadiens (18)
2. Jonathan Huberdeau, Florida Panthers (17)
3. Jonas Brodin, Minnesota Wild (16)
4. Nail Yakupov, Edmonton Oilers (12)
5. Justin Schultz, Edmonton Oilers (4)

So in the end, a player that didn’t lead the NHL rookies in goals or points finishes atop of the Calder ranking. Will the voters agree? Schultz and Brandon Saad of the Chicago Blackhawks tied in votes, but Schultz was No. 2 overall on one ballot.

Jack Adams Award

1. Paul MacLean, Ottawa Senators (22)
2. Joel Quenneville, Chicago Blackhawks (20)
3. Michel Therrien, Montreal Canadiens (12)
4. Bruce Boudreau, Anaheim Ducks (10)
5. Adam Oates, Washington Capitals (9)

In the classic Jack Adams battle between the “guy who made the most of a bad hand dealt to him” vs. “the guy who managed to win the pot with a good hand and great bluffing”, it’s Paul MacLean’s guidance of the injury-plagued Senators that wins him the Adams, apparently. Oates makes a late appearance in the Top 5.