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Puck Daddy’s NHL 2013-14 NHL Award Picks: Calder, Adams, Selke

The regular season is done, the playoffs are nearing. While we’re in this brief respite before the Stanley Cup madness, let’s hand out some NHL Awards, shall we?

Here are our votes for the Calder Trophy (rookie of the year), Jack Adams Award (coach of the year) and Selke Trophy (best defensive forward).

Voting on these awards: Puck Daddy’s Greg Wyshynski, Sean Leahy, Harrison Mooney, Jen Neale, Dmitry Chesnokov, Ryan Lambert and Daryl “Dobber” Dobbs; Yahoo Sports NHL writer Nick Cotsonika; and Yahoo Sports NHL editor Sam McCaig.

Enjoy!

CALDER TROPHY

Wyshynski

Leahy

Mooney

Neale

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

2. Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay Lightning

2. Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay Lightning

2. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

2. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Hampus Lindholm, Anaheim Ducks

3. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Jacob Trouba, Winnipeg Jets

3. Frederik Andersen, Anaheim Ducks

Chesnokov

Lambert

Dobber

Cotsonika

McCaig

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

1. Nathan MacKinnon, Colorado Avalanche

2. Torey Krug, Boston Bruins

2. Olli Maata, Pittsburgh Penguins

2. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

2. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

2. Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Jacob Trouba, Winnipeg Jets

3. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Jacob Trouba, Winnipeg Jets

3. Tyler Johnson, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Ondrej Palat, Tampa Bay Lightning

Wyshynski: Unless you’ve got a defenseman or goaltender that has an exceptional season, the Calder goes to the rookie that led the league in points or goals. MacKinnon did both. I considered Trouba, but Lindholm gets my vote because someone needs to hug defensive defensemen.

Leahy: McKinnon lived up to his No. 1 overall status with a fine rookie season, one in which he eclipsed Wayne Gretzky's point streak record for an 18-year old. He tied Johnson with most goals among rookies with 24 and led them all in points with 63, 17 of which came via the power play. He also finished fourth in scoring on the Colorado Avalanche.

Mooney: Poor Tomas Hertl. It looked like this was his award until he went down with that knee injury.Instead, it should go to MacKinnon, who stepped into the Avalanche lineup and immediately looked like a game-changer, with 63 points in his debut campaign. Palat is Tampa's standout rookie, and Trouba's work in Winnipeg needs to be recognized: 29 points, over 20 minutes a night -- he looks to be their blueliner of the future.

Neale: Goals! MacKinnon is the youngest player on the Avs, wasn't expected to make the team out of camp, broke a Gretzky record, blah blah blah. Ondrej Palat (23-36-59) wasn't on our radar the first time we did these awards. He's only four points behind Nate MacKinnon (24-39-63) in rookie scoring, and is a plus-32 to MacKinnon's plus-20. Frederik Andersen stole the net from a guy who had a 14-game win-streak earlier in the season. He's 20-5-0 with a .923 SV% and 2.29 GAA, and started his season 6-0-0. He should be the guy in net for the playoffs. Should.

Chesnokov: With all due respect to the other nominees, this is probably the least difficult to pick. The goals the points, the overall play and contribution make MacKinnon the easy winner.

Lambert: Clear winner here for MacKinnon, who didn't have the easiest of situations in terms of quality of competition or zone starts, and he still blew the rest of the field away in terms of production. Yes he played with better linemates, but he very clearly belonged in this league.

Cotsonika: Yeah, I’m going with the first overall pick in the draft, who tied for the rookie lead in goals (24) and led rookies in points (63). The kid is only 18 years old, and his speed and skill were unreal. But it wasn’t easy. The two rookies from Tampa Bay were right behind in scoring and impact, and there were some impressive rookie defensemen, too, from Torey Krug to Hampus Lindholm to Olli Maatta.

