Some look at bets in a futures market in a galactic way. As in, if I think the Oilers win one of the next five Stanley Cups, then betting them at +800 is a valuable proposition. While I think that's somewhat of an arbitrary way to think about futures, when it comes to Connor McDavid and the career he's projected to have, it's actually not all that frivolous. In fact, McDavid's genius is actually the reason there shouldn't be one red cent bet on the Oilers to win the Stanley Cup from now until the Cup is handed out in June. That's because of a secondary futures market that, unlike the Stanley Cup, hasn't been available to bet on day in, day out all season long.

Conn Smythe odds

Players not listed at +5000 odds or longer

The Oilers are at or around +700 to win the Stanley Cup, which carries an implied win probability of 12.5%. But this isn't about whether or not Edmonton will win the Stanley Cup. It's about why sportsbooks should be wondering if their Oilers button is broken for the next few days.

Translating odds into probability is chapter one of becoming an intelligent bettor, and as we know from middle school math class, probability is reflected in a pie chart, with the pie adding up to 100%.

When betting a Conn Smythe trophy winner, you should start at the end and work backward. This year marks the 20th anniversary of the last time a losing Stanley Cup finalist won the Conn Smythe (more on this in a moment), so you should probably pick players from the team(s) who you think can win the Stanley Cup. More intelligently, you should be looking at the players on that team who have a better chance than the odds suggest.

The Bruins are the favorites to win the Stanley Cup at +350 - an implied probability of 22.2%. They have four players within the top nine choices to win playoff MVP. Here's what it looks like if we translate their odds into probability form:

That adds up to 25.3% worth of probability before we even add in the chances of Charlie McAvoy or another Bruin having a big postseason. In this case, it's better to back Boston than try to guess who the Bruins' standout will be.

Beyond the obvious, the premise for McDavid's case as a valuable bet to win the Conn Smythe starts with the idea that if the Oilers win the Stanley Cup, McDavid's roughly 100% to win the playoff MVP award, and therefore those odds should be identical.

With apologies to Leon Draisaitl, the Oilers can't win the championship without a healthy McDavid, and a healthy McDavid is going to get the primary credit for a championship. In fact, Draisaitl's existence forces oddsmakers to cut a 2.4% slice of the probability pie in his direction. Any slice going to anyone on the Oilers other than McDavid provides more value on McDavid.

Since McDavid's Conn Smythe odds are +1000, and that's longer than the Oilers' +700 to win the Stanley Cup, he's the better bet.

That's before we even get to the second, more provocative element behind a McDavid bet. I believe that McDavid is the only player in the NHL capable of joining Jean-Sebastien Giguere in 2003 and Ron Hextall in 1987 as players in my lifetime to win the Conn Smythe in a losing cause.

To be the MVP in a losing cause, you need to be that much better over the two-month playoff run than everyone else, regardless of position. McDavid's career year, where he scored 36% more points than any other non-Oiler, comes after last year's playoffs when he scored 33 points in 16 games. If the Oilers can get to Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final and play around 24 postseason games in total, not only will he end up with a significant lead over anyone else in this playoffs, but he could break Wayne Gretzky's record of 47 points in a single postseason.

Finally, the East is loaded with contenders, and whoever gets out of that conference to then hypothetically beat the Oilers will have needed multiple contributors, with no clear standout in victory. Only David Pastrnak has stood out beyond his teammates, but probable Vezina-winner Linus Ullmark could accrue enough credit to take away from the Bruins' top scorer.

Fundamentally, even if you think there's only a 1% chance of that happening, that means McDavid's theoretically 101% to win the award relative to the Oilers' odds to win the Stanley Cup. This means that the probability for him to win the Conn Smythe could actually be interpreted to be shorter than his team's odds to win the Cup, making McDavid at +1000 somewhat of a bargain on the best player in the NHL to put at least one more new trophy on his mantle.

Matt Russell is the senior betting writer for theScore. If there's a bad beat to be had, Matt will find it. Find him on Twitter @mrussauthentic.

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Whew, 1,312 NHL games can really go by in the blink of an eye, right?

