Handing Out the 2023-24 Mid-Season NHL Awards to the Maple Leafs

With the Toronto Maple Leafs hitting past the midway point of the 2023-24 season, we at THN Toronto make our picks for early Leafs candidates to take home some hardware.

Auston Matthews won his first Hart Trophy for NHL MVP in 2021-22 after becoming the first player in 10 years to score 60 goals. He's on pace for over 70 this season? Is he a shoe-in if he hits 70?

The 2023-24 NHL season is taking a brief pause for the NHL All-Star Weekend. So we at THN.com/Toronto have decided that now is a great time to try and pick out who we think would be the best Maple Leafs mid-season nominee for any of the league's regular season individual awards.

It may not surprise you that Auston Matthews is really good and the Toronto Maple Leafs star is featured prominently here. But there are some tough calls in some other categories.

Let's dive in

ART ROSS: William Nylander, 61 points in 47 games
William Nylander got off to a really hot start this season. He set a franchise record by recording at least a point in his first 17 games to start a season. He was the hero in his home country of Sweden for a pair of regular season games in November and he earned himself a whopping eight-year, $92 million contract extension. Impressive that he is pulling this off on a team that also has Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. At this pace, he should finish the year with 106 points.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOCU-UQug5w[/embed]

ROCKET RICHARD: Auston Matthews, 40 goals in 46 games
Last season, Auston Matthews scored 45 goals and it was considered a down year. This season he leads the NHL in goals with 40 in his first 46 games and is on pace to become the first NHL player since 1992-93 to score 70 in one season. No matter what happens, Matthews will be hard to beat for the award he's won before.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm2cW25WkEc[/embed]

HART TROPHY: Auston Matthews
There is a legitimate argument to be made here whether Auston Matthews or William Nylander deserves this award. But given the way Matthews has played recently and how Nylander's production has tailed off, the edge goes to the 2022 Hart Trophy Winner. Also, if Matthews can win the Hart becoming the first player in 10 years to score 60 goals, scoring 70 should make this an automatic win.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJryQ4tGOu8[/embed]

NORRIS TROPHY: Morgan Rielly

The Leafs defenceman is not putting up Quinn Hughes-type numbers — and probably won't get much love in overall Norris voting — but he's the best that Toronto has. Rielly's 40 points are the fourth-most on the team and he was rewarded for his consistent play with his first-ever NHL All-Star appearance,

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NITN0yxg9L8[/embed]

VEZINA TROPHY: Joseph Woll
It's hard to give the top goaltending award to a goaltender who is currently hurt, but due to his injury, Ilya Samsonov's struggles and Martin Jones' time in the net, all three have played a relatively equal amount of games for Toronto. While Jones helped the Leafs out of a jam with Woll out, it's Woll's strong play when Samsonov struggled to start the season that stopped the Leafs from imploding early on.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iS0HRS0b7y4[/embed]

SELKE TROPHY: Auston Matthews
Is this the year that Matthews finally gets some Selke Trophy love? We think it should be. For one, he is among the league leaders in takeaways and blocked shots. And two, his plus-minus rating is the best on the Leafs.

Matthews got some votes for the Selke even though it was his teammate, Mitch Marner, being named a finalist for the award.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsxVGUYPtQs[/embed]

CALDER TROPHY: Matthew Knies
The Leafs rookie got a taste of the NHL during last year's playoffs. And while Knies hasn't been among the league leaders in points, he has established himself as a top-six winger on a team that has no shortage of star forwards.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLlZn391CPU[/embed]

MASTERTON: Martin Jones
After spending last year with the Kraken, where he had an .870 save percentage, not much was expected of Jones. Especially after he began the season in the minors. But the 2016 Stanley Cup finalist has made the most of his opportunity and proved he can still be a No. 1 goalie — in a pinch.

LADY BYNG: Auston Matthews

If Matthews' 40 goals and 58 points weren't impressive enough, the No. 1 centre has only taken two minor penalties this year.