Canadiens: One Month, In Hutson Is In The Calder Conversation

Yesterday on X, hockey blogger Marc-Olivier Beaudoin asked his followers who they thought, based on the first month of activity, would deserve to win the Calder Trophy. He puts three players in the conversation: Dallas Stars' Logan Stankoven, Philadelphia Flyers' Matvei Michkov, and Montreal Canadiens' Lane Hutson.

Beaudoin also provides the stats for the three players and the average time they spend on the ice.

Stankoven: 13 points in 14 games and spends an average of 15:42 on the ice

Michkov: 12 points in 14 games and spends an average of 17:42 on the ice

Hutson: 10 points in 16 games and spends an average of 23:24 on the ice

One of his followers asked him how many of each player's points came on the power play. Interestingly, only three of Stankoven's points came on the man-advantage (23%), eight of Michkov's tally were picked up on the power play (67%), and four of Hutson's points came under the same circumstances (40%).

Only five defensemen have won the Calder Trophy as the NHL's best rookies since 2000: Barrett Jackman (19 points in 82 games), Tyler Myers (48 points in 82 games), Aaron Ekblad (39 points in 81 games), Cale Makar (50 points in 57 games), and Moritz Seider (50 points in 82 games).

Unsurprisingly, as the game has evolved toward more offensive systems and includes more offensive defensemen, voters seem to be looking first and foremost for offensive production when choosing defensemen for the Rookie of the Year title.

Related: When Hutson Dances...

Last year, Connor Bedard was the winner, and the two runner-ups were defensemen Luke Hughes and Brock Faber, who had both gathered 47 points in 82 games. It is an impressive production, but not impressive enough to overtake the new face of the NHL, apparently.

Should Lane Hutson keep producing as he has so far this season, and providing he plays all the games, he would reach 51 points, one point over the total of the last two blueliners who won the Calder.

What's even more impressive, though, is the way Hutson controls the puck and hangs on to it. As a rookie, he has the confidence to take it and guide his team's offense, which is remarkable. His numbers are right up there with those of Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes, which is quite an achievement.

Interestingly, 40% of his points came on the power play, but he's not even on the first man-advantage unit. As things stand, he has exactly the same number of points as teammate Mike Matheson, who had been pointless in his last five games before he got an assist in the offensive festival, which was the game against the Sabres. It's not out of the realm of possibility that he could take over the first power play unit, and if that happens, he could put up even more points.

While Michkov is very talented, I don't believe he could win the Calder. He's already been in John Tortorella's doghouse once this season, and it would be amazing if he didn't get a couple more stays there before the end of the season. Furthermore, with 67% of his points coming from the man advantage, his fate will depend greatly on how much time he'll get on the power play. He won't have much time if he falls out of favour with his coach.

Stankoven has the advantage of playing on a team that is actually winning (the Stars are currently 13th in the league) and doesn't have to rely on him all that much. He plays on the third line with not that much actual pressure and gets a spot on the top power-play unit.

Related: Canadiens: Hutson Has the Inside Lane

While this is not the Hart Trophy, I still think the concept of how useful a player is to his team should come into play and, at this stage, there is no doubt that Hutson is the one who's most valuable to his team, it's obvious when you look at the time on ice for the Canadiens. The young blueliner is only 20 seconds behind Matheson.

In short, as things stand now, I believe Hutson would be the most deserving Calder Trophy winner, but there's still a lot of hockey left to be played. Whatever happens, though, win or lose, Hutson will remain one of the bright spots for the Canadiens this season and one of the main reasons to buy a ticket for a Habs game.

Follow Karine on X @KarineHains Bluesky @karinehains.bsky.social and Threads @karinehains

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