With the playoffs looming large, let's celebrate the regular season that was by counting down the top 10 plays of 2022-23, beginning with one honorable mention.

HM: No one's called bank quite like this before 🏦

April 2, 2023

Unless you believe Rickard Rakell totally did it on purpose, this isn't the most technically impressive play of the season. But we felt we had to give an honorable mention to what might just be the wackiest goal of the year.

The Pittsburgh Penguins forward wired a hard shot off the glass behind the Philadelphia Flyers' crease. The puck ricochetted and followed a perfect trajectory to goaltender Samuel Ersson, bouncing off him and in. If you ran this play 100 times, it might only end up in the back of the net once.

You'll probably be watching this one a couple of times.

10. Ullmark prevents goals, but he can score 'em, too 😉

Feb. 25, 2023

Years from now, if you ask Linus Ullmark what his favorite personal moment of the 2022-23 campaign was, we wouldn't be surprised if his goal against the Vancouver Canucks was at the top of his list (unless the Boston Bruins win the Stanley Cup in a few months' time, of course).

The Vezina Trophy front-runner's shot was an absolute dart right into the middle of the net - he didn't even need to bank it off the boards. Then, like any seasoned goal-scorer, he skated down the Bruins' bench for some celebratory glove taps.

Ullmark became the 13th netminder in NHL history to light the lamp in the regular season and the first since Pekka Rinne in 2020. Now that he has a taste for it, will he join Martin Brodeur and Ron Hextall as the third goalie to accomplish the feat in the playoffs?

9. Super Suzuki's shorthanded swag 😎

April 12, 2023

Nick Suzuki waited until one of the last days of the regular season to submit his bid for these rankings, but he certainly got our attention.

The Montreal Canadiens captain's tally isn't like any of the other goals on this list. He didn't need to undress his defender with any flashy moves or dekes - he just got on his horse for one of the more unique, hard-working tucks of the season.

Suzuki bore down on New York Islanders defenseman Samuel Bolduc, got his stick on the puck first, and roofed it past goalie Ilya Sorokin. With one hand. While on one knee. On the penalty kill. There's quite a lot to like here, especially the effort Suzuki put in.

8. McDavid waits ... and waits ... and waits ⏳

Feb. 11, 2023

As the incumbent Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy winner, it feels odd to not include a Connor McDavid goal on these rankings - he had 64 of them, after all.

Oh, wait, he also took home the Art Ross Trophy after terrorizing his opponents with 153 points. This sickening assist against the Ottawa Senators will surely suffice.

The Edmonton Oilers superstar hounded Thomas Chabot, taking the puck from Ottawa's busiest blue-liner. Then, McDavid held off Chabot for what is simply an alarming amount of time while waiting for help to arrive. When Ryan McLeod entered the fray, McDavid found a seam between two defenders for an unbelievable feed. Oh, and all of this happened on the penalty kill.

7. Johnson brings Michigan to Ohio 😏

March 24, 2023

Michigan goals in the NHL don't feel overplayed or overhyped yet, so we had no choice but to spotlight Columbus Blue Jackets rookie Kent Johnson for pulling off the lacrosse-style tally.

He made it look way too easy, skating behind the net, scooping the puck on his stick, and flipping it past Sorokin (who's certainly no slouch) in one fluid motion. Johnson burned the Isles' defense with a filthy toe drag to set the opportunity up, too.

It didn't look like Johnson's first time enthralling audiences with the tricky play, and unsurprisingly, it wasn't. He memorably scored a Michigan goal at the 2022 World Junior Championship in August. We're looking forward to seeing what other tricks Johnson has up his sleeve.

6. Brossoit's bombastic barrel roll 🙅

Feb. 25, 2023

Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Laurent Brossoit showed off his breakdancing skills in overtime against the Dallas Stars, and honestly, we're kind of jealous.

With Brossoit down on the play after making a stop on Jason Robertson - which was solid in its own right - Tyler Seguin appeared to have the game-winner on his stick. Sin City's netminder clearly had other ideas.

He rolled over, using that momentum to swat the puck out of harm's way with his left arm in one of the most acrobatic, desperate feats of the season. Do a barrel roll!

