Johnny Hockey on ESPN

[Burninator]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Of course, none of those guys disclosed their secondary votes, which could make a difference this year.

Friedman said Gaudreau was his second vote for Calder.

[bob-loblaw]

Originally Posted by Burninator

Friedman said Gaudreau was his second vote for Calder.

Friedman is dead to me now.

[Bandwagon In Flames]

It's an interesting year for the Calder Trophy. There is no clear-cut front-runner and realistically any of the three could win without many eye brows being raised.

This would be great recognition, but Gaudreau is the only one still playing this year and that's better for his career than any trophy.

[Fire]

Originally Posted by AcGold

wtf did Ekblad do that's so great? Florida didn't even get close to the playoffs, Johnny single handedly won us a game against LA, the team we needed to beat to make the playoffs.

Playoffs should not factor into Calder trophy voting at all. Why should a player be punished because he plays on a crappy team? I think Gaudreau should win the award but it has nothing to do with them making the playoffs.

[3rd line Grinder]

Originally Posted by Fire

Playoffs should not factor into Calder trophy voting at all. Why should a player be punished because he plays on a crappy team? I think Gaudreau should win the award but it has nothing to do with them making the playoffs.

Other than the rather large part he played in getting them there?

[Street Pharmacist]

Originally Posted by 3rd line Grinder

Other than the rather large part he played in getting them there?

Ekblad played a large role in getting Florida very close

[CliffFletcher]

Originally Posted by Enoch Root

Stone got plenty of media attention in Canada. But not so much in the US, it didn't appear.

Gaudreau was a story in the US - throughout the big eastern markets - all season long

Yeah, I think Ekblad gets the traditional Canadian media hockey votes because of his age and position. But Gaudreau made a bigger splash in the U.S. And I assume there are more American voters than Canadian.

[Imported_Aussie]

We now hear all these people putting Gaudreau second to either Stone or Ekblad...
So Johnny Hockey is everyone's second choice? He's the Ed Stelmach of Calder voting?

[Street Pharmacist]

Scott Morrison just said he voted Ekblad

[AcGold]

Originally Posted by Fire

Playoffs should not factor into Calder trophy voting at all. Why should a player be punished because he plays on a crappy team? I think Gaudreau should win the award but it has nothing to do with them making the playoffs.

Yeah I meant the Christmas present Johnny gave us.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

There's some pretty funny posts in this thread trying to disparage Ekblad's performance this year in hopes that Gaudreau will win the Calder. I'm a huge Gaudreau fan, and he had an exceptional year, but nobody had a bigger impact on his team's success than Ekblad.

Played in all but one game this year. Started on the 2nd pairing and then moved up to the top pairing with Campbell. The Campbell pairing was supposed to shelter him, but after about game 20 Ekblad was sheltering Campbell. 12 goals, 27 assists, and 39 points on a team that didn't score much all year, ranking him 4th in team scoring behind Huberdeau, Jokinen, and Bjugstad, and AHEAD of good young players like Barkov, Pirri, Hayes, and even seasoned veterans like Boyes and Campbell. If Ekblad had played on last year's Panthers, he would have been their scoring leader. Oh, and he also led the team in plus/minus with a +12, with only 2 other players in the double digit plus side of things. For reference, the Panthers had a -17 goal differential which was 23rd in the league, so one can only imagine what it would be without Ekblad. But all that being said, he was the biggest difference maker on the team in every situation, and was the biggest factor in their jump of 9 spots in the standings. That Florida team was abysmal a year ago, especially defensively, and they turned into one of the best in the league in that regard with Ekblad, Luongo, and Gallant coaching.

For any defenseman, that's a great year, but for an 18 year old raw rookie with no pro experience, that's f***ing incredible. We all love Gaudreau's high end skill, but Ekblad is an absolute franchise changer, as we're seeing already. I wouldn't really be upset with any of the nominees winning, but let's not be silly and say that Ekblad shouldn't even be part of this mix.

[troutman]

Again, Calder is for the best rookie, not the player who was best for his age. Ekblad being 18 should be irrelevant.

[polak]

At this point, Ekblad is no more of a Franchise changer than Dion Phaneuf.

His season wasn't that spectacular as it progressed. Phaneufs rookie year was more impressive.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by polak

At this point, Ekblad is no more of a Franchise changer than Dion Phaneuf.

His season wasn't that spectacular as it progressed. Phaneufs rookie year was more impressive.

Yeah his age is irrelevant as far as the award goes because it's not part of the criteria however it appears the voters have made it part of their personal criteria which is a shame. He had a very good season but Johnny not only lead the league in rookie points but he dazzled while doing so like no other rookie. I feel Johnny will get a lot more love from the American voters while probably being left completely out of some ballots from Oilers and Canucks media voters so it's going to be pretty close between he and Ekblad.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Originally Posted by polak

At this point, Ekblad is no more of a Franchise changer than Dion Phaneuf.

His season wasn't that spectacular as it progressed. Phaneufs rookie year was more impressive.

Point-wise yes, in every possible other way, no.

I'm going to be taking a lot of these posts with a grain of salt because I know it's hard to watch Panthers games up there, but if you had watched him there's no way you would believe this.

[Cali Panthers Fan]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Yeah his age is irrelevant as far as the award goes because it's not part of the criteria however it appears the voters have made it part of their personal criteria which is a shame. He had a very good season but Johnny not only lead the league in rookie points but he dazzled while doing so like no other rookie. I feel Johnny will get a lot more love from the American voters while probably being left completely out of some ballots from Oilers and Canucks media voters so it's going to be pretty close between he and Ekblad.

First of all, what is the criteria? It seems to be somewhat subjective other than qualifying to be a rookie, no? It's actually "most proficient", which leaves a ton of room for interpretation as proficient means "competent or skilled at doing something".

The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/page.htm?id=24931

Secondly, I don't think the style in which you play has any bearing on the assessment for the award, nor do I think it should.

[The Fonz]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

McKenzie said he voted for Stone.

Keep in mind that McKenzie also voted Giordano for the Norris.

I don't believe other members of the media make as informed decisions as Mac. Most media seem to buy into hype, which Gaudreau has plenty following him around the league.

[polak]

Originally Posted by Cali Flames Fan

Point-wise yes, in every possible other way, no.

I'm going to be taking a lot of these posts with a grain of salt because I know it's hard to watch Panthers games up there, but if you had watched him there's no way you would believe this.

I think you're forgetting how awesome Phaneuf was in his rookie year. He was just as good as peak of his prime Regher.

unfortunately for Ekblad, Gaudreau is having an even better year and having more of impact than Phaneuf (and pretty much every single Flames rookie since I was born).

[RM14]

Johnny's size completely offsets Ekblad's age.

[Erick Estrada]

Originally Posted by Cali Flames Fan

First of all, what is the criteria? It seems to be somewhat subjective other than qualifying to be a rookie, no? It's actually "most proficient", which leaves a ton of room for interpretation as proficient means "competent or skilled at doing something".



http://www.nhl.com/ice/page.htm?id=24931

Secondly, I don't think the style in which you play has any bearing on the assessment for the award, nor do I think it should.

How can you say age may be subjective yet entertainment impact not? It's an entertainment business first and foremost and while Ekblad had a fine season he never got anyone out of their seat like Johnny did at times. I don't have an issue with Ekblad winning the award but I would vote him 2nd to Gadreau who lead the league in rookie scoring, played a big role of getting his team into the playoffs (a team I may add that was predicted to finish behind the Panthers who missed the playoffs), and he provided more flash/entertainment.