The Puck Stops Here

For the first time ever, the Bill Masterton Trophy has had three nominees announced in advance of the awards presentation. The nominees are Jason Blake of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Chris Chelios of the Detroit Red Wings and Fernando Pisani of the Edmonton Oilers. This is a positive change to the convoluted Masterton Trophy selection process which should become normalized to be done with a single end of the year ballot like the other NHL awards.

They failed to nominate my choice Owen Nolan of the Calgary Flames a player who most considered retired when he missed two years rehabbing injuries before returning and making a positive contribution to his teams. That is a show of perseverance and dedication to hockey that has been lost by the media. That means that the person I picked to win four of the eight awards I picked nominees for was not even nominated. Am I out of touch with reality or are the NHL award voters?

I think that of the nominees Fernando Pisani probably should win. His recovery from ulcerative colitis to rejoin the Oilers this season is the kind of story that usually wins this award. Nevertheless, he missed half a season and Nolan missed two of them. That would show Nolan overcame a bigger hardship.

I think it's good that the Masterton Trophy is announcing nominees. Now let's hope they move the voting to a single ballot at the end of the season.