Selke

It’s pretty unreasonable to think one can make a judgment on an award like the Selke without seeing every team on a nightly basis. It really can't be determined on stats alone or even on stats + copious Center Ice viewing. Of course, this same reasoning does *not* apply to the Norris, which I am perpetually qualified to award because I am smarter than the voters, and that's just the way it is. Anyway. You really have to care and appreciate solid, if boring, defensive play to get a sense for the skills of guys like Lehtinen, Madden, or Axelsson. I’m sure if I was a fan and 82-game observer of their teams, I could make a nice case for Antti Miettinen or Kamil Kreps or Manny Malhotra….you get the point. So I fully acknowledge that the guys on my list are certainly the sexier, more glamorous choices. It is also worth noting that the star who plays amazing two-way hockey is now becoming a lot more common than it used to be- brutal defensive slackers are becoming the exception now. It doesn’t take much focus to realize that these are fantastic, game-controlling defensive players, but when you do focus on them, the appreciation just grows bigger.

Winner: Pavel Datsyuk. There isn’t too much more to say about this guy at this stage. He is one of the more unique players I’ve seen in some time. Last year was really his overall coming-out party, and this year he has played at a super-high level all season long. His ‘takeaways’ get the most press, but his overall speed, positioning and smarts, ferocity on the backcheck and in the corners, and physical play make him an absolute treat to watch. He could probably win this award any given year for the foreseeable future.

Then again, so could my runner-up, Mike Richards. His candidacy (and possible win) will rest largely on his outstanding stats on the penalty kill (no, I’ll never call it on the shorthand), where he was the top guy on a very dangerous unit. Richards fits the hockey world definition of the elite, two-way, gritty center to absolute perfection.

Coming in third I have Ryan Kesler, who is far less flashy than either Datsyuk or Richards, and falls into the mold of more of a shut-down type player. No one likes playing against Ryan Kesler, and the fact that he can add 58 points to his tick-you-the-hell-off presence is massively important to his team.