While the Colorado Avalanche have been loud and proud as the NHL's best team so far this season, with many of the players on the team making the biggest contributions having been drafted by the Avs over the last decade and a half. Names like Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar, and even Scott Wedgewood have headlined many of the league's individual award races as well.
However, quietly putting in the work on the team's second line and leading the penalty kill, Brock Nelson, who the Avs acquired at last year's trade deadline from the New York Islanders, has been named as one of the three finalists for the Selke Trophy alongside Anthony Cirelli and Nick Suzuki as he's had one of the most impressive seasons of his career.
Nelson Family tradition
The 34-year-old Nelson is a third generation hockey player, and this season, became the fourth member of his family to win an Olympic Gold medal with Team USA. That gold medal game saw the veteran facing off against three of his Avs teammates, including Devon Toews, Nate MacKinnon, and Cale Makar. Nelson played on team USA in much the same role as he does with Colorado, leading the team's penalty kill and acting as a hard nosed forward for a team that needed to outmuscle and outplay an elite Canadian squad that could come in waves with players like Connor McDavid and MacKinnon constantly threatening around the net.
Meanwhile, to earn his spot as one of three Finalists for the Selke Trophy, Nelson put in 33 goals and 32 assists in the regular season for 65 points, which landed him third on the team in goals and fourth in overall points. His +15 rating was the second highest +/- differential of his career, only outmatched by the 2018-19 season with the Islanders when he owned an impressive +20 rating in before he and Islanders fell in the second round to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Led by Nelson, the Avs had the top ranked penalty kill this year, with an impressive 84.6 kill percentage, nearly a full point of the next team behind them, the Chicago Blackhawks. His 33 goals were the fourth most he's totaled and his 65 points were third most in the regular season in his career. So far in the seven playoff games the Avs have played, Nelson has tallied a goal and an assist as the team swept the LA Kings and now faces off against the Minnesota Wild
Nelson's been the very definition of a two-way, 200 foot forward this year. His nomination for the Selke shouldn't be a surprise for anyone who's been watching the Minnesota-born centerman.