It’s mid-September and the new NHL season is just on the horizon. With the new season comes the new race for the coveted NHL Awards. Many of the league’s biggest stars will make their case to add a new trophy to their shelves. Who are the early favorites to win the NHL Awards in the 2023-24 season?
There’s plenty of great talent around the NHL that will make a run at this award. But ultimately, the Hart Trophy is Connor McDavid’s to lose. Year after year McDavid has been one-upping himself in regards to offensive production. This culminated in a 64 goal, 152 point performance last season which put him in the ranks with the great one, Wayne Gretzky.
Now coming into 2023-24, there’s no reason to believe McDavid will slow down. He’s still well within his athletic prime at age 26 and has been very healthy throughout the past two seasons. It’s highly possible that McDavid outdoes himself yet again as he seeks to lead his Oilers team into the postseason. But even if he comes anywhere close to last year’s production, he should be set to win the Hart for the third time in four seasons.
Ilya Sorokin had a performance last year that probably would’ve won him the Vezina during any other season. He finished fifth in GAA (2.33), third in save percentage (.924) and had a league leading six shutouts. Unfortunately for him, Linus Ullmark also had an incredible year that was hard to ignore in the award voting.
Despite not being awarded for his effort last season, Sorokin has the skill to put himself right back into the Vezina discussion this season. He’s been consistently great behind the crease since joining the NHL and has the starting role all to himself. Sorokin should produce another eye-popping performance as he carries a playoff hopeful Islanders team.
At only 24-years-old, Rangers defenseman Adam Fox has quickly emerged as a star at his position. He won the Norris in his sophomore season and, since then, has been rapidly improving his role as an offensive playmaker. In 2022-23, Fox played another great defensive season to go with 71 points and 60 assists. That effort placed him second in Norris voting, losing out on the award due to Erik Karlsson’s 101 point season.
Heading into the new year, Fox is undoubtedly one of the best two-way defensemen in the league. He’s coming off back to back 70 point seasons to go along with his always solid defensive game. And given how young he is, it’s not unfathomable that we even see him improve his game even further. Playing in an important role with the Rangers, Fox has all of the makings of a Norris Trophy winner.
There’s a ton of hype surrounding first overall draft pick Connor Bedard. Many have touted him as the next generational player to join the NHL and it’s not hard to see why. In his last season in the WHL he posted a whopping 143 points with 71 goals. He also went to the World Juniors and put on a terrific display there with 23 total points.
Bedard has clearly displayed a complete, NHL-ready offensive game which could lead to immediate success. With the dominance he’s shown at every level, it’s possible his rookie season ranks up with some of the best in NHL history. Even at his floor level of production, Bedard is expected to be the league’s best rookie by far and away. Barring any unforeseen setbacks, he’s a virtual lock to win the Calder this season.
Featured image courtesy of NHL.com
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