The 2009 Masterton Trophy nominees
by James Mirtle on Apr 6, 2009 1:09 AM CDT
52 comments
I've had a couple emails on the Masterton Trophy nominees there year, as normally I put together a list when they come in.
The Professional Hockey Writers' Association is doing things a little differently this year with the Masterton, and the nominees from the 30 teams are going to be announced five at a time for all six divisions in the next nine days.
Here is the schedule:
Monday, March 30: Atlantic Division
Tuesday, March 31: Northeast Division
Wednesday, April 1: Southeast Division
Thursday, April 2: Central Division
Friday, April 3: Northwest Division
Monday, April 6: Pacific Division
A couple nominees have already been revealed in New Jersey's Scott Clemmensen and the Islanders' Mark Streit, but the remaining players should follow the above timeline.
Some of the others are fairly easy to guess at — how about Steve Sullivan from Nashville and Alex Burrows in Vancouver? — and I'm sure we can put together our own list in the comments here.
I'll keep track of all of the nominees and bump this post to the top as they come in:
| West | East | |||
| Anaheim | George Parros | Atlanta | Slava Kozlov | |
| Calgary | Craig Conroy | Boston | Patrice Bergeron | |
| Chicago | Marty Havlat | Buffalo | Teppo Numminen | |
| Colorado | Ian Laperriere | Carolina | Rod Brind'Amour | |
| Columbus | Raffi Torres | Florida | Richard Zednik | |
| Dallas | Stephane Robidas | Montreal | Patrice Brisebois | |
| Detroit | Chris Chelios | New Jersey | Scott Clemmensen | |
| Edmonton | Jason Strudwick | N.Y. Islanders | Mark Streit | |
| Los Angeles | Michal Handzus | N.Y. Rangers | Blair Betts | |
| Minnesota | Kurtis Foster | Ottawa | Daniel Alfredsson | |
| Nashville | Steve Sullivan | Philadelphia | Mike Knuble | |
| Phoenix | Zbynek Michalek | Pittsburgh | Mark Eaton | |
| San Jose | Claude Lemieux | Tampa Bay | Cory Murphy | |
| St. Louis | BJ Crombeen | Toronto | Ian White | |
| Vancouver | Alex Burrows | Washington | Brian Pothier |
If you see others, feel free to send them in.
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Wouldn’t be hard to see Jason Blake getting the Leafs nom again this year.
Down Goes Brown - Unapologetically nostalgic for the past. Brutally realistic about the present. Grudgingly optimistic about the future.
by Down Goes Brown on Mar 28, 2009 2:47 PM CDT reply actions
I have never understood why the Masterton names nominees just before the end of the season. Why not wait until the end? And isn’t it kind of pointless to name a nominee from each team. Some teams have no logical nominees but have to pick one anyway. In some cases it is like picking a Norris nominee from the St Louis Blues.
I guess it’s just a way to honour a player per team. The Rangers writers decided not to pick anyone last year, so it’s not always every team.
by James Mirtle on Mar 28, 2009 4:05 PM CDT up reply actions
I’d fall off my chair if Brian Pothier wasn’t the Caps’ nominee.
Japers' Rink: Hockey blogging from the most powerful city in the world
by J.P. on Mar 28, 2009 3:13 PM CDT reply actions 4 recs
He better be, but Laing is already posturing to regain his crown next year…
by Fehr and Balanced on Mar 28, 2009 5:20 PM CDT up reply actions 1 recs
No one on Montreal deserves to be nominated. With that in mind, it’ll probably mean Brisebois is the nominee.
Hockey blogging can't get any flatter.
That’s an insult to every hockey fan in Montreal. The guy is a Masterton nominee just because he’s still playing at 40 years old while consistently being the worst defenseman on his team?
Disgraceful.
But he was on the ’93 team!
;)
SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there)
Schneider was too, and he’s not as much of a liability… I guess he shows less dedication to hockey by being better? Who knows…
I think he showed more dedication by playing in Atlanta, but that’s just me.
Who knows, indeed.
SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there)
Who gets it for the Sharks? Dan Boyle? It can’t be Lemieux and I can’t think of anyone else that has had to overcome much (unless you count Marleau overcoming Ron Wilson).
by Fehr and Balanced on Mar 28, 2009 5:22 PM CDT reply actions
Flyers – Gagne
Sabres – Connolly?
