Lady Bing Memorial Trophy
The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability.
There isn’t much to write about in this category, so here are our top three:
2nd Place Tie – Eric Staal and Erik Karlsson
1st Place – Ryan O’Reilly
James Norris Memorial Trophy
The James Norris Memorial Trophy is an annual award given to the defenseman who demonstrates throughout the season the greatest all-around ability in the position.
3rd Place – John Carlson. The Capitals blueliner didn’t make the final cut for the Norris Trophy, despite leading all NHL defensemen in scoring with 68 points including 32 on the man advantage. Usually, that’s enough for a top three finish especially since Carlson’s team also won the Atlantic Division. The biggest statistic holding him back was that he was only an even skater 5-on-5.
2nd Place – Drew Doughty. Doughty has been a finalist four times during his career, including a 2016 win. He had another great season in 2017-18. The Kings defenseman set career high’s in both assists (50) and points (60). He led the NHL with an average of 26:50 per night while playing in all 82 games (fourth straight season).
1st Place – Victor Hedman. Among NHL defensemen, Hedman was tops in goals (17), second in +/-, at +32 (two behind Josh Manson) and fifth in the following statistics points (63), power play points (26), and ice time (25:51). What makes him the winner is that he put these numbers up for the best team in the Eastern Conference.