The NHL announced its major award winners ahead of Stanley Cup Finals game 4 on Thursday night. While only one trophy was given to a Columbus Blue Jackets player; two of their defensemen earned recognition last night.
Sean Monahan took home the Masterton Trophy this year, awarded to the player who demonstrates leadership, perseverance, and dedication to the game of hockey. There were other Blue Jackets mentioned, despite nobody winning any other trophies.
Head coach Dean Evason finished 5th in Jack Adams voting as NHL coach of the year. Kirill Marchenko earned one single first place vote for the Lady Byng trophy. Most notably, Zach Werenski finished second in the Norris Trophy race, and seventh in Hart Trophy voting as league-wide MVP.
Had the Jackets found their way into the playoffs, I think there's a pretty good chance that Evason would have been higher in the Jack Adams standings. Likewise, I think Werenski's Norris and Hart considerations would have improved greatly - though neither probably still win any of this hardware. There were some pretty special seasons around the NHL this year.
But, despite the difficult circumstances around the team this year, the Jackets rose above expectations and remained in the hunt until the final days of the regular season. As such, the league took notice of the club's improvements and recognized two Blue Jackets defensemen.
All-Stars in our book, and now in the league's book.
Zach Werenski was named as an NHL first team All-Star this year. Playing in 81 games, he scored 82 points (2nd amongst defensemen); while leading the league in average time on ice. Despite finishing 7th in Hart Trophy balloting, I don't know that there was a single skater in the league who was more valuable to his team than Zach this year.
Earning first team All-Star honors is a nice way to cap off a career year. If Zach can keep up his stellar play into next season; he'll be in the hunt for some serious hardware again at the end of next season. We expect the Blue Jackets to be better, which means he should see a nice bump in production.
Joining him is fellow blue liner Denton Mateychuk, who was named to the NHL's All Rookie team last night. After starting his season with the Cleveland Monsters, Denton was recalled and made his NHL debut just before Christmas. Once he hit the ice at the NHL level, he made it virtually impossible for the Jackets to send him back down.
Denton skated in 45 games with the Jackets, scoring 4 goals, 13 points, and owning a +4 rating. With him in the lineup, this was a completely different team. They had a record of 26-16-3 (.577%) with #5 in the lineup. Without him, the Jackets were 14-17-6 (.378%).
He kept a surprisingly level head for a rookie, not letting the spotlight get too bright; while holding down a second defense pairing role. Heading into next season, I think he's quietly one of the most important players on this roster. Any steps forward here, and this team is going to be really, really good.
Having two defensemen get league-wide honors gives us an idea that this team's blue line is heading in the right direction. The key for GM Don Waddell now is getting them the right kind of help to play with. This is where the team's offseason plans should be focused.