Devils captain Nico Hischier can win the Selke trophy after Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron announced his retirement on Tuesday.
The Selke trophy is the NHL award for the best defensive forward. This award went to Patrice Bergeron for the last two seasons, and for six of the last 12. Bergeron was a finalist for all 12 years as well. He was in that race for so long that NHL fans joked about renaming it the Bergeron trophy. He’s widely regarded as the best defensive forward of all time and for good reason.
Nico Hischier finished second in the 2023 Selke race in a breakout season. His two-way game helped the Devils win 52 games and win a playoff series over the hated New York Rangers. He finished with 80 points in 81 games on top of his strong defense. Furthermore, he’s only 24 years old.
Hischier was one of the more overlooked players in the league prior to last season because of his lackluster point totals and the Devils being bad for most of his career. Now that he’s on a team worth paying attention to, his skill is finally being recognized.
Now the Nico Hischier Selke campaign is in full swing among Devils fans. Analytics and the eye test say that he’s one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL. He’s the leader of one of the NHL’s most dynamic and overpowering teams. It’s time the once underrated Swiss native gets his accolades. With Bergeron out of the picture, the Selke is his for the taking.
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Featured image courtesy of NHL.com
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