5. Thompson puts Lightning in torture chamber 🥶

Nov. 28, 2022

You can always tell when Tage Thompson is on the ice. Not just because he stands at a towering 6-foot-6, but because the Buffalo Sabres center is usually pulling off some ridiculous stuff like this.

Thompson scored a career-high 47 goals this campaign, but we can't think of one that left us quite as gobsmacked as this early-season effort against the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The number of sweet moves he was able to cram into this play borders on unnecessary. The puck just wouldn't stop following him around as he used his incredible reach to intercept the pass and dangle goaltender Brian Elliott within an inch of his life.

4. OK, Seeler, where'd this come from? 🤯

March 14, 2023

Who among us predicted that Nick Seeler would score one of the best goals of the season?

The 29-year-old Flyers defenseman (yes, that's right, he's a defenseman) has just seven goals through 225 career NHL games, and even if he quadruples that output, we doubt any goal will be as memorable as this one.

Seeler recovered the puck off a blocked shot and proceeded to put Golden Knights rearguard Shea Theodore in a blender, dancing around the defender in a way that would make Grace Kelly proud. For his finishing move, he sniped the puck past netminder Jonathan Quick. Stellar work, Seeler.

3. Marner stick-handling in a phone booth 📞

March 11, 2023

An exercise like this calls for some Mitch Marner magic, don't you think?

The creative Toronto Maple Leafs star dug deep into his bag of tricks for this goal against the Oilers. He picked up the pass from McLeod and was able to take full advantage of a surprised Stuart Skinner, faking out the rookie goaltender into another dimension.

The head-spinning sequence of dekes and spins happened in tight and ended in the most dramatic way possible, bonking off both posts and in. We've maybe grown accustomed to Marner's frequent displays of wizardry, but this one deserves a place on the podium of this list.

2. Zegras goes between the legs 🤹

March 7, 2023

It should never be a surprise whenever Trevor Zegras makes an appearance on these rankings. Few are as likely to provide a viral on-ice moment than the Anaheim Ducks phenom.

This time around, it wasn't a Michigan-style goal or assist that gave him a favorable position. Oh, no. This time, it was a dazzling between-the-legs goal that went up top past Seattle Kraken goaltender Philipp Grubauer, who didn't have a hope in hell of stopping Zegras' spectacular effort.

Interestingly enough, we were hard-pressed to choose between this goal and Zegras' between-the-legs assist that happened just over a week later. He's such a talent.

1. Athanasiou did the thing 🎵

Oct. 30, 2022

You won't find the Chicago Blackhawks at the top of many end-of-season lists (at least the positive ones), but Andreas Athanasiou has dragged his team onto at least one thanks to this stunner.

In what was just the Blackhawks' ninth game of the campaign, Athanasiou came up with the top play of the regular season. The forward received Patrick Kane's pass in the neutral zone with ease and essentially turned Minnesota Wild defenseman Matt Dumba inside out during a one-on-one battle.

Athanasiou capped it off by going top-shelf on future Hall of Fame goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury with his backhand. We're giving this one 10s across the board.

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In one way, Friday was a typical day for Luc Robitaille.

To start off, the Los Angeles Kings president embedded with the hockey operations staff, running through the playoff roster ahead of the 47-25-10 Kings' first-round date with the Edmonton Oilers. (The series starts Monday in Edmonton.) Robitaille had media responsibilities to close out the morning. Then, in the afternoon, his schedule featured "a lot of meetings" about the club's local TV future in the wake of Diamond Sports Group's bankruptcy.

In another way, Friday was atypical because Robitaille was hoping to cut it short. Usually booked seemingly all hours of the day, he instead wanted to be at home with family one last time. The grind of playoff travel was approaching.

"I won't be home for the next two months," said the affable Robitaille, letting out a short laugh. "That's the hope, anyway!"

Robitaille, 57, has overseen the hockey and business departments for the Kings since 2017. Undoubtedly, he and general manager Rob Blake - both iconic Kings players of previous eras - are the organization's most influential figures in trying to reconstruct a Stanley Cup-caliber roster.

