Duhatschek Notebook: Expanded Hart field, dark horse Cup picks and more - The Athletic

Almost every year, the Hart Trophy vote pivots on one critical question: Did the candidate for the NHL’s de facto MVP award play on a team that made the playoffs?

And if the answer was no, that usually disqualifies that candidate from contention in the eyes of most voters. Often, a player who accomplished a lot on a non-playoff team might earn a fourth- or fifth-place courtesy nod on a ballot to acknowledge his excellent performance.

But to actually be in contention for the award while playing on a non-playoff team?

It rarely occurred.

But now here we are, at the end of May, in uncharted waters — and that will add an interesting, unusual wrinkle to the Hart Trophy conversation.

The NHL’s regular season was deemed complete by commissioner Gary Bettman on Tuesday. Two days later, the league confirmed the winners of the trophies awarded purely on a statistical basis: Leon Draisaitl won the Art Ross; Alex Ovechkin and David...

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMicWh0dHBzOi8vdGhlYXRobGV0aWMuY29tLzE4NDUxNDUvMjAyMC8wNS8yOS9kdWhhdHNjaGVrLW5vdGVib29rLWV4cGFuZGVkLWhhcnQtZmllbGQtZGFyay1ob3JzZS1jdXAtcGlja3MtYW5kLW1vcmUv0gF1aHR0cHM6Ly90aGVhdGhsZXRpYy5jb20vMTg0NTE0NS8yMDIwLzA1LzI5L2R1aGF0c2NoZWstbm90ZWJvb2stZXhwYW5kZWQtaGFydC1maWVsZC1kYXJrLWhvcnNlLWN1cC1waWNrcy1hbmQtbW9yZS8_YW1w?oc=5

2020-05-29 20:02:43Z
52780818035436