The chase for the Cup does stand to be intriguing.

Does Washington and Chicago have the goaltending to shrug off nay sayers, is the Sharks’ character any different this year than last, and, who will be this year’s dark horse are among the answers inquiring minds want to know. We choose to leave that analysis for May and June.  For this piece, we choose to focus on an end-of-year award.

As a voter for most of the major awards by virtue of my standing in the Professional Hockey Writers Association, I’d be lying if I didn’t say that the first time I got my ballot for the Hart, Norris and so on, it took a day to put my arms around the fact that I was part of the process that decided the names to be placed on the next plaque.

While the Hart (symbolizing the league’s MVP) will go to one of the usual suspects, Great 8 or 87, the hardware for the league's best rear guard, the Norris Trophy, offers an interesting range of options, and a greater sense of drama.

It’s unlikely any of the top three Norris vote getters will reprise their standing this post season.

While Detroit’s rocky season is no fault of Nick Lidstrom, it’s hard to see him winning it once again despite no degradation in his game. Dion Phaneuf’s body of work declined to such an extent that he was shipped away from a playoff team, the Calgary Flames in favor of second and third line scoring talent, not exactly a winning Norris campaign strategy.  Zdeno Chara, while still dominant at times, hasn’t been the game changer this season that he was last year for the Boston Bruins.

There will be fresh faces in the race for the Norris which is a good thing for the league.  Younger players can identify with a younger fan base, different teams trying to wrest dominance away from the old school Red Wings.  In a word, change can be good.

CHANGING OF THE TOP REAR GUARD

So who can we look at to garner votes this season? One must start at the top of the standings and that brings us to the Washington Capitals and their hipster backliner, Mike Green. We visited with Green during a recent photo shoot in the nation’s capital and found out he’s a regular dude from Calgary that’s living it up in DC. He’s leading the league in scoring for defenseman and is second in plus/minus rating ( even though Caps defenseman Jeff Schultz has an eye-popping +37 rating, he gets no consideration because Ovechkin skates the same shifts he does).  A player that stands to eclipse 80 points from the blue line is short money to win the Norris and I’ve only got one problem with him.

He’s not really a defenseman.

Green is really a forward in defenseman’s clothing.  When you analyze the Caps’ few weaknesses entering the post season, other than the word GOALTENDING screaming at you, there’s an acute need for a defensive stopper. Hmm, if you have the best defenseman in the league, why would you need a stopper? So while we’d put Green in the top three on our ballot, we’re hesitant to slot him in first.

Looking at the West, the Chicago Blackhawks' rise to the top of the Central and the season long battle with San Jose for first overall is as much a function of the play of Duncan Keith as it is Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. At the Olympic break, he’s put up some impressive numbers; at even strength he’s outscored Green 40-31. Over the past three seasons his rating is +86, a number that would even impress Jeff Schultz.  In my mind, he’s more in the more of classic defenseman than Green is and accordingly, would rank higher on my ballot.

There are others that are having either stellar or breakthrough seasons.

Chris Pronger has demonstrated that the Anaheim Ducks miscalculated when they shipped him cross country. The veteran defenseman and former Norris winner has been the steadiest player during a  topsy turvy Flyers season.

Christian Ehrhoff shrugged off the shackles of anonymity and expectations in San Jose to fashion his finest season in Vancouver. A victim of the salary cap once the Dany Heatley trade was completed, his talents seems to be better suited for the finesse game of the BC sextet.

While Pronger and Ehrhoff will post votes from those close followers, there’s one contender we’d like to introduce for consideration.

We’ve covered the Los Angeles Kings for the better part of a decade and for the most part, it’s not been good hockey. Bad draft choices, players going through the motions, top tier talent not willing to come and the inability to develop goaltending talent were among the transgressions for a franchise still looking for its first Stanley Cup. Over the past few weeks, this site has documented the rise of the franchise under the stewardship of Dean Lombardi in detail, so we’ll articulate the fruits of its labor as opposed to recanting the methods.

When you think of Kings’ defenseman over the past ten seasons, certain images come to mind. The love/hate relationship the fan base has for Rob Blake (will his jersey ever rise to the top of Staples Center?) is first and foremost. Undoubtedly the best defenseman in franchise history, he’s more reviled for the circumstances leaving the franchise twice than his fine play for it. When you add to the mix the far-lesser talents who have passed through Los Angeles such as Jere Karalahti and Jaroslav Modry, the picture crystallizes as to why it’s been seven seasons sans playoffs at Maison de Staples.

But even heavy clouds do eventually lift and the clear skies over LAX lead to the subject of this piece.

2ND PICK, TOP TALENT

When the Kings missed out on the Steven Stamkos derby that was the 2008 Entry Draft, it was assumed the occurrence was another in a long line of disappointments for the star-crossed franchise. They received a consolation prize that was far less heralded but has developed to an extent that most wouldn’t trade him for Stamkos, even with the Tampa sniper on track for 47 goals at the break.

Drew Doughty has exceeded all expectations set for him in less than two seasons toiling for the Kings.

When he arrived at training camp at the start of the 2008-’09 season, it was easy to see the talent that he had but observers questioned his ability to face the rigors of a nine-month NHL grind at the tender age of 19. He answered those questions loudly with his play; he made the varsity, missed only one game (after getting slammed by huge winger Evgeni Artyukhin) and was in consideration for Rookie of the Year honors most of the season (he finished fifth in voting).

With the Kings fading from contention in the latter days of the season, Drew’s attention started to turn to the work that needed to be done to raise his game to the next level. The first matter was the elimination of the baby fat that accompanied him through his junior years in Guelph of the OHL; he knew he had to come back in far better condition for his sophomore campaign to be considered among the game’s elite. Arriving at camp this September, Doughty was almost unrecognizable, both his face had slimmed down and his body had the form of a 22 minute-per-game defenseman. 

The one point in his game that needed the most work had improved as well. Doughty noted that he needed to improve the accuracy and speed of his shot and the resulting work behind that should double his goal output in his second season.

It’s not that the rest of the league hasn’t taken notice. Concurrent with the Kings' rise to the top half of the West and their likely inclusion in this season’s playoffs, Doughty’s notoriety has increased as it’s hard to miss a player who on the ice for almost half the game.  The moves he displays on offense remind longtime NHL personnel of Raymond Bourque (as does his body) while his recovery speed on defense rivals any player. The culmination of his 140+ game resume was his selection to the Canadian Olympic team and in doing so, made it as its youngest player.

The soft skills that are needed to be a success in the NHL are there as well. Drew carries himself as an adult, not as a kid who still can’t buy a beer legally in the States.

When I watch him on the ice, he truly looks like a 10-year veteran with his combination of hockey IQ, calmness and clutch play (his game-winning power play goal in New Jersey against Martin Brodeur in the game’s last minute specifically comes to mind). Given the fact that Green and Keith have superior talent in support of their play, arguably Doughty has done more individually to make the Kings the surprise team of the season so far.

Does Drew get my vote as the Norris winner this season? All the precincts have yet to report and we want to see how Doughty and his regal mates finish their final 21 matches, but there’s no doubt at some point that trophy will rest on his mantle before he hangs up the skates.

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