Comments / New

2016 NHL Awards: Dallas Stars Players, Staff Up For Four Major Awards Tonight

The final even of the 2015-16 NHL season, for all intents and purposes, takes place tonight as the top players gather in Las Vegas for the annual NHL Awards show.

Jamie Benn is up for two awards, likely to be among the last of the evening presented. He is a finalist for the Ted Lindsay award, the NHLPA’s most valuable player, along with Patrick Kane and Braden Holtby, and he is also up for the media-voted Hart Trophy for league MVP with Kane and Sidney Crosby.

You’d think it would come down to Kane and Benn given that they are the cross-award finalists and didn’t slump so hard as to get their coach fired mid-season, but the Crosby attraction, especially from media voters, is very strong as we saw in the Conn Smythe voting.

On the staff end, Jim Nill joins Jim Rutherford of the Penguins and Brian MacLellan of the Capitals as finalists for the GM of the year, and Lindy Ruff is up for the Jack Adams Award for best coach with the Capitals’ Barry Trotz and Panthers‘ Gerard Gallant.

In non-Stars related awards, the most interesting category might be the Calder, where voters may overlook outstanding season-long campaigns from Artemi Panarin and Shayne Gostisbehere to reward 45 regular season games of the uber-talented and next NHL chosen one Connor McDavid.

The All-NHL team and EA Sports cover vote winner will also be announced. Jamie Benn has a great shot at being All-NHL once again while Tyler Seguin has an outside shot after having his regular season cut short by injury.

The show will be aired live on NBCSN starting at 7 p.m. EST, 4 p.m. PST or on Sportsnet for those living north of the border. A pre-show, should you be in the mood for that, is scheduled for NHL Network, and NBCSports.com will also stream the coverage.

Will Arnett hosts the show, which is always full of extremely awkward pauses and jokes as the NHL takes itself way too seriously. Still, it’s worth your time to flip over tonight if only for the Stars’ presence.

Talking Points