Zdeno Chara and Shea Weber Robbed of Norris Trophy

It's not easy to take something from someone who is 6' 4" and 234 pounds. It's even harder to take something from someone who is 6' 9" and 255 pounds. But that's what the Professional Hockey Writers' Association did last night to Shea Weber and Zdeno Chara. They stole the Norris Trophy from them and gave it to Erik Karlsson, a 175 pound Swede known more for his offense than his defense.

The Norris Trophy is given to the NHL's top "defense player [defenseman] who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-round ability in the position." Frequently, however, it is given to the defenseman with the most points.

There's no denying Karlsson's offensive prowess. He led all defensemen with 78 points (25 more than 2nd place). He scored 19 goals, which tied with Weber for tops among defensemen. And he had 59 assists, 10 more than any other defenseman.

But if you were starting an NHL team, who would be the first defenseman you'd take? For me, I'd take Chara. Shea Weber would be my second choice. As talented as Karlsson is, I would rather have a defenseman that can play defense first, then contribute on offense. And maybe the 22 year old Karlsson will one day be that all-around player. But not today.

Karlsson was a +16, which isn't bad, but Chara was +33. Weber was +21. And to those who might argue that +/- is a team stat, so are assists. And assists are what gave Karlsson the offensive edge over Weber. They both scored 19 goals.

A good defenseman should be a good penalty-killer. After all, that's the most defensively minded part of the game. Weber averaged 2:16 of shorthanded time per game, and over 176 minutes total. Chara averaged 2:43 per game, and over 214 total. Karlsson averaged 0:33 per game, and totalled about 45 and a half minutes. That's the lowest among Ottawa defensemen. 166 NHL defensemen had more shorthanded ice-time than Karlsson. That's more than 27 teams worth of defensemen.

How does someone who doesn't kill penalties be deemed the best defenseman in the NHL?

Maybe Chara and Weber split the old school vote. Anyone who voted for Chara would probably pick Weber in a head-to-head contest against Karlsson. Weber lost to Karlsson by a slim margin. 1,069 to 1,057.

Maybe Karlsson's nationality helped. Swedes dominated the awards this year. Lundqvist won the Vezina, a Swede was the top rookie, Alfredsson won the King Clancy Trophy.

Maybe the voters wanted first-time winners. Chara was a distant 3rd in the voting, but I think he should have won. He won the Norris in 2009 and these awards seemed to be about new faces. Every other trophy was won by a first-timer.

I think the NHL needs an additional trophy. They need a reverse Selke, which is awarded to the best defensive forward. They need a trophy for the best offensive defenseman. Call it the Orr Trophy. Then guys like Karlsson can get recognition for their offensive contribution without siphoning accolades from all-around defensemen like Shea Weber and Zdeno Chara.

To Chara's credit, he had this to say about Karlsson:

"Well, he's obviously having a great year and very productive. He's got unbelievable skills so I would like to congratulate him."

And also said this about Bergeron winning the Selke:

"Tonight’s about Patrice. I'm happy, I'm extremely happy for him and, honestly, I almost screamed when he won. He deserves it, he's been such a great teammate and friend and I'm extremely happy for him."

Is it too late to nominate Chara for the 2013 Lady Byng?

Photo Credit:
AP Photo

Stanley Cup Preview: Predators vs. Coyotes*

Some NHL people are probably happy about this meeting. Two warm weather cities get to experience a deep run in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. I'm not pleased. While fans in Nashville have taken to their Predators, the fans in Phoenix are only now showing up to fill their rink. There might be a future for hockey in Tennessee. But in Arizona? I hope not.

Anyway, both these teams advanced thanks to their goalies. Mike Smith was a wall for the Coyotes. Pekka Rinne was Pekka Rinne for the Preds. So who is going to be the difference maker on offense that will separate these two teams?

His name is Shea Weber, or Zdeno Jr. as I call him. Big strong defenseman, powerful shot, he scored 19 goals this year. He's excellent on the Power Play and that is where the difference will be made. Nashville's Power Play is a weapon. Phoenix's did well in the first round, but it's not very consistent.

With the goaltending as good as it will be in this series, every little edge counts. The Predators have their Power Play, and they have Shea Weber.

Nashville in 6.

Series schedule:
1: Friday 4/27 - 9:00pm - NSH @ PHX - NBC Sports
2: Sunday 4/29 - 9:00pm - NSH @ PHX - NBC Sports
3: Wednesday 5/2 - 9:00pm - PHX @ NSH - CNBC
4: Friday 5/4 - 7:30pm - PHX @ NSH - NBC Sports
5: Monday 5/7 - 10:00pm - NSH @ PHX - NBC Sports
6: Wednesday 5/9 - tba - PHX @ NSH - tba
7: Friday 5/11 - tba - NSH @ PHX - tba

Stanley Cup Roundup: Day 1*

Thank you NBC/Universal for broadcasting all the games of the Stanley Cup Playoffs on NBC, NBC Sports, CNBC, and NHL Network. This is the greatest sports tournament in the world, and it's nice to be able to watch as much of it as possible.

Flyers 4, Penguins 3 (OT) - Flyers lead series 1-0

This game was decided in the few square feet in front of the net. The Penguins dominated the crease in the 1st period (Chris Pronger's absence was very notable) and went up 3-0. Then the Flyers fought for that real-estate, eventually tying it off a tip in a few feet in front of the net. Then winning it when Jordan Staal let Jacub Voracek sneak in the backdoor. This series was the most hyped, and Game 1 lived up to expectations. And it was just a post and/or an offsides call from going Pittsburgh's way.

Game 2 Friday night.

Predators 3, Red Wings 2 - Predators lead series 1-0

Rinne won this game for Nashville. It wasn't that Howard had a bad game though. Some really freaky bounces allowed Nashville to play with a lead for most of the night. I was actually impressed with how well Detroit played. Howard looked sharp, and they killed all 6 Nashville penalties (including an extended 5-on-3). This series will be pretty good.

Nashville might lose Shea Weber for a game or more. At the end of Game 1, he grabbed Zetterberg's head and bashed it into the glass. This was as the final whistle blew. Every year, the NHL likes to declare that they're clamping down on "message sending" in the playoffs. We'll see if they actually do anything about this message.

Game 2 Friday night.

Kings 4, Canucks 2 - Kings lead series 1-0

Vancouver lives by the Power Play, and last night they died by the Power Play. The Kings scored 2 goals with a man advantage. And despite incessant praise from the announcers, Robert Luongo just wasn't very good. He wasn't bad, but nowhere near as good as his defenders claim he is. The other Canucks were up to their old tricks. Kesler got a penalty for embellishment. Byron Bitz has caught the Canucks' disease and got a 5 minute boarding penalty, and a 10 minute misconduct. The rest of the team generally whined and moaned about only getting 5 Power Plays.

Game 2 Friday night.

Tonight's games:
7:00pm - Senators @ Rangers - Game 1 - NHL Network
7:30pm - Capitals @ Bruins - Game 1 - NESN/NBC Sports
7:30pm - Sharks @ Blues - Game 1 - CNBC
10:00pm - Blackhawks @ Coyotes - Game 1 - NBC Sports