It's way too early to start talking about awards, but it's always fun to see how preseason predictions turn out. Here are my predictions for the top awards with all nominees.
Selke Trophy - Best Defensive Forward
Patrice Bergeron - Boston Bruins
Anze Kopitar - Los Angeles Kings
Jonathan Toews - Chicago Blackhawks
Winner: Kopitar. The NHL's top three two-way forwards all return as nominees for the Selke this season, but the Kings superstar wins what is pretty much a coin flip.
Jack Adams Award - Best Coach
Todd Richards - Columbus Blue Jackets
Barry Trotz - Washington Capitals
Mike Yeo - Minnesota Wild
Winner: Richards. Columbus will finish second in an incredibly competitive Metropolitan Division with plenty of praise going Richards's way. This will be a tough award to decide but Columbus will be one of the most positive surprises of the year and therefore Richards will win the Adams.
Norris Trophy - Best Defenseman
Drew Doughty - Los Angeles Kings
P.K. Subban - Montreal Canadiens
Shea Weber - Nashville Predators
Winner: Weber. Nashville improved immensely on the offensive side of things this offseason and rookie Seth Jones will have a year of experience under his belt. These are all factors that will contribute to Weber lighting up the stats sheet while still being one of the most physically intimidating players in the league.
Calder Trophy - Rookie of the Year
Jonathan Drouin - Tampa Bay Lightning
John Gibson - Anaheim Ducks
Evgeny Kuznetsov - Washington Capitals
Winner: Drouin. This kid is immensely talented and will have an All Star-caliber rookie season playing alongside the likes of Steven Stamkos among others.
Vezina Trophy - Best Goaltender
Cory Schneider - New Jersey Devils
Tuukka Rask - Boston Bruins
Pekka Rinne - Nashville Predators
Winner: Schneider. This will be Schneider's first season as an established starter (he split time with Martin Brodeur last year), but he has shown us that he can be one of the NHL's best goalies and will take the step into elite territory this year. Rask will lead the NHL in wins and Rinne will have a great bounceback season, but Schneider will have the league's top goals against average AND save percentage.
Hart Trophy - Most Valuable Player
Sidney Crosby - Pittsburgh Penguins
Steven Stamkos - Tampa Bay Lightning
John Tavares - New York Islanders
Winner: Stamkos. Stamkos establishes himself as arguably the best offensive player in the game as he leads the NHL in goals. Tavares finishes second in that category and Crosby leads the league in assists, but Stamkos comes away with the award.