NHL Unveils 2022-23 Vezina Trophy Finalists

Boston's Linus Ullmark, New York's Ilya Sorokin, and Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck were named finalists for the 2022-23 Vezina Trophy.

Awards season in the NHL continues to roll along. 

The NHL unveiled its latest trio of award finalists on Thursday evening, announcing that Boston's Linus Ullmark, New York's Ilya Sorokin, and Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck were named finalists for the Vezina Trophy, awarded annually to the league's most outstanding goaltender. 

This marks Ullmark's first Vezina nod of his eight-year career. The 29-year-old put up numbers most thought impossible from a netminder in the Modern Era with an incredible 40-6-1 record with two shutouts and an eye-popping .938 save percentage. As a result, Ullmark ended up leading all NHL goaltenders in wins, goals-against average (1.89) and save percentage while also placing first in adjusted goals-against average, goals-saved above average and goals-against percentage. 

Sorokin, however, has a pretty compelling case of his own. The 27-year-old put up dazzling numbers on a far worse team than his prior counterpart, finishing with a 31-22-7 record with a league-leading six shutouts and a .924 save percentage. Surrounded by far less talent on an Islanders club that barely scraped into the playoffs, Sorokin managed to keep the team afloat during some rocky stretches throughout the year. 

And then there's Hellebuyck, a near-annual member of this club who is now receiving his third top-three finish and gunning for his second win. Hellebuyck's workload was once again monstrous in 2022-23, with the 29-year-old starting a league-high 64 games en route to a 37-25-2 record with four shutouts and a .920 save percentage. Given the rocky end to Winnipeg's season, one can only wonder where the Jets would have ended up were it not for the steadiness of Hellebuyck in their crease. 

Regardless of who takes home the hardware this year, each finalist is undoubtedly worthy of recognition. 

The final NHL Awards finalists announcement takes place Friday with the three contenders for the Hart Trophy as league MVP.