Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki won the Frank J. Selke Trophy last season, but does the THN team think he can win it again?
As we approach the start of the season, The Hockey News polled 39 writers and contributors on various topics, including who will win each major award. Of the 39 voters, 11 picked Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki as the winner, which puts him in second place. 16 voters believe that Florida Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov will claim the Trophy next season; it would be the fourth win of his career. He won two in a row in 2024 and 2025 before missing last season because of a knee injury.
While it wouldn’t be surprising if Barkov reclaimed the Trophy, it’s worth noting that it's been seven seasons since he played a full year of hockey. The last time he played 82 games was back in 2018-19. When he won in 2024, he played 73 games; in 2025, he played only 67. Can he stand out enough if he doesn’t play a full season?
The Canadiens’ captain now has his foot in the door in that conversation, and he's gained a lot of recognition around the league after making Team Canada and earning high praise from coach Jon Cooper. So far in his seven seasons in the league, Suzuki has not missed a single game in the last six seasons (including one 56-game season because of COVID), and in his first year, he wasn’t dressed for every game.
Whichever way you look at it, the Habs’ captain is likely to have plenty of opportunities to show why he deserves to win the Selke, although the fact that he doesn’t play on the penalty kill that much may hurt him, especially if Barkov can remain healthy.
New Jersey Devils center Nico Hischier (six votes) and Carolina Hurricanes pivot Sebastien Aho (three votes) are the only other players to receive more than one vote in the poll. Of course, anything can happen, and a dark horse could always emerge, but for the THN team, this promises to be a two-horse race between Suzuki and Barkov.
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