Wild – Foster
Morrow from Stars, Beauchemin from Ducks and Erik Johnson from Blues are probable candidates for next year
Foster’s a good suggestion, definitely.
by James Mirtle on Mar 28, 2009 9:22 PM CDT up reply actions
I think Foster’s my favourite potential nominee so far.
SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there)
Avalanche
I can’t think of a single player who should be nominated. It’s essentially “Comeback” player or breakout player who has gone through something awful right?
Andrew Raycroft maybe, who went from embarrassment to …. not quite as embarrassing?
by Jibblescribbits on Mar 28, 2009 10:19 PM CDT reply actions
I’d nominate Galiardi. He managed to break through Tony Granato’s horrible coaching and contribute something in his handful of games with the Avalanche.
2008-2009 Colorado Avalanche: Dry Humping Mediocrity
Hey now, I like Galiardi as an ex-Hitman, but really? Hell, I’d think you could at least argue Ryan Smyth for it, all things considered.
SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there)
I'd agree with Doogie down there
I think Smyth should get the nod, he got back to his 50+ numbers during a season where nothing went right.
2008-2009 Avalanche: It's like watching a car crash.
The trophy is supposed to be awarded to the “player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey”. Why can’t it be awarded to a model professional with a long career, for example?
That is why I have a huge issue with this trophy. At the moment it’s nothing but a maudlin acknowledgement to players returning from injury or illness. Phil Kessel got it at the age of 19 after missing 12 games because of testicular cancer. “Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey”? To me, it just doesn’t add up. In no way do I mean to belittle Kessel’s illness, but as things stand, they need to change the criteria. How about “player who returned from hockey related injury (minimum requirement 6 months out of the game) or cancer”? No offence to anyone, but that is how it seems to work. Overcoming an illness or injury was sometimes used as a reason for giving the award in earlier times too, but that trend really began to emerge in the 1980s, went into overdrive in the 1990s, and is now basically the only reason for awarding the trophy in the 2000s.
Teppo Numminen should get it even if he never had a heart ailment.
I see where you’re coming from and if there were a year with no one coming back from a significant injury, I could see that. But when there are guys coming back from injuries like the ones Foster and Pothier had, I think it’s hard to give it out as a lifetime achievement award.
by David M. Getz on Mar 29, 2009 11:14 AM CDT up reply actions
There is definitely a push to change this trophy from being one about injuries and illness to include a more general description of who should win. Note that the first two nominees we know about – Clemmensen and Streit – do not fall into the Kessel category.
That said, the winner likely will. Someone like Sullivan missed nearly two years of hockey.
by James Mirtle on Mar 29, 2009 12:02 PM CDT up reply actions
If you are going to apply that criteria and select Teppo then how do you count out Chelios?
by Fehr and Balanced on Mar 29, 2009 3:22 PM CDT up reply actions
I don’t count out Chelios. It’s just that the “sportsmanship” part makes me a little iffy about his credentials. Just kidding… or am I? The real difference between Chelios and Numminen is that Chelios’s career has been lavishly acknowledged and he has won three Norris trophies. Numminen has been a super dependable D for 20 years without much ado, so that’s why I named him. If you include the heart ailment on top of the actual career, then Teppo should get it even under the current “approved by smallpox and plague” criteria.
Um, Richard Zednik, anyone?
If Jason Blake could walk away with it last season, Zeds must be in contention for his remarkable comeback this year.
Who can argue against that?
by Donny Rivette on Mar 29, 2009 10:20 AM CDT reply actions 3 recs
Zednik’s injury was horrific, for sure, and he’ll probably win. But Pothier’s return after more than a yer from a concussion and vision problems is damn near unbelieveable, especially considering that nearly everyone—including the Caps organization—thought he was done with the game.
Washington Times story on Potsy from mid-season: http://washingtontimes.com/news/2008/dec/10/the-long-road-back/
Numminen, Gagne, and Zednik are all really good picks.
Brind’Amour- pushing 40, but came back very quickly (probably too quickly) from a torn ACL and has still be reasonably effective….I could see him getting some votes too.
by Make a play Whitner on Mar 29, 2009 11:07 AM CDT reply actions
I’d count on a(n overdue) nomination for Tim Thomas from the Bruins this year. Zednik might be my pick though.
by The Jumbotron (Gabe) on Mar 29, 2009 11:27 AM CDT reply actions
I think that it should be hands down to Richard Zednik.
