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2022 Hart Trophy Finalists Announced

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It’s time for the big one. The NHL has announced the finalists for the Hart Trophy, given annually to the “player judged most valuable to his team.” Last year’s award went to Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, his second win after taking it home in 2017 as well.

This year’s finalists are McDavid, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers.

There’s not much to be said about the Oilers captain that hasn’t already been mentioned a million times. One of the most dynamic offensive players to ever grace the NHL, he reached new highs in goals and points this year with 44 and 123. It was the fourth time he has led the league in points, and this will be the fourth time he is a Hart finalist. With 697 points in his career already, he sits fourth in points/game among those who have played at least 450. Only Wayne Gretzky (1.92), Mario Lemieux (1.88), and the late Mike Bossy (1.50) sit ahead of McDavid’s 1.43 mark, an incredible accomplishment in this era.

Matthews, meanwhile, is a finalist for the second time after being the runner-up last season. Now the two-time Rocket Richard winner, the Maple Leafs forward is the best goal scorer in the league and reached a mark very rarely seen in today’s game. His 60 goals were the most since Steven Stamkos hit the same mark in 2011-12, and he became only the third player in the salary cap era to reach the mark (Alex Ovechkin has the top spot with 65 in 2007-08). More than just his goals though, it was Matthews’ overall production that skyrocketed this season, with the big center hitting 106 points in just 73 games.

Shesterkin is a first-time finalist, but if he continues to play at the level he established this season this certainly won’t be the last time he’s up for major awards. The 26-year-old netminder posted a .935 save percentage in 53 appearances and is the front-runner for the Vezina Trophy as the league’s best netminder. Moreover, the Rangers were routinely critiqued for their defensive zone breakdowns this season as a young team, breakdowns that Shesterkin regularly rescued them from with incredible saves. The Hart hasn’t been won by a goaltender since Carey Price in 2015, when he nearly swept the field, taking home the Jennings, Vezina, and Lindsay as well. Price’s save percentage that season was actually .933, just a few points below what Shesterkin did this year.

2022 Vezina Finalists Announced

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Over the next week, the NHL will be releasing the finalists for all of the major regular season awards. After yesterday’s Norris announcement, next up is the Vezina Trophy, which is given to the best goaltender in the NHL and is voted on by the league’s general managers.

This year’s finalists are Jacob Markstrom of the Calgary Flames, Igor Shesterkin of the New York Rangers, and Juuse Saros of the Nashville Predators.

Markstrom, 32, is a finalist for the first time, following his best and most consistent season to date. Appearing in 63 games for the Pacific Division-winning Flames, the big netminder won 37 games, posted a .922 save percentage, and led the league with nine shutouts. The backbone for his team all season long, Markstrom was a huge part of the stingy Flames team that turned from a high-flying circus into a controlled, defensive team under head coach Darryl Sutter.

Shesterkin, 26, is the odds-on favorite to win the award, despite his recent struggles in the playoffs. The Rangers would have been absolutely lost without him this season, and he led the league in both save percentage and person goals-against average. That .935 mark was ten points higher than his nearest competitor and raised Shesterkin’s career number to something of legends. Among goaltenders with at least 100 NHL appearances (he has exactly that), his .928 career save percentage is well ahead of Dominik Hasek’s .922 for first place. It will obviously be hard to maintain that over a whole career, but the Russian netminder is off to a historic start.

Saros meanwhile shouldn’t be forgotten. The 27-year-old netminder appeared in 67 games for the Predators, more than any other goaltender in the league, despite being injured in the final week. Last year’s sixth-place finisher, he posted a strong .918 save percentage and dragged Nashville into a playoff spot. One of the smallest goaltenders in the league at 5’11”, Saros continues to show why the Predators were so excited about his development even when they still had Pekka Rinne in place as the starter. Since his rookie season in 2016-17, Saros hasn’t posted a save percentage under .914 and now has a career mark of .920 in 222 appearances, good for seventh on the all-time list.

New York Rangers To Sign Adam Edstrom

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According to CapFriendly, the New York Rangers are expected to sign forward Adam Edstrom to a three-year, entry-level contract (link). The 21-year-old Edstrom was the Rangers’ sixth-round pick, 161st overall, in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. The contract will begin in 2022-23 and carries an AAV of $846.67K; it does not include any performance bonuses.

Edstrom has spent his entire career playing in Sweden, debuting in the Swedish Hockey League with Mora IK in 2018-19. The forward has spent the rest of his SHL career with Rogle BK, where has played his last three seasons. In 132 games with Rogle BK since the start of 2019-20, Edstrom has played in 132 games, putting up 14 goals and 14 assists in that time. While his offensive numbers do not jump out, Edstrom stands at 6’4″ and weighs 207 pounds, giving him an ability to use his body and provide a physical presence for his teams.

