Formerly known as the Lester B. Person Award, the Lindsay Award honors the the best of the best in the league and recognizes the NHL’s “most outstanding player” during the regular season as voted by the NHL Players Association. This year’s nominees are Evgeni Malkin, Center, Pittsburgh Penguins; Steven Stamkos, Center, Tampa Bay Lightning; and Henrik Lundqvist, Goalie, New York Rangers.
Here are Hockey World Blog’s picks for the Ted Lindsay Award winner:
Chris: Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
To me, this is a two-man race between Malkin and Stamkos. With 60 goals on the season, Stamkos scored 10 more goals than Malkin, the only two players to score 50 or more, but Malkin won out on the NHL scoring race with 109 points – the only player to break 100. For the Lindsay Award, I tip my hand to Malkin this season. With 109 points in 75 games, Malkin really stepped it up offensively in the absence of team captain Sidney Crosby. His 109 points were by far the highest total in the league (Stamkos had 97, Giroux had 93) and he was one of two players to score 50 or more goals – arguably without as good a set up man as Stamkos had with Martin St. Louis. Malkin also played in less games than Stamkos and had the third-best points-per-game average in the league with 1.45 points per game. With all of these things combined, Malkin deserves the Lindsay Award.
Eddie: Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
As much as I would like to vote for Steven Stamkos, I can’t fathom someone winning any Most Valuable Player Award and not make the playoffs. With that out of the way, it’s going to come down to Lundqvist and Malkin. I give Malkin the edge because he led the league in points, was second in goals and finished tied for third in assists. All without No. 87 in the lineup for majority of the season. He was able to take a team that was projected to be exposed without No. 87 and nearly won the Atlantic division as they fell one point behind New York. I say that’s enough in the eyes of the NHLPA to win the Ted Lindsay award.
Eric: Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Although Henrik Lundqvist of the New York Rangers had yet another exceptional year, to me, the award should favor skaters. Between Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins, it is pretty easy to decide. Malkin played 7 games less than Stamkos and still put up 12 more points. A relatively even distribution of points, 50 goals and 59 assists, Malkin had a total of 109 points.Of his assists, 22 of them came on the power-play; absolutely deadly in a man advantage. Factor in Malkin was a plus 18 for the season, Malkin should win easily.
