The NHL has announced its finalist for the Calder Memorial Trophy – the award for the player who had the best first season in the league. The 2023 first-overall pick Connor Bedard received the honor alongside defensemen Brock Faber and Luke Hughes.
Let’s look at what each player did to make their case for the top rookie honor.
Connor Bedard – Chicago Blackhawks
A name we all knew more than a year before he even took the ice for the first time. Just ahead of puck drop in his first game, he received a welcome from referee Kelly Sutherland.
Expectations were high after the numbers he put up in the Western Hockey League and the World Juniors. He lived up to them. In just 68 games (he missed time due to injury). Bedard scored 22 goals and racked up 39 assists for 61 points. Bedard led or co-led rookies and the Blackhawks in all three categories.
He also became the second-youngest player to lead or co-lead all rookies in these three categories at 18 years and 276 days. Bedard also became the fifth 18-year-old to record a five-point game and was the third-youngest player ever to score a regular-season overtime goal.
Brock Faber – Minnesota Wild
Faber immediately became a consistent face on the Minnesota Wild this season. He played in all 82 games and led rookies in average time on ice (24:58) and total time on tice (2,047:53). His total time on ice is the most by a rookie since the stat began being documented in 1997-98.
Faber finished the season with eight goals and 39 assists for 47 points. His points total is second in the league to Bedard and his assists are tied for first among rookies.
Faber led all rookies in blocked shots (150). He was third in power-play assists (13) and power-play points (16), along with being tied for sixth in power-play goals (3) and eight in shots on goal (136).
The 21-year-old joins Kirill Kaprizov as the second player in Wild history to be named a finalist for the Calder. Kaprizov won the trophy following the 2020-21 season.
Luke Hughes – New Jersey Devils
If the last name sounds familiar, look no further than the team Hughes is already on. Also, feel free to check a defensemen in Vancouver on a previous Calder Finalist list. Luke Hughes took the ice alongside his brother, Jack, for his rookie season with the New Jersey Devils. Hughes only made the family look more impressive.
He finished tied for second with Faber for points among rookies (47). He also showed a high level of consistency early on, playing all 82 games and finishing second in total ice time among rookies (1,760:50). He also finished second in takeaways (42) along with finishing tied for second in power-play goals (4).
As alluded to earlier, Hughes is the second member of his family to be a finalist for the Calder – his brother, Quinn finished second back in 2019-20. He has the chance to be the first to take it home.
The award is voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association. The winner will be announced on June 27 at the NHL Award Show in Las Vegas.
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