The Academy Award nominations were announced Tuesday with several sports films getting recognized. The film Moneyball, about how the Oakland Athletics reinvented how to build a winning baseball team, received six Oscar nominations. Also, Nick Nolte received a nomination for his role in the mixed martial arts film Warrior.
There were no hockey movies nominated (the fact there were no hockey movies released last year is simply a technicality), so what better way to celebrate the Oscar nominations than by handing out some hardware to some of hockey’s best.
Best player in a leading role
Pittsburgh forward Evgeni Malkin is one of the main reasons the Penguins currently find themselves in a playoff spot. The 25-year-old leads the NHL in scoring with 58 points in just 42 games. Typically, Malkin plays in a supporting role on a team lead by Sidney Crosby, but with No. 87’s concussion problems the Russian has taken the lead and the Penguins currently sit in fifth place in the Eastern Conference.
Honourable mention: NHL goal leader Steve Stamkos; the best player on the league’s best team, Pavel Datsyuk; and the humble leader of the Blackhawks Jonathan Toews.
Best player in a supporting role
Toronto Maple Leafs winger Joffrey Lupul was expected to come into this season as part of a solid support system for sniper Phil Kessel. However, the Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., native has become arguably the Leafs best player. He currently sits sixth in league scoring with 52 points in 49 games and leapfrogged Kessel for the team lead.
Honourable mention: Ottawa defenceman Erik Karlsson isn’t talked about as much as Jason Spezza or Daniel Afredsson, but he deserves just as much credit for the Senators’ success.
Best special effects
Forget Rise of the Planet of the Apes, Vladimir Tarasenko of SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL wins best special effects for his innovative puck-on-a-string shootout goal during the KHL All-Star skills competition. The St. Louis Blues first-round pick from 2010 fooled fans and the goalie with his move.
Fun Fact: Jaromir Jagr’s early to mid-90s mullet holds the record for winning this award the most amount of times. That mullet mystified defenders for years.
Best song
The National anthems at the 2012 NHL Winter Classic with Melanie Fiona performing O Canada and Patti LaBelle singing the Star-Spangled Banner were a great way to start off a memorable Jan. 2.
Honourable mention goes to the Nashville Predators goal song. Nashville fans sure know how to celebrate.
Best costume design
One of the things the NHL Winter Classic is becoming known for is the special jerseys that teams wear during the game. This year’s Classic was no different as the sweaters the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers wore received positive reviews from fans and players alike.
Honourable mention: The Green Men from Vancouver Canucks games.
Best Director
Technically he is not a director of anything, but NHL senior vice president of player safety Brendan Shanahan is no stranger to directing players when they make questionable plays. Shanahan has been busy this season, calling players in for disciplinary hearings, suspending and fining them, and explaining his decisions in videos and on Twitter.
Best Picture
The award for best picture (literally) goes to this shot of the scar Taylor Hall received when he was accidentally stepped on by a teammate in warm-up.
 Photo courtesy of Sportsnet’s Gene Principe. |
Lifetime achievement award
At age 41 Teemu Selanne doesn’t slow down. The Finnish Flash currently leads the Anaheim Ducks in points. With young guns Corey Perry, Ryan Getzlaf and Bobby Ryan not playing up to par, Selanne is showing his team how to get things done. In 48 games this season Selanne has 15 goals and 45 points. In 1,307 career NHL games Selanne has 652 goal, 733 assists for 1,385 points.
