If Karlsson was the best defenseman in the league this past season, his team would not have 230 goals for and 360 against.
- adambuffalo

Ding, Ding, Ding!!! We have a winner!!! Doughty +24, Karlsson -2

Far too much detail... This reeks of experience.

Settle down, Spanky.
- As_I_See_It

"Next up the award for best player went to the NHL's favorite public relations nightmare Patrick Kane."

Do you have a HERO chart reflecting how much of a nightmare he is?

If Karlsson was the best defenseman in the league this past season, his team would not have 230 goals for and 360 against.
- adambuffalo

If I could pick one defenseman off any team for the Leafs I'd take him without hesitation. Who would you pick?

Ding, Ding, Ding!!! We have a winner!!! Doughty +24, Karlsson -2
- SimmerDown17

Plus/minus is a team stat. Nobody uses it anymore to evaluate players.

"Next up the award for best player went to the NHL's favorite public relations nightmare Patrick Kane."

Do you have a HERO chart reflecting how much of a nightmare he is?
- Tanuki

Ding, Ding, Ding!!! We have a winner!!! Doughty +24, Karlsson -2
- SimmerDown17

I can't wait for Tanners reaction to this

If I could pick one defenseman off any team for the Leafs I'd take him without hesitation. Who would you pick?
- shack67

If that's so, why wouldn't the Leafs just have kept Kessel and move him back to D? Would be pretty much the same thing as having Karlsson back there.

I'll write it slower and in bold so you can understand. All.....round...ability.

It's not the Hart trophy for defensemen. It doesn't matter how many points Karlsson put up.
- SimmerDown17

Stop trying to bring logic into a Tanner blog

So no one wants to talk about how Panarin was in his seventh season of professional hockey or how Gotstisbehere didn't make his team until the season was 25% over but still finished ahead of McDavid. Or how McDavid posted a superior stats line prorated over the entire season than either Kane or Crosby?
- James_Tanner

No one wants to talk about it because it doesn't matter. He fit within the criteria for being a rookie and had the best year of all of the rookies.

I forgot you can prorate stats for games missed due to injury because clearly its a fact that McDavid would continue to put up points at the same rate through an entire season.

"And as a fully certified English Major..."

This doesn't make you smarter than other people. It especially doesn't make you smarter than others at the subject of hockey. In fact, it proves that you have chosen one of the easiest and most useless subjects in education.(I'm looking at you philosophy! You win that award. English is a close second.)

How can you be fully certified? Is there really a certification for English like there is for doctors, lawyers, accountants, plumbers, electricians, financial planners? You know, people with actual careers that serve a purpose other than talking poop about ridiculous Shakespeare plays.

Please stop writing articles in the tone of "I'm smarter than everybody" because you are not. You can speak English. That is what you are qualified to do. I don't have a piece of paper that states that I can speak English - yet here I am, writing in English.

If that's so, why wouldn't the Leafs just have kept Kessel and move him back to D? Would be pretty much the same thing as having Karlsson back there.
- adambuffalo

If you believe that I'm outta here.

"And as a fully certified English Major..."

This doesn't make you smarter than other people. It especially doesn't make you smarter than others at the subject of hockey. In fact, it proves that you have chosen one of the easiest and most useless subjects in education.(I'm looking at you philosophy! You win that award. English is a close second.)

How can you be fully certified? Is there really a certification for English like there is for doctors, lawyers, accountants, plumbers, electricians, financial planners? You know, people with actual careers that serve a purpose other than talking poop about ridiculous Shakespeare plays.

Please stop writing articles in the tone of "I'm smarter than everybody" because you are not. You can speak English. That is what you are qualified to do. I don't have a piece of paper that states that I can speak English - yet here I am, writing in English.
- Njuice

You should take a few English courses. Clearly. There isn't a coherent thought in your entire post.

I know a lot of people are so anti-intellectual that they think anyone even mentioning the accomplishment they worked years to achieve is the pinnacle of arrogance, but I've long ago come to expect no less from the internet.

Besides, it was in direct reference to a word problem, not hockey.

As for English being the easiest degree or the most useless, that is objectively false, but somehow I feel like telling you that won't matter at all.

Both players have different responsibilities on their team. Doughty is our best Dman, playing the best opposition on a nightly basis. What Doughty does defensively easily makes up the 31 point differential. Per game, Doughty's time on the PK was more than double that of EK. DOUBLE. As for time on the PP, EK has an extra minute and a half on the ice during PPs than Doughty each game.

Now let me bring up another offensive stat. EK had 50+ more SOG during the season than Doughty. EK is expected to put shots on goal, while any scoring Doughty does is just an added bonus. If Doughty shot as much as EK (imagine how many more shots EK had that were deflected or went wide), I'd imagine that 31 point differential would be much closer. Possibly even in single digits. Doughty isn't the playmaker EK is, but this isn't the best offensive defenseman award. It's the best all around defenseman. And that has been Doughty the last few seasons.

