The NHL recently announced Erik Karlsson, Brent Burns, and Victor Hedman are this year’s three finalists for the Norris Trophy.
Below I will look at the case each player has for the award before sharing my winner.
Erik Karlsson – Ottawa Senators
Karlsson quietly put together another excellent season. While playing in Guy Boucher’s very structured, defensive system Karlsson still managed to record 71 points in 77 games. He finished with .92 points per game, which was just .01 behind Burns for tops in the league, despite starting 4.3% fewer of his 5v5 shifts in the offensive zone and playing for a lower-event team.
Karlsson was also asked to play almost 27 minutes per game, which is crazy to sustain over a full season.
Given the circumstances, I don’t think Karlsson is getting enough credit for how good he was.
Brent Burns – San Jose Sharks
What Burns did this season was nothing short of spectacular.
He led all defenseman in goals (29), points (76), shots on goal (320) and was a more efficient offensive player than anyone.
Burns averaged 1.82 points per 60 and 21.47 shot attempts per 60 at 5v5, both of which were tops in the league. For comparison, Karlsson averaged 1.45 points and 13.48 shot attempts while Hedman averaged 1.18 points and 11.49 shot attempts per 60.
It’s also worth noting Burns’ 76 points is the fourth-highest point total we’ve since from a defenseman since the lockout.
Two of the three times a defenseman scored more than Burns did this year it resulted in a Norris Trophy (Nicklas Lidstrom in 2005-06, Erik Karlsson in 2011-12) and the lone exception (Karlsson’s 82-point campaign in 2015-16) shouldn’t have been an exception.
Victor Hedman – Tampa Bay Lightning
The Lightning were absolutely decimated by injuries this season and they still only missed the playoffs by one point. The play of Hedman was arguably the biggest reason for that.
Hedman logged 24:30 of ice on a nightly basis and finished 1st among defensemen in assists (56), 2nd in points (72), 3rd in points per game (but .02 behind Burns with .91) and was the best power play quarterback in the league.
Hedman tallied 30 points during 5v4 play, six better than the closest player to him (Kevin Shattenkirk), and averaged an absurd 7.89 points per 60 while up a man. For perspective of how efficient he was, no other defenseman in the league cleared even 6.00 points per 60.
The Verdict
I have to go with Karlsson. He logged an insane amount of minutes and still put up more than 70 points despite playing for a defensive-minded coach and, for my money, having the worst supporting cast of the three.
Written by Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell)