Dobber: MacKinnon led all rookies in points, Palat led all rookies in plus/minus and Trouba led all freshmen in average ice time. Full credit to Palat who came on strong and made this one close after MacKinnon was walking away with it.

McCaig: Tomas Hertl was making a solid case before a knee injury at midseason. But even if the Sharks rookie had stayed healthy, MacKinnon elevated his game in the second half of the season and proved his worth as a No. 1 overall draft pick last summer. The Avs kid has an arsenal of offensive skills and opposing goalies should be quaking in their skates when they think about where he’ll be in four or five years. The Lightning’s duo of Palat and Johnson picked up the scoring slack when Steven Stamkos went down with injury, becoming NHL’s first rookie teammates to score 20-plus goals since 2007.

JACK ADAMS AWARD

Wyshynski

Leahy

Mooney

Neale

1. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

1. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

1. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

1. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

2. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

2. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

2. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

2. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

3. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Craig Berube, Philadelphia Flyers

Chesnokov

Lambert

Dobber

Cotsonika

McCaig

1. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

1. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning

1. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

1. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

1. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

2. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

2. Claude Julien, Boston Bruins

2. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

2. Patrick Roy, Colorado Avalanche

2. Mike Babcock, Detroit Red Wings

3. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Alain Vigneault, NY Rangers

3. Bruce Boudreau, Anaheim Ducks

3. Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning

3. Dan Bylsma, Pittsburgh Penguins

Wyshynski: Why not Roy? Because the adversity Babcock coached the Griffins, er, the Red Wings through this season was remarkable. They made the playoffs, to keep that historic streak alive, with a stretch run that didn’t feature Pavel Datsyuk nor Henrik Zetterberg playing a game in March. Roy’s achievement is remarkable. Ditto Cooper. Babcock’s was better.

Leahy: You could easily give the award to any of these three coaches. Babcock and Cooper each had their rosters wrecked with injuries and had to lean on youngsters to help carry the load for both into the playoffs. For Roy, he helped transform a team that finished 29th in the NHL last season to third overall and a division title this year. A number of Avs players posted career seasons, including Varlamov, who's improvement is one of the main reasons Colorado finished where they did.

Mooney: Give Mike Babcock his damn award already. He's so good at his job. He's the best at it. This year made that clearer than ever, as he steered the Red Wings to yet another playoff appearance despite injuries that would have made the end of that historic streak completely forgivable. Roy and Cooper are both deserving nominees, but it's Babcock's year.

Neale: Would you feel comfortable losing when your coach is willing to beat up another coach 11 years his senior?! Roy took extremely low expectations and turned them into the Central Division champs. Sure St. Louis sliding at the end of the season helped but it doesn't erase the improbable start the Avs had. I get the 'Babcock should win for coaching a bunch of call-ups for his injured team to a playoff spot' argument, but if you've built a good farm system, shouldn't this be expected? The Griffins won the Calder Cup last year. They were going to make their way to Detroit at some point. It just happened to be all at the same time without many vets to guide them. Berube polished a turd and made it into a serious contender.

Chesnokov: The fact that the Red Wings are even in the playoffs after a staggering number of games they had to be without their leaders is all Mike Babcock. But Roy turned one of the worst teams in the NHL last season into a postseason team many will fear has to get him this honor.

Lambert: Summarized here. Patrick Roy's luck doesn't merit any consideration at all.

Cotsonika: Roy brought an upbeat atmosphere to the dressing room and an up-tempo style to the ice, and he took the Avs from worst to second-best in the West. Cooper survived the injury to Steven Stamkos and the trade of Martin St. Louis, and the Lightning finished second in the Atlantic. But both had the benefit of outstanding goaltending, and Paul MacLean can tell you how that can make you look smart — and then look dumb when it disappears. Babcock, the best coach in the game, stretched the Wings’ playoff streak to 23 seasons even though he had to rely heavily on kids and call-ups, thanks to injuries to his best players, including Pavel Datsyuk and Henrik Zetterberg.

