Sergei Bobrovsky, Thatcher Demko and Connor Hellebuyck are all finalists for the NHL's Vezina Trophy in 2023-24.
NHL Awards season is here.
The NHL revealed on Monday the finalists for the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the "goaltender adjudged to be the best at his position," as voted on by NHL GMs.
Sergei Bobrovsky of the Florida Panthers, Thatcher Demko of the Vancouver Canucks and Connor Hellebuyck of the Winnipeg Jets are the three finalists for the trophy. Each netminder finished with at least 35 wins on the season and at least five shutouts, playing important roles in their teams making the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Here's more on each finalist. Who should win? Let us know by clicking here.
Sergei Bobrovsky
Bobrovsky posted a 36-17-4 record with a 2.37 goals-against average, .915 save percentage and six shutouts. The 35-year-old had an impressive 14-1-1 run between December and February that brought the Panthers up to first place in the Atlantic Division.
Bobrovsky has won the Vezina Trophy twice before, in 2012-13 and 2016-17 with the Columbus Blue Jackets. It's a solid resurgence for Bobrovsky, who posted his best goals-against average and save percentage in his five seasons with the Panthers.
Thatcher Demko
Demko had a breakout year for the Canucks, finishing the regular season with a 35-14-2 record with a 2.45 goals-against average, .918 save percentage and five shutouts, all of which are career highs. Like Bobrovsky, Demko was also nearly unbeatable between December and February, with an 18-2-1 record.
The 28-year-old had the second-best save percentage for high-danger shots at .845, according to NHL Edge data. And he also had 22 goals saved above expected, according to moneypuck.com, showing how much his performance in net helped Vancouver clinch a division title for the first time since 2012-13. The Canucks were 15-9-7 when Demko didn't play. This is the first time Demko's been a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, and he could walk away as the first goaltender in franchise history to win it.
Connor Hellebuyck
Hellebuyck was instrumental in helping the Jets finish second in the Western Conference. He's already won the William M. Jennings Trophy for playing at least 25 games on the team that allowed the fewest goals against in the regular season.
The 30-year-old improved on last season's stats, when he was also a Vezina Trophy finalist, with a 37-19-4 record, a 2.39 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage this year. He is only the third goaltender in the NHL's Modern Era to post multiple 10-game streaks of allowing two or fewer goals against, doing so twice between Nov. 17 and Dec. 16 and Dec. 22 to Jan. 20.
Hellebuyck led all netminders in goals saved above expected, with 33.1.
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