Mathew Barzal was awarded the midseason Calder nomination by the PHWA, and John Tavares sits at third in the Hart Trophy race.
With 51 points through 50 games this season, Mathew Barzal is heading for superstardom fast.
The PHWA’s midseason awards are in, and even though there’s still plenty of hockey left to play — some of the bigger award races are taking shape early.
New York Islanders star forward Mathew Barzal has been dominating the NHL in his first full-season and an end is nowhere near in sight. The 20-year-old has scored 51 points in 50 games (16 goals, 35 assists) and is a plus-seven on the year.
Barzal headlines the midseason vote for the Calder Trophy, beating out Vancouver Canucks rookie Brock Boeser and Boston Bruins defenseman Charlie McAvoy.
Boeser and Barzal recently gave their insight into each other’s games, and both forwards had high praise for each other’s game. Boeser said the following of Barzal to Brian Compton of NHL.com:
“I’d say he’s probably one of the best skaters in the League. He’s a two-way guy and he competes super hard. He’s super-skilled and I think he loves winning. He’s had that attitude his whole life and just playing against him growing up, he’s always been one of the best in the whole world for our age group, so it doesn’t surprise me to see the success he’s having.”
Don’t Forget About JT
Islanders captain John Tavares also made his presence on the list of nominations, arriving third in voting for the midseason Hart trophy winner behind Nikita Kucherov and Nathan MacKinnon.
The Isles leading scorer (26 goals, 31 assists, 57 points), Tavares finished third in the Hart Trophy voting in both the 2012-13 and 2014-15 seasons. For the captain, hopefully, the third time is the charm.
Other Isles News, Stories
- ESNY’s Peter Schwartz spoke with Islanders prospect Mitch Vande Sompel about his first season with the Bridgeport Sound Tigers.
- ESNY’s John Fiorino wonders whether Garth Snow’s inactivity is going to have a long-term impact on the Isles’ future.
