Canadiens’ Hutson Poised to End Habs’ Calder Curse

Meanwhile, any voters who opted to give the nod to Wolf would probably only be able to justify going that way by arguing that goal is the harder position to play and Wolf did a great job with the weight of an entire team in a season-long playoff race on his shoulders. And there’s no question he did (29-16-8 with a 2.64 goals-against average and .910 save percentage). However, if you take into consideration the degree to which the candidate contributed to the team’s overall performance, you hit a snag. Even they’d be forced to admit Hutson did more to help the Canadiens get into the playoffs than Wolf did the Flames, simply because they fell short in the end. Take away Hutson and the Canadiens are nowhere near the second Eastern Conference wild-card spot in which they finished.

In contrast, Celebrini’s Sharks ranked last in the league. Now, he (70) may have played fewer games than Hutson (82), which might earn him some goodwill. However, logically, anyone who willfully votes against a defenseman who outscored all other rookies while a) earning the trust of a coaching staff to the point of becoming a pillar on his team’s back-end and b) tying a record that goes back multiple generations? Well, those so-called journalists would be pursuing an extremely biased agenda.

Add it all up, and this vote shouldn’t even be close, putting Hutson in prime position to become the first Canadiens rookie to win the Calder since goalie Ken Dryden in 1972. Other Canadiens have come close since, Cole Caufield being the most recent of the bunch in 2022. However, Caufield was only close in the sense he had been an odds-on favourite before the season started. He only scored one goal and eight points in his first 30 games under then-head coach Dominique Ducharme. Once Martin St. Louis came on as his replacement, Caufield turned it on with 22 markers and 35 points in his last 37 games.

The First Calder-Winning Defenseman Since Seider?

Coincidentally, Moritz Seider of the Detroit Red Wings became the last defenseman to win the Calder that season, scoring 50 points. Had Caufield been as productive over the entire season he at the very least would have been able to give Seider, who won in a landslide vote over forwards Michael Bunting, then of the Toronto Maple Leafs, and Trevor Zegras (Anaheim Ducks), a run for his money.

Regardless, for this piece’s purposes, it’s better things worked out the way they did. After all, that specific race is similar to the situation voters face currently. Bunting, who just barely missed the 26-year cut-off for the award to start the season, finished in third (despite leading all rookies in scoring with 63 points). That speaks to the mindset of voters, with Zegras (61) finishing second in both races.

Writers don’t necessarily favour defensemen. They do like underdogs, though. While Celebrini emerging as his team’s leading scorer at Age 18 is certainly a point in his favour, he should simply be no match for a 5-foot-9 (162 pounds) Hutson, who’s been an underdog his entire athletic career. We’re talking about a defenseman who could justifiably have spent the season in the minors because of a lack of space on the roster, whereas Celebrini didn’t realistically face the same issue. Hutson was just too good to keep down, though.

He’s also just too good to look past for the Calder. It’s not even a race per se, to the point no one else should even enter the conversation, unless you’re already looking ahead to next season, assessing the chances of Ivan Demidov capturing the team’s second Calder in a row. Knock on wood there, if you’re the superstitious type. Don’t bother with specific regard to Hutson. Bank on the curse ending instead.