To come back from a near death injury/accident that happened on the ice and play a full season without any apparent struggles is a no brainer
Stirring the pot.
Claude Lemieux
Oh and James, can you fix your title?
Ohhh typo in the headline, that’s a no-no. Thanks for the heads up.
by James Mirtle on Mar 31, 2009 12:03 AM CDT up reply actions
On that note, I hear Jocelyn’s serving potstickers at Fridays in Moose Jaw.
by Donny Rivette on Mar 31, 2009 5:28 PM CDT up reply actions
Zednik
is a lock, but it’s hard to say who comes in second. Pothier’s return has been excellent, but less than a year. Bergeron was out for more than a year and came back to have another concussion. But Sullivan’s been out 2 years and has come back and led his team back into the playoffs – even while they lose their #1 player, Arnott.
Can anyone recall another year where so many incredible come backs have happened? Usually the Masterson is an easy choice, with Kessel and Blake winning because of their battles with cancer, but this year seems there’s an unusual number of guys coming back from terrible injuries.
No love for Steve Sullivan? Really? Two years of rehab and then he steps right back into a playoff chase and contributes 26 points over 35 games. He’ll be asked to carry even more of the Russian traitor’s load now that Erat is dinged up.
2008-2009 Colorado Avalanche: Dry Humping Mediocrity
I would have to agree with you, Sully probably will end up topping the list but some serious credit should be given for Teppo after returning from open heart surgery considering he is 100 years old and had already cemented a long, steady career – that’s dedication. He could very well have retired and gone back to Finland as one of the best players to ever come out of their country.
I have a blog too! www.scottyhockey.com
Let's Go Rangers!
by Scotty Hockey on Apr 1, 2009 10:21 AM CDT up reply actions
There’s a stunning number of really solid candidates this year. I dunno if that’s a good or a bad thing.
SNN Sports - A theoretical Oilers blog (i.e. theoretically, I write stuff there)
Thrashers
The Thrashers nominee is Slava Kozlov
I love me some Teppo, but if Zednik got it I’d be plenty happy. Not only did he play this year, he’s played well.
Honk if you love Justice!
"I'm betting that I'm just abnormal enough to survive. "
Whoa whoa whoa . . .
since when has B.J. Crombeen played for the Sharks?
"The world is getting to be such a dangerous place, a man is lucky to get out of it alive." -- W.C. Fields
We're a living, breathing organism.
Which means . . . honestly, I don’t know what that means.
Anyway, from all of us Blues fans . . . thanks for the correction!
"The world is getting to be such a dangerous place, a man is lucky to get out of it alive." -- W.C. Fields
And since this pot has no been stirred
Lemieux for the Lady Byng!!!
The trick to get them to go in opposite directions…
Kurtis Foster deserves this as much as Pothier, Kessel or Blake
Wild defenseman Kurtis Foster returned to the NHL today after just under a year and a 63-game absence as he recovered from a broken leg suffered at San Jose on March 19, 2008. Recalled Feb. 28 from Houston, where he was on a conditioning assignment, Foster was last-minute addition to the lineup because Brent Burns was scratched due to illness. Foster missed the pre-game warm-ups, but went on to take 12 shifts.
"He was a little rusty," said Lemaire. "It is not easy to come in. He was on the bike for an hour before the game and then Burns couldn’t play, so we told him at the last second, ‘Get dressed, you’re playing.’ So it’s kind of hard for him. But he did fine."
Despite being a little rusty, Foster was excited at the chance to get back on the ice with his team after such a long time away.
"I just had to get dressed quick and get right out there," Foster said. "In the third period, my legs were a bit spent, but, by the time that I got out there and realized what was going on out there, and that I was back in the NHL, it was just fun to be out there, and I bet you couldn’t find me not smiling out there."
With only 18 games remaining, Foster still feels confident that he can help his team turn things around.
"I still have a ways to go, there are still certain things I need to work on and certain things I need to improve, but for the most part I feel pretty good, pretty strong and I think that after a few games and getting confident again I could really help the team."
Foster came back and has only one point, but when there were questions about whether or not Foster would ever walk again, his one assist is the biggest point of the season.
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