Todd Cordell
Erik Karlsson.
I know that's the boring pick, but I think it's also the right one. Karlsson plays ridiculous minutes, is a big time possession driver, his offensive ability is unmatched (sorry, Brent Burns) and he's finally starting to get the credit he deserves for his play without the puck.
I think he silenced some critics with his playoff performance and will stand to benefit come voting time, provided he has yet another spectacular season, which seems like a safe bet.
My runner up is P.K. Subban. He's another guy who received some well-deserved recognition for how well he played against top competition in the playoffs. If the points are there -- and they should be -- I think he'll be in the mix.
James Tanner The 2018 Norris Trophy will be won by Erik Karlsson. He is just on another level from any other defenseman - he's the third best player in the NHL after Connor and Crosby - and there is no reason to pick anyone else.
Should Karlsson get injured, then Viktor Hedman probably has a good chance, but just for the sake of mentioning a couple of names who could take huge steps forward there is OEL who has turned into a pretty much universally acknowledged top ten defenseman and he's never played on a good team.
This year he should have some help.
The other guy is Dougie Hamilton. He should continue to climb in the charts as Calgary becomes one of the best teams in hockey.
Peter Tessier Trying to predict something early is always tough, there are the usual standouts year after year but it gets tough trying to be accurate at all before a game has been played.
Likely nominees:
Karlsson Hedman Doughty Burns Subban
Possible nominees or wild-ass guesses?
Werenski Hamilton Giordano Krug
But the award goes to Burns. I just don't see him slowing down and he's the top of the class again.
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