The Kings, Cup winners in 2012 and 2014, are attempting to win a third championship with longtime cornerstones Anze Kopitar and Drew Doughty. So far, so good in terms of making the postseason cut in consecutive years.

Robitaille - or "Lucky Luc," as he was nicknamed during a Hockey Hall of Fame career - spoke with theScore on Friday about retooling the roster, Kopitar's brilliance at center, shutting down Connor McDavid, and more.

(This interview has been lightly edited for clarity.)

theScore: Even at 35 years old, Anze Kopitar's in the conversation for best two-way center in the NHL. Why and how? What do you see day-to-day that's keeping him at such an elite level in his 17th season, all with the Kings?

Robitaille: It's incredible how he's still the same player he was 10 years ago. He seems to have not changed his pace, the way he plays. From his first day playing in the NHL, he's always been a 200-foot player.

You know how Patrice Bergeron is revered and viewed on the east coast? If you were to flip-flop those two, if they were to change places, I think Kopitar would get the same love as Bergeron.

If you talk to every player in the NHL, they'll tell you, 'He's a really hard player to play against. He's heavy. He plays both ends. He plays PK, PP.' He still plays 22 minutes a game most nights. His discipline to stay in shape - he's so committed to the game, with his offseason workouts seemingly getting better every year. It's pretty amazing those two guys are still doing it at their age.

You're right. Whether it's counting stats or advanced stats, Kopitar's right up there. One thing that jumped off the page for me: Kopitar's taken only two minor penalties in 2022-23. That's impressive, considering the strength of opponent he faces and, as you noted, his heavier style of play.

He leans on guys. He's heavy. It is amazing that he's basically had no penalties. It's kind of crazy … (laughs)

The other thing no one is talking about: The day we put Adrian Kempe with Kopi, Adrian Kempe became a 35- and 40-goal scorer. Then we put Quinton Byfield with Kopi and suddenly everybody's going, 'Ah, I can see Byfield's coming into his own now!' Kopi's our safety net to help the trend of our team.

A young player can gain confidence simply by lining up beside somebody like Kopitar, right? You attach the young player to the responsible veteran and life's easier. Pucks start going in and it all builds from there.

Yeah. You're right about that. But, also, I was talking to someone the other day about how lucky we feel. Let me explain: When you have Kopitar on your team, it's so easy to teach the young guys how to play responsibly. If they see one of the team's best players doing all of the little things day in and day out, no matter what, they can't come in and say, 'Well, that's just not the way I play.' No, they know Kopi's won, and they know he's won playing a certain way. Next thing you know, they're a little bit more responsible.

It's funny, there's some irony in it for us. Kevin Fiala's an incredible player. He's had a huge impact on our team. But early in the year, he'd make some risky passes we weren't used to seeing. We would be like, 'Whoa, what's up with that pass right up the middle?' And then, over time, Fiala has remained the same impactful player, but it sure seems like he got rid of 50% of those risky passes.

He's still producing, right, but I think the rest of it has a lot to do with guys like Kopitar playing the right way all the time. If you're a player and you're smart, you go, 'Oh, that's what makes him so special! If I can play like him a little bit, it'll help the team even more.'

The Drew Doughty-Mikey Anderson pairing - why is it so effective? And what was so appealing about Anderson to warrant an eight-year extension?

The biggest thing for us is trust. When you watch Mikey play, you never think about him. You just trust him. He gets the puck and makes the right play. He closes plays down low. And he's a great partner for Drew as somebody who gives Drew a little bit more freedom. Mikey will always, always back Drew up.

It's been such a great pairing for us, and that's why it was also so important for us to get another left-handed defenseman before the trade deadline. We wanted four guys who we can really trust. But it starts with Mikey and Drew playing the way they do together.

A few years ago, the Kings shifted toward a retool around Kopitar, Doughty, and goalie Jonathan Quick. There had been an emphasis on getting faster and younger. I'd say you've accomplished that. As far as a timeline on the retool, are you where you thought you'd be in 2023?

Internally, we always wanted to be pushing for the playoffs last year and this year, knowing that once you get in, you can beat anyone. We certainly feel like, because of the way we play, we can beat anyone. The playoffs are a hard road. You have to be locked and loaded and healthy to start. We feel that way.

