Penguins star Sidney Crosby among nominees for Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy

Pittsburgh Penguins star Sidney Crosby is among the nominees for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy revealed by the Professional Hockey Writers Association on Friday.

The trophy is awarded to a player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship and dedication to the game. Masterton is the only player in NHL history to die as a direct result of an on-ice injury.

A player from each team is nominated by its local PHWA chapter. PHWA writers will vote for three finalists, with the winner revealed during the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Crosby is defying age with his performance this season. The 36-year-old is leading the Penguins with 39 goals and 45 assists in 76 games, ensuring a 19th consecutive season averaging a point per game, matching Wayne Gretzky’s record.

”Any time you can be in that company, it’s pretty cool,” Crosby said of the milestone.

The nominees from Canadian teams are Calgary’s Oliver Kylington, Edmonton’s Vincent Desharnais, Montreal’s Joel

Armia, Ottawa’s Claude Giroux, Toronto’s Ilya Samsonov, Vancouver’s Noah Juulsen, and Winnipeg’s Laurent Brossoit.

Kylington returned to the NHL in late

January after a nearly 20-month absence for mental health reasons. Kylington continued to work with Flames’ support staff through his personal leave and is back to being a fixture on Calgary’s blue line. The 26-year-old has two goals and three assists in 27 games this season.

“At one point in time, I didn’t think I was going to be here,” Kylington said before his first game back with the Flames.

Desharnais has travelled from the BCHL to the NCAA, and from the ECHL to the NHL. After making his NHL debut at 26 last year, the now-27-year-old is a mainstay on the Oilers blue line thanks to his grit and physical play. The six-foot-seven defenceman has played in 70 games this season, producing one goal and 10 assists.