Lidstrom & Datsyuk award winners
The second trophy awarded tonight, the Lady Byng, was given to Pavel Datsyuk. He was not there to receive the trophy and head coach Mike Babcock was supposed to come up and say a word of thanks in his place. But, he didn’t come up to the stage and the presenters awkwardly walked off with the award. Later in the show, Babcock was seen smiling so he was there. Very weird.
Datsyuk was named on 94 of 128 ballots and received 41 first-place votes for 669 points, finishing well ahead of 2004 Lady Byng winner Brad Richards of the Tampa Bay Lightning (442).
Defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom received his fourth Norris Trophy [in just five seasons], one more than fellow teammate Chris Chelios. His thank you speech wasn’t anything special, but he did say something to the tune of “we’ll talk tonight” in a joking tone after thanking GM Ken Holland. He is expected to talk to Holland this weekend while in Vancouver regarding his future with the team.
It’s special,” Lidstrom said. “After the lockout, I wanted to come back and have a strong season and I think I did that. I’m very proud of the season I had.”
Lidstrom’s career year helped land him his fourth Norris Trophy in five years.
Lidstrom led all NHL defensemen in scoring with a career-high 80 points (16 goals, 64 assists), helping the Presidents’ Trophy winners post a 14-0-0 record when he scored a goal. Lidstrom ranked third in the NHL in ice time per game (28:06) and posted a plus-21 rating.
“It’s an honor to be among the players who have won this award,” Lidstrom said, pointing to Chris Chelios, Paul Coffey and Ray Bourque. “To be mentioned with them is an awesome feeling.”
Lidstrom said a combination of health and playing time has combined to make him a strong player. “Staying healthy is a big part of this and getting an opportunity to play a lot of minutes are key factors,” Lidstrom said. “I play better when I play more.”
Here’s a couple screencaps of Nick winning the award.
It’s so weird to see all these hockey players in tuxes if you ask me. For those curious, Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin’s tuxes were both rented [they were asked in the CBC interview before the awards show].
The award winners…
Hart Trophy, Most Valuable Player — Joe Thornton
Calder Trophy, Top Rookie — Alexander Ovechkin
Vezina Trophy, Top Goaltender — Miikka Kiprusoff
Selke Trophy, Top Defensive Forward — Rod Brind’Amour
Norris Trophy, Top Defenseman — Nicklas Lidstrom
Lady Byng, Sportsmanship — Pavel Datsyuk
Masterton Trophy, Perseverance and Dedication to Hockey — Teemu Selanne
Pearson Trophy, MVP voted by NHLPA — Jaromir Jagr
Adams Trophy, Top Coach — Lindy Ruff
Maurice Richard Trophy, Most Goals — Jonathon Cheechoo
King Clancy Trophy, Humanitarian Contributions — Olaf Kolzig
Curious as to how these awards are decided?
The Professional Hockey Writers’ Association (PHWA) cast ballots for the Hart, Norris, Selke, Lady Byng and Calder Trophies. The PHWA also voted on the Masterton Trophy. The 30 NHL General Managers voted on the Vezina Trophy. The NHL Broadcasters’ Association (NHLBA) submitted votes for the Jack Adams Award, and a special panel of representatives from the PHWA and NHLBA chose the King Clancy winner. Voting for these awards was conducted at the conclusion of the regular season.
Balloting results were tabulated by the accounting firm Ernst & Young, with the exception of the Masterton and King Clancy trophies. The results for these awards were tabulated by the PHWA and the National Hockey League, respectively.
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December 31st, 2006 at 4:15 pm
[…] In June, goaltender Manny Legace learned that he would not be offered a contract by the Red Wings. Defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom and forward Pavel Datsyuk both received awards at the end of the season. Lidstrom earns his fourth Norris Trophy in five seasons while Datsyuk took home his first Lady Byng. I also created one of my most popular posts on BtJ of all times - my Anti-Roy post, fun for the whole family. Lidstrom later took a ‘hometown discount’ and signed a two year deal worth $7.6 million per year. […]