No player from a non-playoff team has ever won the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best defenceman, yet the Ottawa Senators‘ Erik Karlsson is favoured to pull that off at Wednesday’s NHL Awards, according to sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Of all the props for the NHL Awards on Wednesday in Las Vegas, the two most compelling are those for the Norris Trophy and the Calder Trophy (rookie of the year).
The former shapes up as a debate between Karlsson, the -140 Norris Trophy betting favourite, and Los Angeles Kings star Drew Doughty at +155. The San Jose Sharks‘ Brent Burns, at +450, could also come up the middle if the vote splits.
Karlsson increased his production over his previous two Norris-winning seasons, finishing fourth among all scorers with 82 points while becoming the first defenceman to lead the NHL in assists since the days of Bobby Orr. Doughty’s team had a 102-point season on their way to the playoffs, and there is sentiment that the 26-year-old star is overdue to win his first Norris.
Only two players who appeared in more games than Connor McDavid scored at a higher rate than the Edmonton Oilers rookie, who had 48 points in 45 games while limited by injury. McDavid is listed at +270 to win the Calder Trophy, since the Chicago Blackhawks‘ Artemi Panarin is the big -350 favourite after finishing his first NHL season as a top-10 scorer. Panarin meets the definition of a rookie although he played five full seasons in the KHL.
Chicago’s Patrick Kane captured the Art Ross Trophy as top scorer with 106 points and should also walk away with the Hart Trophy as MVP. Kane is a veritable shoo-in at -1000, with the Dallas Stars‘ Jamie Benn and the Pittsburgh Penguins‘ Sidney Crosby each at +700.
Similarly, the Washington Capitals‘ Braden Holtby is an overwhelming -3000 favourite for the Vezina Trophy, over the Tampa Bay Lightning‘s Ben Bishop (+700) and Los Angeles’ Jonathan Quick (+1500).
The long-running joke about the Jack Adams Award is that the winning coach will be fired the next season. The Florida Panthers‘ Gerard Gallant (-115) and the Capitals’ Barry Trotz (-105), the bench bosses of the two Eastern Conference division champions, are closely matched for the award. Each is in his second season on the job.
Kings forward Anze Kopitar is a double nominee as a finalist for the Selke Trophy (best defensive forward) and Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (most sportsmanlike player). There is an incumbency bias with the Selke, and the Boston Bruins‘ three-time winner Patrice Bergeron is an even-money slight favorite ahead of Kopitar at +110. The Anaheim Ducks‘ Ryan Kesler is the +650 longshot.
Kopitar is the -210 favorite for the Lady Byng, ahead of Florida’s Aleksander Barkov (+300).