That being said, we know if everything goes our way this year and we win, we really feel we're going to be better in two years. We have some young guys coming up, and we still have room for them, and it's only going to make our team better in the future.

I suppose that's the beauty of hitting on many of your draft picks. You don't have a bunch of prospects blossoming at once. It's a steady flow.

They trickle in over time. And, if there's anything we've learned, it's to be patient. With Adrian Kempe, it took him six years to start scoring goals. (laughs)

What do you attribute to Kempe's ascension? He isn't a flash in the pan.

He was always a really good player, but he wasn't shooting much. He wasn't creating much offensively. But the whole time he had the defensive skills, which can be very hard to get. We never worried about him defensively. And we knew he could skate. So, in our zone, the guy never hurt us.

He was playing center and some games we'd put him on the wing. Somehow, he found a way to get open more often and shoot more often. And his creativity with the puck got better.

We have a kid now who's similar to Kempe. He's not a shooter like Kempe, but with Rasmus Kupari, when we look at him, we remember Kempe in his first three or four years. They're great skaters, they never hurt you defensively, and you have to just wait for them to come into their own offensively.

You faced the Edmonton Oilers in Round 1 last year. Ditto this year, starting Monday. What needs to happen for L.A. to win this time around?

We know we can match up against anybody. We have to play our game. It's going to be really hard to do that when you have two of the best players in the world on the other team. They're hungry, too. So, it's about minimizing their scoring chances, and then when we get our chances, putting them in.

I really feel like the Oilers got better this year. But so did we, you know? So, I think it's going to be a really good series. There won't be a lot of room out there. You'll have to create room. We all know how good their power play is, so it almost goes without saying that you don't want to give them too many opportunities there. But we're certainly creating a big rivalry with them, and it's going to be a great series.

We've beaten them twice this year, and they've beaten us twice. We thought we outplayed them in one of those losses. So, it's going to be a show, I think. (laughs)

You played with and against Wayne Gretzky. With that in mind, how do you gameplan against a generational talent like Connor McDavid? Do you sink your teeth into the video, or is it more so about shadowing him or, at least, doing your best to keep up with him as far as skating speed?

If you're going to have a guy shadow Connor McDavid, he better skate faster than him, and I don't think anyone in the league can do that. (laughs)

So, I think it's more about playing the right way as a team. You're trying to minimize McDavid's scoring chances. He's going to create one or two chances a period on his own, but you certainly don't want to give him a free one. We went to Edmonton earlier this year, played a really good game, and then put it right on his stick for a breakaway. You can't do that. He has to earn every chance, and he will get some chances because of who he is.

You just have to keep playing, and it's the old cliche: Keep the puck in their zone as much as possible. But I do really believe they got better. So, we know it's going to be a lot of work for us to keep it in their zone. Mattias Ekholm was a great move for them. Even Nick Bjugstad, he's brought in a little size. Trust me, it's not going to be easy.

How have you felt about the Kings' two trade deadline additions - defenseman Vladislav Gavrikov and goalie Joonas Korpisalo - and how they've mixed into the group since March? Thoughts on the on-ice fit?

They both have fit in perfectly on our team. Korpisalo has come in and given us stability in the net. We've had Pheonix Copley play really well since December, and now Korpisalo's here, and he has this real calming attitude about him. He's been really, really good.

And then for Gavrikov, we always talked about getting that second-layer, left-shot D-man who can really stabilize our team. He's done that, and more. Him and Matt Roy give us an opportunity to cut down a couple of minutes with Doughty so that Drew is a little bit more rested. But that Gavrikov-Roy pairing has been a really hard pair to play against. Gavrikov has a long stick, long reach, and we couldn't be happier about what he's done for us so far.

One last one. Back to Gretzky. Beyond the obvious - all-time speed - what are the similarities and differences between Connor and Wayne?

Wayne was smaller and skinnier, so every team before every game would say, 'You have to run him. You have to hit him. You have to check him.' They did everything.