I also want to ask, if EK is the far superior Defenseman, how does he, with having 31 more points than Doughty, end up being on the ice for 27 more even strength goals by the opponent than Doughty?

i miss the days when a real true Defenseman won the award. Rod Langway. Not the guy who could produce the most offense in a year like Karlsson

For all the people defending Doughty's win, why aren't you disgusted by Kane winning the Hart? Kane's as one dimensional as they come. What's the point of the Art Ross when they give the Hart for the same thing?

Show me one credible person who can explain how the difference between their defensive skills is close to ten points, let alone 32 and I'll change my mind, as I do every time I get new information.

Doughty winning that award was the most ridiculous thing in NHL history. Karlsson just had a historic season comparable to only one other defenseman in NHL history.
- James_Tanner

How many points 5v5 and still end up -2. ( your favorite stat ) but it's true.

Score more while youre on the ice 5v5 then you get scored against...that's the name of the game, you're not the greatest D in the league if you get scored on more than you score. PLAY SOME D!!!!

For all the people defending Doughty's win, why aren't you disgusted by Kane winning the Hart? Kane's as one dimensional as they come. What's the point of the Art Ross when they give the Hart for the same thing?
- Hunkulese

Simple, the Selke. Next question.

Tanner, your anti-Blackhawks bias is showing through..................once again. Congratulations on being the least knowledgeable blogger on Hockeybuzz.

You should take a few English courses. Clearly. There isn't a coherent thought in your entire post.

I know a lot of people are so anti-intellectual that they think anyone even mentioning the accomplishment they worked years to achieve is the pinnacle of arrogance, but I've long ago come to expect no less from the internet.

Besides, it was in direct reference to a word problem, not hockey.

As for English being the easiest degree or the most useless, that is objectively false, but somehow I feel like telling you that won't matter at all.
- James_Tanner

It's pretty easy and quite useless. You should not have to work hard to get an English degree. This is a 'for fun' subject and everybody knows it. That's cool. But don't pretend like it's some great accomplishment. It isn't. I like history for fun, but didn't take any courses in Uni because I had very few electives and didn't want to put in any work or research on them because I had a real degree to focus on.

So I took a few English courses in Uni because my electives had to be something that I didn't have to show up for, put any real effort into and still achieve at least a B+.(Stupid 0/10 for class participation but whatever, mission accomplished)

Is it even possible to get a low mark on an essay? That is a real question.

Step 1: Skim through a novel
Step 2: Create a narrative/thesis
Step 3: Pick and choose sections of the novel that fit your thesis
Step 4: Tie your arguments and paragraphs together in a way that flows
Step 5: Get a good mark

Zip Zop Zugey. Done.

edit: BTW I enjoy the X Ambassadors. Not enough to buy, but definitely enough to pirate.

Plus/minus is a team stat. Nobody uses it anymore to evaluate players.
- shack67

Every stat is a team stat in reality.

It's pretty easy and quite useless. You should not have to work hard to get an English degree. This is a 'for fun' subject and everybody knows it. That's cool. But don't pretend like it's some great accomplishment. It isn't. I like history for fun, but didn't take any courses in Uni because I had very few electives and didn't want to put in any work or research on them because I had a real degree to focus on.

So I took a few English courses in Uni because my electives had to be something that I didn't have to show up for, put any real effort into and still achieve at least a B+.(Stupid 0/10 for class participation but whatever, mission accomplished)

Is it even possible to get a low mark on an essay? That is a real question.

Step 1: Skim through a novel
Step 2: Create a narrative/thesis
Step 3: Pick and choose sections of the novel that fit your thesis
Step 4: Tie your arguments and paragraphs together in a way that flows
Step 5: Get a good mark

Zip Zop Zugey. Done.

edit: BTW I enjoy the X Ambassadors. Not enough to buy, but definitely enough to pirate.
- Njuice

Wow colour me shocked that your musical taste is terrible.

You're clearly just trolling though and I'm not falling for it.... on the off chance that you're not, then you're just embarrassing yourself.

Every stat is a team stat in reality.
- Garnie

Then I guess Dion will get as many points as Karlsson next year.

Every stat is a team stat in reality.
- Garnie

It is kind of funny how everyone is so quick to dismiss +/- but want to base everything on advanced stats, which are also influenced by what your team is doing while you're on the ice.

It is kind of funny how everyone is so quick to dismiss +/- but want to base everything on advanced stats, which are also influenced by what your team is doing while you're on the ice.
- Hunkulese

That isn't funny at all. Why not read up on plus minus and why it's a bad stat? take you ten minutes.