Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has been awarded the 2022 Frank J. Selke Trophy.
The results are in, and Boston Bruins center Patrice Bergeron has been awarded the Frank J. Selke Trophy as the forward who "demonstrates the most skill in the defensive component of the game", as voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers Association.
This is the fifth Selke win of Bergeron's extensive career, with the Bruins' captain finishing in the top-three in voting on six other occasions, and in the top-five a whopping eight times.
With yet another piece of hardware on his mantle, it's reasonable to now wonder if Bergeron is the greatest defensive forward of his era, someone capable of putting up significant offensive numbers while also maintaining his status as an elite defensive force.
That Bergeron won the Selke yet again this season at the age of 37 while racking up 25 goals and 65 points, his highest total since the 2018-19 season, is simply mind-blowing. Bergeron continually reaches new levels when it comes to his defensive prowess and is clearly the beating heart of the Bruins' established core.
Behind Bergeron, Calgary's Elias Lindholm finished second in the overall award voting in his first season as a finalist, followed up by last year's winner Aleksander Barkov in third, St. Louis' Ryan O'Reilly in fourth, and Tampa Bay's Anthony Cirelli in fifth.
With Bergeron reportedly contemplating retirement this offseason, the hockey world could very well have seen the last of one of the greatest two-way forwards in history. But, clearly, he'd be walking away on his own terms.