Awards Watch: Price makes his case in Hart Trophy race
Every two weeks from now until the end of the season, theScore will examine the leading candidates for five of the NHL Awards.
Hart Trophy: Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens
We've been resisting it all season, but it's time to acknowledge that Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price has been the most valuable player to his team.
Price has trimmed his goals-against average down to 1.91 and lifted his save percentage to .935 while earning 12 wins in his last 14 games.
He would be the first netminder to win the Hart Trophy since former Montreal goaltender Jose Theodore did so in 2002.
Honorable mention: Alex Ovechkin leads the league with 39 goals and sits third in the NHL with 62 points. Rick Nash has battled Ovechkin for the league lead in goals while keeping the New York Rangers afloat following Henrik Lundqvist's neck injury.
Vezina Trophy: Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens
His Hart candidacy is up for debate, but Price's place as the best goaltender is undeniable.
He's 34-11-3 for the first-place Canadiens, and his play is a major reason Montreal sits atop the Eastern Conference with 83 points.
Honorable mention: Pekka Rinne is 35-8-3 with a .930 save percentage and a goals-against average of 2.01. After missing eight games due to injury, Rinne has propelled the Nashville Predators to the best record in the NHL.
Jack Adams Award: Jack Capuano, New York Islanders
The Islanders remain one of the best stories in the league. They're 7-2-1 in their last 10 games, despite injuries to Kyle Okposo, Mikhail Grabovski and Michael Grabner.
Offseason additions Johnny Boychuk and Nick Leddy have solidified their blue line, and John Tavares needs two goals to tie his career high of 31, a mark set in 2011-12.
Honorable mention: Darryl Sutter's Los Angeles Kings have reeled off eight consecutive victories. The defending Stanley Cup champions appear poised for another postseason run after digging themselves out of another midseason hole.
Norris Trophy: Drew Doughty, Los Angeles Kings
The Kings' workhorse has been instrumental in their resurgence. Drew Doughty's average ice time of 29:27 leads the NHL, and he's logged at least 30 minutes in two of the last five contests.
Doughty also has 35 points, including 11 on the power play.
Honorable mention: Mark Giordano is a bit banged up, but he leads all defensemen with 48 points in 61 games. Kris Letang continues to produce for the Pittsburgh Penguins with 47 points in 55 contests.
Calder Trophy: Filip Forsberg, Nashville Predators
Filip Forsberg leads all rookies in goals (21), assists (31), power-play points (17) and shots on goal (187).
Playing on the top line with James Neal and Mike Ribeiro has helped him produce at that clip, but he's proving he deserves to be there.
Honorable mention: Aaron Ekblad has cooled off offensively, registering one point in his last seven games. Still, the 19-year-old leads all healthy rookies with an average time-on-ice of 22:21. A case can certainly be made that Ekblad deserves it.