Vezina Trophy
The Vezina Trophy is given to the goaltender of the year as determined by the NHL general managers. The NHL has attempted over the past few seasons to increase goal scoring by making goalie pads smaller and changing rules to favor offense. However, some goalies have stood tall in the face of the NHL’s attempts. No one has won back-to-back Vezina Trophies since Martin Brodeur in 2006-2007 and 2007-2008. That could change this year, because my favorite for the Vezina this year is: Sergei Bobrovsky, G, Columbus Blue Jackets.
Bobrovsky is picking up right where he left off last season. The goaltender who the Blue Jackets literally stole from the Philadelphia Flyers is the backbone of the team in Columbus. He has brought hockey in Ohio into relevance, and the team has finally rewarded him with a solid supporting cast.
Bob-o sports a cool 11-4-1 record with two shutouts in 16 games started, with an incredible 2.02 GAA and a .933 save percentage. As you can see, he is currently better than his numbers last season, and last season he walked away with the hardware. If Bobrovsky can keep his numbers even reasonably close to where he is now, he’ll probably set a career high in wins, and MAY get into the Hart Trophy chase. He did finish 3rd in Hart voting last season…
Honorable Mention: Andrei Vasilevskiy, G, Tampa Bay Lightning, 17 games, 14-2-1 record, 2.34 GAA, .928 save percentage. Playing on Tampa Bay, if he stays healthy, Vasilevskiy could surpass 50 wins this season and set an NHL record. Currently Martin Brodeur (’06-’07) and Braden Holtby (’15-’16) have that record at 48 wins.