The NHL has named the Hart Trophy finalists and there shouldn’t be any surprises on the list. Regulars to the awards show, Alexander Ovechkin, and Sidney Crosbyare joined by first time nominee John Tavares.

The trophy is awarded to the most deserving regular season player who is judged to be most valuable to his team. Every team has their own MVP but these three nominees were head and shoulders above the rest. Here are the pros and cons for each.

Sidney Crosby, C, Pittsburgh Penguins

Pros: When Crosby is healthy, he might be the best player in the world. He literally almost won the scoring title after missing the last month of the season. When the lockout ended, Crosby hit the ice running, err, skating like he had been playing the whole time. He was clearly the best player in the NHL for the first part of the season.

Cons: It may not necessarily be fair to list Crosby’s injuries as a con, but they have played a huge ole in his career over the past few seasons. The Penguins have shown they can win without Crosby, which can be perceived as his value to the team. It’s absurd to even consider the Penguins are better without him, but they miss him less than the Capitals and Islanders miss their two candidates.

Alexander Ovechkin, LW, Washington Capitals

Pros: There was no player hotter than Ovechkin over the last two months of the season. The Capital captain restored his reputation as one of the elite players in the league by taking the goal-scoring crown. The Capitals went as far as Ovechkin could and would carry them. In games that Ovechkin registered a goal the Capitals went 19-3-2.

Cons: It took almost two-thirds of the season to get Ovie going and almost cost the Capitals their season. If Ovechkin can turn it on and off like he did this season, then why didn’t he do it all season?

John Tavares, C, New York Islanders

Pros: Tavares helped lead the perennially awful New York Islanders back to the playoffs for the first time in six years. Statistically Tavares didn’t break out like he might have, but he nearly matched his goal total from last year in roughly have as many games. Tavares emerged as a leader for the young New York club that promises to only get better moving forward.

Cons: Tavares doesn’t dominate games the way Crosby and Ovechkin do. He picks his spots and makes the absolute most of them. While it doesn’t thrust him to the spotlight that Crosby and Ovechkin enjoy, Tavares might be the most valuable of all three.