Find out the winners of these three prestigious awards, and what won them the award over the course of the season.
Maurice Richard Trophy:
David Pastrnak & Alex Ovechkin - 48 goals
David Pastrnak and Alex Ovechkin were duking it out for the goals lead from the very start of the season. Auston Matthews started to catch them before the season postponement, but it was really all "Pasta" and "Ovi". They finished the year each with 48 goals. That would translate to a little over 56 goals had the season fully completed.
For Pastrnak, this is his first Rocket Richard Trophy, and first individual trophy of any kind for that matter in the NHL. This is Pastrnak's sixth season in the NHL, although he is still just 24 years old. Every year he has improved his goals total (10, 15, 34, 35, 38, 48). He has also improved his point total in each of the past five seasons (26, 70, 80, 81, 95). The 2016-17 season was really his breakout year, as he scored 34 goals and 70 points.
Since then, he has proven to be one of the game's best goal scorers. Over the past three seasons, Pastrnak is second to only Ovechkin with 121 total goals. This year though he has took a huge step forward as he scored forty goals for the first time in his career, and was on pace to blow by the fifty mark.
With the tie with Pastrnak, Ovechkin takes home his ninth Maurice Richard Trophy. He has led the league in goals a record nine times, two more than Bobby Hull in second place. Many are wondering how the season cutting short could impact Ovechkin's quest to pass Wayne Gretzky for the all time goals record. Remember though that Ovechkin is still just in eighth place all time in goals. A few more seasons will most likely put him in the top three, but he is still a very long way off.
He is currently 188 goals away from Gretzky. I'm not saying it's impossible that he reaches Gretzky, but it is very unlikely. At 34 years old, he is going to start declining very soon. Even Gretzky had a very sharp decrease in points, but especially goals in his thirties.
Art Ross Trophy:
Leon Draisaitl - 110 points
Leon Draisaitl won the Art Ross trophy as the leading point scorer in the NHL this season. His 110 points (43 goals, 67 assists) were far and away the most in the NHL. In second place was his teammate Connor McDavid, who finished the year with 97 points in just 64 games. It's the first time since 2012-13, when Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos did so, that two teammates have finished first and second in the league in scoring.
Draisaitl emerged last season as a true NHL star with 105 points, but was a whole new monster this year. He took an early lead in points this season, and simply never relinquished his spot. In fact, his lead just kept growing and growing.
With so many more points than anyone else, Draisaitl is the likely winner of the Hart Trophy for NHL MVP.
William M. Jennings Trophy:
Tuukka Rask & Jaroslav Halak - 174 GA
Tuukka Rask and Jaroslav Halak will share the William M. Jennings Trophy for the 2019-20 season, after allowing just 174 goals against in 71 games. This is the thirs time in franchise history that a Bruins tandem has won the award.
There really shouldn't be much argument: This duo is clearly the best in the league. Tuukka Rask finished the season first in the league with a 2.12 goals against average. He also finished .01 points out of first in save percentage at .929, and one shutout away from first with a total of five. Connor Hellebuyck might be the most valuable goalie to his team, but no doubt Rask is the very best in the league.
Halak honestly is not that far behind Rask. He played just ten less games than Rask, one of the reasons the Bruins were so successful. Boston head coach Bruce Cassidy knew that he could play either goalie against any team, keeping both of his netminders healthy and fresh.
Halak finished tenth in the league in save percentage, and fourth in goals against average for goalies playing at least thirty games. Those are pretty astounding rankings for a backup. He could easily be a starter on most teams.