The Hurricanes have a hotshot Calder Trophy candidate of their own in forward Sebastian Aho.
RALEIGH, N.C. — Not that Noah Hanifin gets a vote, but the Carolina Hurricanes defenceman would be torn between his friend — and Saturday’s foe — Auston Matthews of the Maple Leafs and Patrik Laine of the Winnipeg Jets when it comes to the Calder Trophy for rookie of the year.
“It’s going to be really close,” said Hanifin, who was part of an impressive 2015-16 rookie crop. “Auston’s done great, Laine’s done really well. “There’s a lot of young guys coming in and being successful right away.”
But there’s another player he hopes doesn’t get overlooked when members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association start putting names to paper: Sebastian Aho.
“His hockey IQ is off the charts,” Hanifin said of Aho. “He’s a great guy to have in the locker room, great person and he’s a great offensive talent.”
The 19-year-old Aho got off to a slow start, but has been on fire lately. Aho had 20 goals heading into Saturday’s action — only Laine (32) and Matthews (31) had more among rookies. He said seeing Laine’s success early in the season helped him get through a rough start.
“After the first 20 games, I got more comfortable,” said Aho. “I got some confidence. That helped me a lot.” The Finn was Laine’s centre at the 2015 World Junior Hockey Championship but is a winger with the Hurricanes.
Leafs coach Mike Babcock said the Leafs considered taking Aho in the 2015 draft. Aho went 35th overall to Carolina. The Leafs took defenceman Travis Dermott 34th overall.
“He was a guy we seriously considered taking,” said Babcock said of Aho. “He’s a real good player.”
As for the rookie of the year award, Aho thinks it’s between Laine and Matthews.
“There are a lot of young guys who show they can play this game,” Aho said. “I think it’s good for the league.”