Adding Edstrom gives the Rangers yet another young player to add to their incredibly strong prospect pool. The Rangers have recently put a focus on adding strong, physical players to their team to help them win games and protect their star talent, and Edstrom should add to that group as he develops. Edstrom may not see any time with the Rangers next season, but he will have an opportunity to come to North America and develop further in the Rangers system.

Tyler Motte Could Return This Series

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  • Rangers winger Tyler Motte may be able to return from his upper-body injury at some point in their first-round series against Pittsburgh, relays Mollie Walker of the New York Post (Twitter link). The 27-year-old was acquired from Vancouver at the trade deadline but was injured in just his ninth game with the team.  With Barclay Goodrow being ruled out for the series yesterday, New York could certainly benefit from Motte’s grit and defensive play to help fill some of the holes created by Goodrow’s absence.

Barclay Goodrow Out Week-To-Week

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According to The Athletic’s Arthur Staple, New York Rangers forward Barclay Goodrow is out week-to-week (link). After a physical first game of their series against the Pittsburgh Penguins that saw several injuries, Goodrow appeared to escape unharmed. However, the forward was noticeably absent from warmups ahead of tonights 5-2 Rangers win. Replacing Goodrow in the lineup tonight was forward Dryden Hunt, who got his first postseason action as a member of the Rangers.

Goodrow is not the superstar that his teammates Artemi Panarin or Adam Fox are, however his presence as a physical, two-way forward with Stanley Cup pedigree is invaluable to this young Rangers team trying to make an earlier-than-anticipated run at a Stanley Cup. Being week-to-week should provide Goodrow with a chance to get back in the lineup should the Rangers season continue on long enough. In the meantime, the team could look to a player like Hunt who does play a similar style to Goodrow to try and fill that void.

In other Rangers injury news, Staple adds that defenseman Ryan Lindgren will be a game-time decision for game three in Pittsburgh. Lindgren did not play tonight, and was instead replaced by Justin Braun, who the Rangers had acquired from the Philadelphia Flyers at the trade deadline. An underrated acquisition at the time, Braun is showing his value being able to come into the lineup after sitting in the first game, bringing with him 100 games of previous playoff experience.

Ryan Lindgren, Brian Dumoulin Out For Game 2

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Both the Pittsburgh Penguins and New York Rangers will be missing a top-four defenseman for tonight’s Game 2. Brian Dumoulin is out for the Penguins, while Ryan Lindgren is out for the Rangers.

Dumoulin nearly hit 50 shifts in Game 1’s triple-overtime win, logging 36:35 of ice time, two shots, one hit, and one blocked shot. Making a name for himself as the longtime defense partner to Kris Letang, it’s likely Mike Matheson will slot in Dumoulin’s place on the top pair. Both Mark Friedman and Nathan Beaulieu took warmups for the Penguins, and one of them is expected to draw into the lineup.

Lindgren was banged up in the last game and was called a game-time decision with a lower-body injury this morning. He serves a very similar role as Dumoulin does in Pittsburgh, serving as the more defensively-inclined partner to Adam Fox. He didn’t quite hit 30 minutes of ice time in Game 1, struggling with the injury during the game. Justin Braun is drawing into the lineup, but it’s unclear how the pairs will look.

Two-time Stanley Cup champion Barclay Goodrow is also missing for the Rangers.

Rangers Sign Ryder Korczak

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The Rangers have agreed to terms with one of their draft picks from last summer as CapFriendly reports (Twitter link) that they’ve signed center Ryder Korczak to a three-year, entry-level deal.  The contract, which begins next season, breaks down as follows:

2022-23: $750K salary, $92.5K signing bonus, $82.5K games played bonus
2023-24: $775K salary, $92.5K signing bonus, $57.5k games played bonus
2024-25: $775K salary, $92.5K signing bonus, $57.5k games played bonus

The 19-year-old was a third-round pick (75th overall) in 2021 out of Moose Jaw in the WHL.  Korczak had a strong season with the Warriors this season, finishing second on the Warriors in scoring with 25 goals and 54 assists in 68 games.  He also chipped in with five points in as many games in the playoffs in their first round victory over Saskatoon.

As Korczak turns 20 in September, he will be eligible to turn pro and play in New York’s farm system next season or go back to junior.  After the season he had, however, the likelier scenario is that he suits up with AHL Hartford in the fall.

