National Post (National Edition)
NHL players' poll reveals surprises, omissions
DRAISAITL HAILED FOR PASSING SKILLS, WHILE OVECHKIN GETS BEST SHOT
With 60 goals this year, Auston Matthews might be the favourite to win the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player. But he is not a complete player — or even someone you'd want on your team in a must-win game.
At least, that's what his peers seem to think.
That was just a couple of the shocking revelations from this year's NHLPA players' poll, which surveyed more than 500 players on various hockey-related questions, ranging from the serious (best shot) to the silly (best hair).
GOALIE YOU'D WANT IN A MUST-WIN GAME
❚ Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay (37.4%)
❚ Carey Price, Montreal (13.9%)
❚ Marc-Andre Fleury, Minnesota (6.7%)
❚ John Gibson, Anaheim (3.5%)
❚ Jacob Markstrom, Calgary (3.1%)
NHL players are incredibly loyal. Or they are living in the past. While it made sense that two-time defending champion Andrei Vasilevskiy topped the list of goalies you'd want in a must-win game, the fact that Carey Price was ranked second despite only playing in four games this year was a head-scratcher.
Even worse was not including Vezina Trophy favourite Igor Shesterkin, who leads the league with a 2.07 GAA and a .935 save percentage.
SKATER YOU'D WANT IN A MUST-WIN GAME
❚ Connor McDavid, Edmonton (42.4%)
❚ Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh (17.3%)
❚ Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay (6.7%)
❚ Aleksander Barkov, Florida (3.5%)
❚ Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado (3.3%)
Connor McDavid leads the league with 144 points and is the most gifted offensive forward we've seen since maybe Wayne Gretzky, so it makes sense that a majority of players wanted him on their team in a do-or-die game. But what seemed strange was that he was the only player ranked in the top-15 in scoring who received votes. No Auston Matthews. No Johnny Gaudreau. No Leon Draisaitl. In the case of Matthews, the omission makes sense. After all, he's been on the losing end of three Game 7s, as well as a series-deciding Game 5.
BEST PASSER
❚ Leon Draisaitl, Edmonton (17.7%)
❚ Patrick Kane, Chicago (15.6%)
❚ Nicklas Backstrom, Washington (15.4%)
❚ Connor McDavid, Edmonton (10.6%)
❚ Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay (6.2%)
You'd think being the league's best passer would translate to assists. And yet, Leon Draisaitl is tied for 23rd overall with 54 assists this year. It wasn't nearly as bad as Nicklas Backstrom ranking third, despite having just 25 assists in 46 games. Meanwhile, top playmaker Jonathan Huberdeau, who leads the NHL with 85 assists in 80 games couldn't crack the top-5 in voting. Neither did Johnny Gaudreau (74 assists), Artemi Panarin (74 assists) or Roman Josi (71 assists).
BEST SHOT
❚ Alex Ovechkin, Washington (53.1%)
❚ Auston Matthews, Toronto (24%)
❚ Patrik Laine, Columbus (3.4%)
❚ David Pastrnak, Boston (1.7%)
❚ Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay (1.3%)
❚ Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay (1.3%)
I'm surprised this one wasn't closer. While Alex Ovechkin's shot is still as deadly as ever, you'd think that scoring 60 goals this year — including 50 in 50 games — would have put Auston Matthews in the No. 1 spot or at least shrunk the gap between the two. It's also strange that a defenceman, such as John Carlson or AllStar Game hardest shot winner Victor Hedman, didn't get votes.
MOST COMPLETE
PLAYER
❚ Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh (29.5%)
❚ Aleksander Barkov, Florida (20.5%)
❚ Patrice Bergeron, Boston (19.5%)
❚ Connor McDavid, Edmonton (9.2%)
❚ Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles (2.6%)
Forget the Hart Trophy or the Ted Lindsay Award. This is the category that every player should want to win. The fact that Sidney Crosby is still at the top of the list goes to show the level of respect the rest of the league has for the Penguins captain. But the real surprise is that Aleksander Barkov is ranked second, while Connor McDavid is ranked fourth, and Auston Matthews is nowhere to be seen. Maybe that will change when — or if — McDavid and Matthews win a Stanley Cup. Until then, Crosby remains King.
BEST HAIR
❚ Cody Eakin, Buffalo (8.9%) ❚ William Karlsson, Vegas (7.9%)
❚ Erik Karlsson, San Jose (4.8%)
❚ Jon Merrill, Minnesota (4%)
❚ Brandon Tanev, Seattle (3.8%)
When did we start spelling worst B-E-S-T?
BEST ROAD CITY
❚ Vegas (30.6%)
❚ New York (17%)
❚ Fort Lauderdale, Florida (10.4%)
❚ Los Angeles (10%)
❚ Nashville (8.7%)
It's funny that Fort Lauderdale gets mentioned, since it's about a 40-minute drive from where the Panthers play their games.
BEST WOMEN'S
PLAYER
❚ Marie-Philip Poulin, Canada (43.2%)
❚ Hilary Knight, USA (20.7%) ❚ Amanda Kessel, USA (6.2%)
❚ Kendall Coyne Schofield, USA (5%)
❚ Sarah Nurse, Canada (2.9%)
Captain Clutch was the obvious choice after winning three Olympic gold medals, having scored the game-winner in all three championship finals.