NHL reveals Vezina Trophy finalists after historic goalie performances
NHL reveals Vezina Trophy finalists after historic goalie performances (Image Source: Getty Images)
The NHL announced Monday its finalists for the Vezina Trophy, the league's highest honor for goaltender. Three players this season are on the ballot, including Winnipeg Jets'
Connor Hellebuyck
, Los Angeles Kings'
Darcy Kuemper
and Tampa Bay Lightning's
Andrei Vasilevskiy
.
Vezina Trophy race heats up with Hellebuyck Kuemper Vasilevskiy in spotlight
Connor Hellebuyck has been phenomenal this season and is the odds-on favourite to win the Vezina Trophy for the second year in a row. This would be his third Vezina Trophy and second straight. Connor Hellebuyck has paced the league in almost every significant goaltending category.
He paced with 47 wins, the most shutouts with eight and saved 49.48 more goals than he was projected to, which is an astonishing number. His .925 save percentage is the best among the goaltenders who played in 35 games or more.
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This is Connor Hellebuyck's fifth Vezina nomination, and if he gets it again, he'll join some of the all-time greats. Only Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy, and Dominik Hasek have had three since 1982, when the rules were changed.
Along with the Vezina nomination, Connor Hellebuyck won the William M. Jennings Trophy for consecutive years. That award goes to the goalie on the team that has allowed the fewest goals, and the Jets only allowed 190 this year.
This was 13 fewer than their closest competitors. Connor Hellebuyck is the first goalie in NHL history to have won the Jennings Trophy alone for consecutive years.
Darcy Kuemper and Andrei Vasilevskiy's impeccable campaigns
Darcy Kuemper had an exemplary campaign with the Los Angeles Kings. The 34-year-old goaltender closed out the campaign with a record of 31-11-7, along with a.922 save percentage. He also contributed to helping the Kings come second in the Pacific Division. Darcy Kuemper impressed particularly by having the top-ranked high-danger save percentage,.863 in the league. He also reached his career best five shutouts this season.
Andrei Vasilevskiy, the Tampa Bay Lightning's All-Star goalie, also bounced back this season from a poor 2023-24. Andrei Vasilevskiy was 38-20-5 with a.921 save percentage and 28.84 GSAx. He started slowly but finished strong with the NHL-leading save percentage since Dec. 1. That was a textbook welcome back for Andrei Vasilevskiy, who had to contend with a back problem in his previous season.
Also Read:
Connor Hellebuyck Is The 7th Goalie In NHL History To Win 45 Games In A Single Season
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