Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
Henrik Lundqvist is the best player on the New York Rangers bar none, and is arguably the best goaltender in the NHL.
However, did he deserve to get snubbed out of winning the Vezina Trophy this year, as some have claimed?
As a Rangers fan, I believe this question is debatable but overall, I think the Vezina Trophy was awarded to the right player, and that being Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky.
Bobrovsky is arguably the main reason why the Blue Jackets finished only one point out of the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference this season. He had himself a career year in his first-ever starting job with the Blue Jackets, recording 21 of the team’s 24 wins, a save percentage .932, a goals against average of 2.00, and four shutouts.
Now Lundqvist, on the other hand, did have more wins with 24, but failed to top Bobrovsky in save percentage, goals against average and shutouts for this season. So overall, Bobrovsky beat Lundqvist three to one in the goaltending categories, so one would figure there cannot be any debate right?
Well, other factors have to be taken into consideration before making a final decision. Lundqvist’s Rangers made it to the postseason and went to the second round while Bobrovsky was sitting home on the couch watching the playoffs because his team fell a point short of eighth in their conference.
Also with the Rangers’ conservative style of play with now ex-head coach John Tortorella, the team depended so much on Lundqvist and most likely would not have even made the playoffs this season if he did not come up big every game. However, the Blue Jackets don’t score a lot of goals either, which means they also depended very heavily on Bobrovsky to be on his A game every night.
With all that in mind, it is very hard to argue against Bobrovsky this season, but I think everyone, especially Rangers fans, can agree on that Lundqvist is the better goaltender overall.
Honestly, I think he can care less that he did not win the Vezina Trophy this year. Lundqvist is one of the best competitors in the NHL today, and he wants his team to win more than anything — I’m sure he would agree with me that the only trophy he cares about winning is the ultimate prize: the Stanley Cup.
