Hughes, Kubalik and Makar Voted Calder Trophy Finalists

The award, voted on by members of the Professional Hockey Writers’ Association, is given annually to the best rookie in the NHL. The winner will be announced during the conference finals.

Hughes led NHL rookies in assists (45) and points (53) in 68 games. The Vancouver Canucks defenseman also led rookies in power-play points (25), and his average of 21:53 of ice time per game was second (Ethan Bear, Edmonton Oilers, 21:58). Hughes set Canucks rookie records for assists and power-play points, and was three points from tying Dale Tallon (56, 1970-71) for the most in a season by a Vancouver rookie defenseman when the NHL season was paused March 12 due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. He would be the third Canucks player to win the award and second straight, following forward Elias Pettersson last season. No team has had consecutive players win the Calder since Bobby Orr and Derek Sanderson did it with the Boston Bruins in 1966-67 and 1967-68.

[RELATED: Calder Memorial Trophy winners]

The Canucks finished 36-27-6 (.565 points percentage) and will enter the Stanley Cup Qualifiers as the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference. Vancouver will play the No. 10 seed, the Minnesota Wild (35-27-7, .558), in one of eight best-of-5 series with the winner advancing to the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Forward Tyler Toffoli, who was traded to the Canucks by the Los Angeles Kings on Feb. 17, was impressed by what he saw from Hughes in his third NHL game on Oct. 9.

“Guys were talking and saying ‘hey be careful, he’s shifty, he’s all this, he’ll make a move on the blue line’ and he definitely was and it was impressive to watch,” Toffoli said. “I’m definitely grateful to be on this team and to be able to see the little things that he’s doing to get himself better. He wants to be one of the best defenseman in the League and he’s definitely shown in this season.”

Kubalik led NHL rookies with 30 goals and was third with 46 points in 68 games. The Chicago Blackhawks forward also was first among all rookies with 38 even-strength points, 26 even-strength goals and 157 shots on goal. He is the fifth player in Blackhawks history to score at least 30 goals as a rookie, and the first since Artemi Panarin in 2015-16. Kubalik would be the 10th Blackhawks player to win the Calder and first since Panarin.

The Blackhawks (32-30-8, .514), the No. 12 seed in the West, will play the Edmonton Oilers (37-25-9, .585), the No. 5 seed, in one of eight best-of-5 Qualifier series.

Makar led rookie defensemen in goals (12), power-play goals (four) and even-strength goals (eight). The Colorado Avalanche defenseman was second to Hughes among all rookies in assists (38), points (50) and power-play points (19). Makar scored four game-winning goals, had a plus-12 rating and averaged 21:01 in ice time in 57 games, third among rookies. Makar, who set the Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques rookie defenseman record for points in a season, would be the sixth winner in franchise history and the first since center Nathan MacKinnon in 2013-14.

The Avalanche (42-20-8, .657) finished with the second-best record in the West and will play in the round-robin portion of the Qualifiers, along with the St. Louis Blues (.662), Vegas Golden Knights (.606) and Dallas Stars (.594) to determine the top four seeds in the playoffs in the West.

The 2020 NHL Awards had been scheduled for June 18 in Las Vegas but were postponed March 25.

Independent correspondent Kevin Woodley contributed to this report