NHL midseason awards: The conv...

We’ve reached the midseason point of the 2022-23 NHL season, which inevitably demands reflection on the campaign thus far. It’s time to hand out some awards and superlatives, as we now enter the second half of the year. There’s a few categories we’ve invented, too: hockey is supposed to be fun, so we’re going to celebrate the best of what the season has offered thus far.

Hart Trophy

This was the easiest award to select which is a testament to Connor McDavid’s outright dominance. McDavid leads the NHL with 37 goals and 83 points, playing at a 151-point pace extrapolated over 82 games. He’s far and away the best player in the NHL and though we don’t want to put any ceilings on the 25-year-old, it’s quite possible we’re witnessing his career apex.

The only thing that could potentially hold back McDavid’s MVP candidacy is that the Oilers are still fighting for a playoff spot, sitting in the No. 8 seed in the West. McDavid, Leon Draisaitl, Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins are carrying the Oilers single-handedly and Edmonton’s captain is putting on a tour-de-force performance, while the vast majority of his teammates are failing to make meaningful contributions.

Our vote: Connor McDavid, David Pastrnak, Jack Hughes

Norris Trophy

It’s a philosophical debate: do you give this award to the best point-producer, or do you factor in the totality of their games? If you turn this award into a simple calculation of the best offensive defenseman, Erik Karlsson would be walking away with the trophy. And we’re not here to denigrate Karlsson’s campaign. He leads the NHL with 37 points at 5-on-5, he’s been in resurgent form for a Sharks team that has looked hopeless without him or Timo Meier on the ice, and he has to be accounted for at all times. He is the slight favourite, but there are other areas to consider.

Our vote: Erik Karlsson (by the slightest of margins), Adam Fox, Jaccob Slavin

Vezina Trophy

Linus Ullmark could’ve been signed by anyone, but the Bruins smartly pounced and inked him to a four-year, $20-million deal in July 2021 and the rest is history. Ullmark has been one of the league’s best surprises and he’s been one of the primary reasons why the Bruins are pulling away from the rest of the Atlantic. Ullmark leads the NHL in goals saved above expected, goals against average and save percentage. It certainly helps to have a stellar backup in Jeremy Swayman but Ullmark has easily been the best goalie in the league this year. No one besides Ullmark and Bruins management saw it coming.

Our vote: Linus Ullmark, Connor Hellebuyck, Ilya Sorokin

Selke Trophy

There’s a line of thinking that presumes this is Patrice Bergeron’s award to lose until proven otherwise, but that can also be a bit lazy. Bergeron has been the best defensive forward in the NHL once again, however, while always being matched up against the opponent’s top scoring line. Among skaters with a minimum of 400 minutes played this season, Bergeron leads the NHL in 5-on-5 expected goals against at 1.82 clip, while generating 3.6 expected goals per 50, the fifth-best total in the league. More simply: if Bergeron’s on the ice, your team is in deep trouble. He plays on arguably the best line in the NHL and his impact has been profound for a Bruins team that has been a juggernaut.

Our vote: Patrice Bergeron, Jordan Staal, T3: Mitch Marner, Mark Stone, Nico Hischier and Mikael Backlund

Calder Trophy

Matty Beniers has been outstanding for the Kraken and neatly encapsulates the franchise’s turnaround during the 2022-23 campaign. He’s running away with the rookie scoring race, notching 36 points, harboring a 10-point cushion over Cole Perfetti. Seattle’s offense was completely anemic during its inaugural campaign. With Beniers at the forefront, while showing a newfound ability to roll four lines, the Kraken lead the NHL with 116 goals scored at five-on-five. Barring injury, Beniers should have this award secured.

Our vote: Matty Beniers, Pyotr Kochetkov, Owen Power

Jack Adams

Devils fans were forced to apologize to Lindy Ruff after ripping off a torrential winning streak during the early months of the season. Nobody other than Ruff and the Devils organization itself saw this team ascending into a genuine Stanley Cup contender this year. It’s not a mirage, either. New Jersey is soundly among the best shot-creation teams in the league and it has copied Colorado’s turbo-paced approach to winning games. Will it pay off in the playoffs? That has to be eventually proven, but through the first half of the year, Ruff has earned the rich plaudits.

Our vote: Lindy Ruff, Dave Hakstol, Jim Montgomery

Most surprising team: New Jersey Devils

Armed with a litany of No. 1 picks and some aggressive free-agent signings, the Devils shouldn’t have shocked the hockey world like this. No one really thought this was their year. Hughes has played like an MVP candidate, while Dougie Hamilton, John Marino and the Devils’ defensive corps are no longer viewed as a liability. By now, Colorado’s speed is a known quantity to the league but if you haven’t seen New Jersey’s attempt to play as the fastest show on ice, make a point of watching a few games in the second half.

Most disappointing team: Florida Panthers

We won’t dwell on the disappointing Florida Panthers for too long. Matthew Tkachuk has lived up to the hype but the Panthers have otherwise lost the flair and shot-creation fluency that saw them become the Presidents’ Trophy winner last year. If Florida misses the playoffs, while its first-round pick is allocated to Montreal because of the Ben Chiarot trade, disappointment may descend into disaster.

Breakout player: Dylan Cozens

Can you really be considered a breakout player if you had a 68-point season the previous year? That’s what disqualified Tage Thompson from this superlative, so we’re passing it off to his Sabres teammate, Dylan Cozens, who ranks 46th in league scoring with 40 points in 41 games. Cozens along with Thompson are the center of Buffalo’s offensive revival and though it appears unlikely that it will nab a playoff spot this season, the future looks bright.

Most fun player to watch: Jack Hughes

Hughes and the Devils have officially arrived. A world-class skater with creative flair to boot, Hughes zips around the ice with what would seem like reckless abandon, only to distribute the puck into clean shooting lanes. He’s undersized even in the modern NHL but he’s bold, dripping in confidence, he tries audacious plays all the time and he can execute with speed. We used to fawn over the Avalanche for the same qualities, but Hughes has earned this designation — with his best friend, Trevor Zegras, ranking second.

Most enticing trade candidate: Erik Karlsson

If the asking price for Karlsson is three first-round picks, while the Sharks retain 18 percent of his salary, this ought to be one hell of a trade deadline. Karlsson, the leading Norris candidate, doesn’t fit San Jose's timeline and he’s far more valuable to a contender than a team in flux, which hasn’t quite realized that it’s time to bottom out. It may sound nuts, but Karlsson is worth that price for more than a few teams. We’re all the way here for some fireworks and a blockbuster trade for Karlsson could redesign the landscape of the league.