LAS VEGAS — Carey Price came away from the NHL Awards show with a hat trick. ADVERTISING LAS VEGAS — Carey Price came away from the NHL Awards show with a hat trick. The Montreal Canadiens’ record-setting goalie claimed the
LAS VEGAS — Carey Price came away from the NHL Awards show with a hat trick.
The Montreal Canadiens’ record-setting goalie claimed the Hart Trophy, the Vezina Trophy and the Ted Lindsay Award at the NHL’s annual postseason bash Wednesday night.
Price also shared the already-announced Jennings Trophy with Chicago goalie Corey Crawford, but his hefty haul of hardware capped one of the greatest regular seasons for a goalie in NHL history.
“I’m just grateful,” Price said. “I’m immeasurably blessed to do what I do.”
Price led the league with 44 victories, a 1.96 goals-against average and a .933 save percentage, becoming the first goalie to take all three top spots since Chicago’s Ed Belfour in 1991. The butterfly-style star from rural British Columbia led the Canadiens to the Atlantic Division title and the league’s second-best record before falling in the second round of the playoffs to Tampa Bay.
Less than 16 months after he backstopped Canada to an Olympic gold medal in Sochi, Price became the first goalie to win the Hart Trophy since Colorado’s Jose Theodore in 2002.
Washington captain Alex Ovechkin, a three-time league MVP, and New York Islanders captain John Tavares also were nominated for the Hart, which went to Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby last season.
But Price made history with the NHL’s most storied franchise. He broke the Montreal record for single-season victories set by Jacques Plante, who won 42 games in 1956 and 1962, and matched by Ken Dryden in 1976. Price’s save percentage was the third best in a season since 1977, and he was second in the league with nine shutouts.
“I’ve got to really thank the organization for not giving up on me,” said Price, who endured three rocky seasons early in his career before finding his NHL groove in 2012. “They saw I had the personality to get through it. It’s just unbelievable, the reception that I get in Montreal.”
Price dominated the festivities as the NHL’s top players and executives gathered at the MGM Grand Garden Arena for hockey’s postseason ritual, accepting trophies and participating in comedic moments of varying awkwardness alongside host Rob Riggle.
Boston’s Patrice Bergeron won the Selke Trophy as the top defensive forward for the third time in four years, while Ottawa’s Erik Karlsson won the Norris Trophy as the top defenseman for the second time in four years.
Bob Hartley of the Calgary Flames won the Jack Adams Award as the top coach, while Tampa Bay’s Steve Yzerman was chosen general manager of the year. Both won their awards for the first time.
Florida’s Aaron Ekblad edged Ottawa’s Mark Stone and Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau for the Calder Trophy, becoming the youngest defenseman to win the award since Bobby Orr in 1967. A shoeless Jiri Hudler won the Lady Byng Trophy as the NHL’s most sportsmanlike player after the Calgary forward committed just 14 minutes in penalties during his 76-point season.