Dobber: The debate over Roy vs. Babcock to many is a close one, but not to me. Roy took a terrible Avalanche team and with the only differences being a hotshot rookie and a healthy goalie, he made them the third best team in the league? Sure, Babcock spearheaded Detroit into the playoffs with their two superstars out of the lineup, but could he do that with a normal farm system? I mean...when those guys got hurt, he just turned to Gustav Nyquist.

McCaig: Was there ever any doubt? Patrick Roy, one of the greatest goalies in history, returns to the NHL as a rookie coach and promptly leads his club on a season-opening six-game winning streak. Colorado barely slowed down after that, grabbing the No. 2 seed in the highly competitive West under the ever-watchful eye of their highly competitive coach. Mike Babcock deserves a free car (at least) for guiding injury-decimated Detroit into the playoffs for a 23rd consecutive season, while Dan Bylsma did a great job with Sidney Crosby and a patchwork lineup (due to injuries).

SELKE TROPHY

Wyshynski

Leahy

Mooney

Neale

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

3. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

3. Vladimir Sobotka, St. Louis Blues

3. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

3. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

Chesnokov

Lambert

Dobber

Cotsonika

McCaig

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

1. Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

3. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

2. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

3. Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings

3. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

3. Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

3. David Backes, St. Louis Blues

3. Jonathan Toews, Chicago Blackhawks

Wyshynski: Use any metric, use any measure. Use your eyes or ears to sense of smell as his lumber catches fire getting the puck on faceoffs that quickly. Bergeron owns the Selke this season, and could be on a Lidstrom level run with the award.

Leahy: Tough minutes. Defensive zone responsibilities (45.7 percent D-zone starts). A wizard in the face-off circle (58.6 percent). Oh, and 30 goals for the first time since 2005-06. That's a pretty damn fine Selke resume.

Mooney: Bergeron is Zdeno Chara: forward edition. His defensive work is incredible. I know we're not supposed to talk about plus/minus, but don't you think there's something to the fact that Bergeron's been at the top of the category for three years? He simply wins his matchups. He may not score ALL the points, but in a one-on-one with any player in the league, he's bound to come out on top, and he does it with defense and timely scoring. He's what the Selke's all about. Behind him, Toews is too, and Anze Kopitar's quiet emergence as a Selke player needs to be recognized.

Neale: Kopitar deserves this award, and has deserved it for years. He is a nightmare to play against. He will ALWAYS make a team pay on turnovers, half of which he forces. I hate him, but I respect him so damn much. Patrice Bergeron or Jonathan Toews will probably win it.

Chesnokov: Bergeron must be from a Back to the Future movie – an “old days” type player, whose defensive abilities as a forward have been associating him for this award for a number of years.

Lambert: As outlined above, Bergeron was the second-best player in the league this year. And because he only had 62 points, that says a whole hell of a lot about what he does on the defensive side of things. He is amazing. The Nicklas Lidstrom of forwards.

Dobber: Bergeron won 58.6% of his faceoffs and he led the league in faceoff wins with 1015. He also averaged two minutes per game killing penalties and was second in the NHL with a plus-38 rating. His 23.99 on-ice Corsi was behind only Kopitar and Justin Williams. Honorable mentions to Sean Couturier, who led all forwards in short-handed ice time, and Antoine Vermette.

Cotsonika: Bergeron takes on tough assignments, wins face-offs, kills penalties, you name it, and he had a 5-on-5 Corsi of 61.2, best in the NHL. Even though he plays on a structured team with guys like Zdeno Chara and Tuukka Rask, he is a main reason why the Bruins ranked second in goals-against (2.08). Not that it matters in this context, but he scored 30 goals, too.

McCaig: Bergeron, Kopitar and Toews…the best two-way players in the world? Sure looks like it. Give Bergeron the edge this season, he’s put on a show all year but especially after the Olympics.