Jonas Gustavsson Earns Masterson Trophy Nomination
The Boston chapter of the Professional Hockey Writers Association chose to nominate Boston Bruins goaltender Jonas Gustavsson as this year’s candidate for the Masterson Trophy. That award is “given to the NHL player who best exemplifies the qualities of perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to hockey.”
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Gustavsson has done reasonably well as a member of the Boston Bruins this season. He has a 11-7-1 record (1 shutout). He has a respectable 2.63 goals against and a .911 save percentage. Gustavsson was the dark horse in the running for the number two job at training camp, but he beat out all of the other candidates to become Tuukka Rask‘s backup.
“You always try to enjoy it, but you’re so into it that you have one thing on your mind,” said Gustavsson about his work ethic. “Just being the best that you can every single day. When the season is over, you try and reflect. If you had a good season then you can think about it and enjoy it, but during the season you just want to be in the moment, and make the most of it.
Gustavsson has been battling a heart condition for his entire NHL career. The Swedish netminder has had three separate surgeries to correct the problems associated with the condition while playing in the NHL.
“Last season I didn’t play much because of injuries and this summer I didn’t know what was going to happen. So I was happy to get a shot here, and I was open-minded coming into camp. I just wanted to stay positive and believe in myself, and if I did the right things then I might get the shot. Obviously I was happy that I got it.”
My fellow hockey writers made the right choice nominating Gustavsson. He’s the Bruin that best represents playing through adversity this season. (Thankfully, Bruins defenseman Adam McQuaid hasn’t faced any serious injury this season.) Other hockey writer groups made some seriously puzzling choices for their nominee. Some were picked for odd reasons, and the Buffalo Chapter of the PHWA chose Ryan O’Reilly, who is currently facing DUI charges for driving his vehicle into a Tim Horton‘s donut shop.
The 31-year old goaltender seemed pleased with the recommendation of the Boston PHWA. “It’s always an honor to be nominated for anything,” said Gustavsson. “That’s now what you have going into the season or during the season, but I’ll take it. I feel like everybody here has to go through things just to reach this level, and that if you want to go even higher then you have to keep pushing yourself.
“There’s always going to be bumps that you pass, and it’s the same thing for me. I don’t feel like I’m any different than anybody else. Everyone in this locker room is working hard whether it’s injuries, or whatever it could be. I just try to follow that, and do the very best that I can.”