Matthews? Gaudreau? Shesterkin? Hart Trophy race at least 7 deep
There will be plenty of arguments made before ballots are due Monday evening
Auston Matthews leads the NHL in goals, Connor McDavid has the most points and Igor Shesterkin has been the best goaltender in the league.
It's entirely possible none of them wins the Hart Trophy as MVP.
"There's an argument or a case for each guy where you say, `Yep, for sure,"' former NHL player and coach Rick Tocchet said. "I think this is probably the hardest Hart in years. It's not clear cut for me because I can make an argument for everybody."
There will be plenty of arguments made before ballots are due Monday evening. Another problem? Only five players can be listed.
Auston Matthews
"What's the case? He's the best scorer," Toronto Maple Leafs teammate David Kampf said. "He has the most goals. That is the reason."
An injury slowed Matthews' push for 60 goals but doesn't diminish how he has been leading Toronto all season and now into the playoffs.
"It's just a number," Leafs defenceman Justin Holl said. "I don't know if he cares about it that much."
An added touch: 43 of his goals have come at even strength, also most in the league.
Johnny Gaudreau
"It's not outlandish to have him winning the Hart just because of his production and the way he's played defence, too," said Tocchet, now a Turner Sports analyst. "His defensive game has really been at another level. You watch him and he's down low, he's winning battles, he's helping his D out for possessions."
Connor McDavid
McDavid has also won almost 54 per cent of his faceoffs and honed his all-around game like other stars before him.
"He had the perfect role model in Sidney Crosby to evaluate his game the way Crosby has grown into a 200-foot hockey player, has grown into a tremendous leader," said Matt Hendricks, who played with McDavid for two seasons in Edmonton. "Connor has done everything to follow those footsteps but also create his own, as well."
Igor Shesterkin
"He's been that good for that team," Tocchet said. "He dipped a little bit, which is understandable [under] a lot of pressure all year. But he's still been really good — excellent. His stats are phenomenal."
Leon Draisaitl
Draisaitl won the Hart in 2020 after the season was cut short by the pandemic. He is in the discussion again because he does so much more for Edmonton than just creating offence and plays more than any other forward in the league.
"Draisaitl penalty-kills, he takes a lot of draws in his own end on important faceoffs," Tocchet said. "That means a lot to me for the Hart."
Jonathan Huberdeau
Huberdeau trails only McDavid in scoring, and he hasn't just done it while playing alongside elite centre Aleksander Barkov. He leads the NHL with a career-high 85 assists and reached 30 goals for the second time in a breakout season.
Roman Josi
Nashville has gotten great production from forwards Matt Duchene and Filip Forsberg and relied on Juuse Saros in goal, but Josi as the captain and best player controls and wins games.
"He's just everything for that team," retired defenceman Karl Alzner said. "Even if he doesn't get on the score sheet more than once in a game, he is completely driving play for that team every time he's out there. He's always in the mix."