When you play against McDavid, you pay attention to him. It's incredible the speed he brings. And his vision is a lot like Wayne's. Still, I can't believe Wayne got 200 points! That's basically 50 more than McDavid! (laughs)

When you put that in perspective, you start thinking, man, how great was Gretzky? And Mario Lemieux, too. It's crazy. But here's another thing: I remember people saying Wayne's shot wasn't great, this and that. Then he scored 92 goals. And last year we've got people saying, 'Yeah, McDavid's good but he doesn't score as many goals as he should.' And then you see this year he gets 64.

It just shows how these guys want to get better every game, every year. McDavid's got a lot of the same drive as Wayne. Every shift, every shift. And you saw it last year in the playoffs, where McDavid really took his game to another level. You can tell the kid has a lot of personal drive.

You have to give him credit for what he's done so far in his career. He's a superstar, and he's fun to watch every night.

John Matisz is theScore's senior NHL writer. Follow John on Twitter (@MatiszJohn) or contact him via email (john.matisz@thescore.com).

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The Columbus Blue Jackets fired head coach Brad Larsen after two years at the helm, the team announced Saturday.

Larsen was promoted to bench boss in 2021 following a seven-year spell as an assistant with the organization. Goaltending coach Manny Legace was also let go.

"This season has been extremely disappointing, and the responsibility for that lies with all of us," general manager Jarmo Kekalainen said in a statement. "These decisions were difficult and not made lightly, given our respect for both Brad and Manny as coaches and people. Brad has been part of our organization for more than a decade, and we are extremely thankful for his hard work and many contributions - both on and off the ice - during that time. We wish nothing but the best for Brad and his family in the future."

Larsen took over the Blue Jackets' bench after the club split ways with John Tortorella. It was his first head coaching gig in the NHL. Columbus finished sixth in the Metropolitan Division in Larsen's debut year, then finished 31st in the league standings this year after a slew of injuries dashed the offseason optimism of landing star Johnny Gaudreau on a seven-year contract in free agency.

Under Larsen, the Blue Jackets owned a 62-86-16 record.

Columbus has the second-highest odds (13.5%) of winning May's draft lottery and the right to draft generational talent Connor Bedard, which could sway potential coaching suitors should it come to fruition.

There are now three head coaching vacancies across the NHL. The Anaheim Ducks let go of Dallas Eakins on Friday, while the Washington Capitals parted ways with Peter Laviolette.

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We've been evaluating several of the NHL's award races all season long, so with the 82-game schedule in the rearview mirror, it's time to pick the winners and finalists. Our team of hockey editors - Kyle Cushman, Mike Dickson, Kayla Douglas, Josh Gold-Smith, Sean O'Leary, and Josh Wegman - has assembled to do exactly that.

In the interest of transparency, we've included the voting point totals and a glimpse at each editor's hypothetical ballot - remember, these aren't official and we won't be voting in the real thing - for the six most significant individual regular season honors.

Our voting points system matches the standard one, but with an exception. As in years past, since we only have six participants, we've given additional voting power to the individual editors who covered each of the four awards we've been examining with monthly rankings.

The normal first-place picks were worth three points, the conventional second-place votes were worth two, and the standard third-place votes were worth one. The expert votes were worth double compared to everyone else's selections, so six points, four, and two for first, second, and third, respectively. The expert editors are denoted by asterisks in the charts.

Here's who we think deserves to take home the hardware:

Jack Adams Award

Montgomery nearly wins the NHL's coach of the year award unanimously by our estimation, and for good reason. His juggernaut Boston Bruins steamrolled the rest of the league during the regular season, setting numerous records in the process. He also deserves credit for effectively guiding a club that was without Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy at the start of the campaign.

The 53-year-old should be lauded for accomplishing all that, especially in his first season with Boston. But the Bruins are absolutely loaded with talent. They boast a Hart Trophy candidate, the Vezina and Selke favorites, other stars both up front and on defense, and an extremely deep squad as a whole. So it could be argued - as Gold-Smith essentially does here - that other coaches are more deserving because they had less to work with.