Antti Raanta Leaves Game Two With An Injury

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A day after Penguins goaltender Casey DeSmith left Game One against the Rangers during overtime, another netminder has been injured.  This time, it’s Hurricanes netminder Antti Raanta who left early in the first period in the second game of their opening round series against the Bruins.

The injury – which can be viewed on a tweet from Carolina team reporter Walt Ruff – occurred on a hit from Boston winger David Pastrnak.  It was initially ruled as a five-minute major but after review, it was overturned to a two-minute minor.

There’s never an ideal time for an injury but this one is particularly impactful for the Hurricanes as they remain without starter Frederik Andersen who is also injured.  While the team hopes he’ll be able to play at some point in the first round, there is no firm timetable for his return.

This meant that Pyotr Kochetkov, who only made his NHL debut less than two weeks ago, was pressed into duty.  He has a 2.42 GAA along with a .902 SV% in his first three NHL appearances.  Meanwhile, Jack LaFontaine is serving as Carolina’s emergency goaltender and will be the backup for the rest of the game with Raanta unable to return.  He was convinced to leave college midseason to turn pro and got into two games with Carolina plus 13 more with AHL Chicago.

 

Rangers' Black Aces Revealed

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  • One of the aspects of building a potential Stanley Cup-winning team that is often highly important but also somewhat under-recognized is the impact of a team’s organizational depth. A team’s organizational depth is flexed through their “black aces,” or the players who are attached to their team as they compete in the playoffs but don’t dress for games on a regular basis. They are the players who are around to be ready at a moment’s notice, and with the brutal nature of playoff hockey, it is more likely than not that a team will have to dip into their reserves of players as they go deep into the playoffs. The New York Rangers hope to be one of those teams going deep into the playoffs, and today Larry Brooks of the New York Post reported the group of players who will make up the Rangers’ Black Aces. The Rangers will have a group of seven players, per Brooks: Zac Jones, Nils Lundkvist, Matthew Robertson, Jarred Tinordi, Lauri Pajuniemi, Tim Gettinger, and Keith Kinkaid.

Metropolitan Notes: Marchenko, Morehouse, Panarin, Copp

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It is only a matter of time now before prospect Kirill Marchenko officially signs with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Marchenko, 21, has finished his KHL season, as SKA St. Petersburg fell in the conference finals of the Gagarin Cup playoffs, and he isn’t wasting any time making his next move. While his contract does not officially end until April 30, like many of his SKA teammates Marchenko is already negotiating his next deal. Russian source Sport Express reports that Marchenko will soon sign his two-year entry-level contract with the Blue Jackets. The 2018 second round pick is coming off a 20-point KHL season, finish fifth for St. Petersburg in scoring – a notable feat for a player of his age in a league with many accomplished veterans. A big, rangy winger with a goal scorer’s mentality, Marchenko figures to be yet another young impact player next season for a Columbus team that will have Yegor Chinakhov, Cole Sillinger, and Kent Johnson up front as well.

  • After 16 years on the job and contributing to three Stanley Cup titles, Pittsburgh Penguins CEO David Morehouse has stepped down, the team announced. The Penguins’ release states that Morehouse made the decision himself, though the move comes not long after the team was sold to the Fenway Sports Group which may have played a role. Morehouse, a Pittsburgh native, joined the team in 2007 to spearhead the arena construction project that became Consol Energy Center and now PPG Paints Arena. Not only did Morehouse oversee the construction of the arena, but played a key role in filling the seats as well. Morehouse played a role in a number of strategic initiative and capital projects that have taken advantage of the Penguins’ lengthy stretch of consistent success to help build one of the NHL’s most valuable franchises.
  • Artemi Panarin and Andrew Copp both left Tuesday night’s game between the New York Rangers and Carolina Hurricanes due to injury, but head coach Gerard Gallant was adamant that these were precautionary measures. He told NHL.com’s Dan Rosen that both would have returned if it was a playoff game. There is reason to be skeptical of these comments though. First, last night’s game was virtually a playoff game; the Rangers faced the Hurricanes in a must-win for New York if they hoped to take the division crown from Carolina. Even more interesting though was the Rangers’ lineup for tonight’s game. New York understandably kept a number of starters in the press box for the contest with Tuesday’s loss cementing their playoff position. However, rather than listed as a health scratch like the rest, Panarin and Copp were listed as injured. Rosen reports that Panarin is out with an upper-body issue and Copp with a lower-body issue. In case this ends up being a strategic move by the Rangers to downplay these injuries ahead of a seven-game series, the health of Panarin and Copp bears watching.

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