Enter Ruff, whose New Jersey Devils exceeded expectations this season. They have a solid stable of skilled players led by budding superstar Jack Hughes, but few predicted this team would be among the cream of the Eastern Conference crop before the campaign began. Bednar should also get some recognition for helping the perpetually injury-riddled Colorado Avalanche remain competitive.

Selke Trophy

This one is unanimous, as we all believe Bergeron deserves to pad his NHL record for Selke wins by being voted the best defensive forward for the sixth time. The 37-year-old Bruins center has long been a paragon of consistency on both sides of the puck. He kept that going in 2022-23, ranking near the top of the league in expected goals against per 60 minutes among qualified forwards while posting favorable numbers in many other categories.

Marner led all NHL forwards in takeaways per 60 among those who played at least six games and also placed among the league's best in terms of both wins above replacement and goals above replacement.

We didn't cover this award on a monthly basis, so we don't have an editor's expert points that could've broken the tie for third. But Barkov, Hischier, and Staal all warrant some real votes for their consistently elite two-way play.

Calder Trophy

Beniers is the clear choice to be voted top rookie. The 20-year-old led the class in goal-scoring and points while centering the top line for the playoff-bound Seattle Kraken. Beniers' development is a major reason Seattle has taken a much larger step forward this season than most expected.

Power is meeting the lofty expectations he's shouldered as the 2021 first overall pick. The Buffalo Sabres defenseman - who's also 20 years old - paced all rookies in average ice time at nearly 24 minutes and registered nearly half a point per game in 2022-23.

Maccelli flew under the radar this season because he plays for the Arizona Coyotes, but he had a sneakily impressive campaign. The 22-year-old led all rookies in total assists and finished second in the class to Beniers in points by nine despite playing 15 fewer games.

Norris Trophy

If Karlsson doesn't win the Norris, it would frankly be a travesty. This award should never be purely about points, but the veteran blue-liner became the first defenseman to collect 100 in a season since Brian Leetch in 1991-92.

Karlsson was the oldest rearguard to ever accomplish the feat and only the sixth to ever do it. The vast majority of the 32-year-old's production came at even strength, too. He was fourth in the NHL in points in those situations behind only Nathan MacKinnon, David Pastrnak, and Connor McDavid. Plus, Karlsson did all this for the lowly San Jose Sharks.

Vezina Trophy

This was by far the closest vote we conducted. In the normal points system, Sorokin and Ullmark would be tied with 15 points apiece. But this is where our expert system pays off, as O'Leary's more informed opinion gives the Bruins goaltender the narrowest possible victory.

Ullmark was spectacular for the NHL's best team this season. But Sorokin was right there with him in terms of the underlying numbers, and the Islanders netminder bested him by a wide margin in goals saved above expected at five-on-five while leading the league. Sorokin excelled with a less inspiring supporting cast, which explains why he nearly wins here.

Hart Trophy

There was rightfully no drama when it came to our MVP pick. Much like the Norris Trophy, the Hart shouldn't just be about offensive production. But McDavid crushed the rest of the NHL in that regard, so giving this award to anyone else would just seem wrong.

In our adjusted points system, Pastrnak and Tkachuk find themselves in a dead heat for second place. However, the Bruins winger earns the higher spot in a tiebreaker because he'd have one more voting point than Tkachuk in the real system, and Pastrnak appeared on all six ballots.

Pastrnak was the Bruins' catalyst, and he provided immense value relative to his skilled teammates. Tkachuk was also outstanding in many facets of the game. He was by far the best Panthers skater and only McDavid amassed more wins above replacement and goals above replacement than Tkachuk in the NHL this season.

(Analytics sources: Natural Stat Trick, Evolving Hockey)

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The Colorado Avalanche defeated the Nashville Predators 4-3 on Friday to secure first place in the Central Division.

Nathan MacKinnon scored the game-winner with under two minutes remaining to cap the hat trick.

The Avs will now square off against the Seattle Kraken, the Western Conference's first wild-card team, in Round 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Central's No. 2 seed Dallas Stars will meet with the division's No. 3 seed Minnesota Wild in the opening round.

The rest of the postseason matchups were determined Thursday.

The victory marks the third straight division title for the defending Stanley Cup champions.

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