NHL Awards: Top 3 potential Selke Trophy nominees

Now that the 2019-20 NHL regular season is over, let’s look at potential Selke Trophy nominees.

The Selke Trophy, awarded to the NHL player deemed most proficient in both the offensive and defensive aspects of the game, has become the unofficial award of the “fancy stats” community in recent years.

Judging candidacy for this award is a bit more difficult than for something like the Hart or Vezina trophies. With those awards, basic stats and narrative consensus often win out. A player that is top five in points and elevates his team to the playoffs or a top seed is generally a safe bet for the Hart. Similarly, the goalie that tops the league in two of the major three goalie statistics (wins, goals against average and save percentage) is more often than not the Vezina winner.

However, Selke Trophy nominees will rarely (if ever) lead the league in points — as is the nature of being a defensive specialist. It only makes sense that one would have to delve into more advanced metrics in order to make the case for such forwards.

In this piece we’ll use both fancy stats as well as more common statistics, from Hockey Reference, to scope out potential Selke Trophy candidates for the 2019-20 season — in no particular order.

Selke Trophy honorable mentions

Valeri Nichuskin, Colorado Avalanche

This may seem like a head-scratcher because with just 13 goals and 14 assists to his name this season, Nichuskin is still far off from the offensive level needed to be a Selke contender. However, as far as defense goes, Nichuskin is already there.

A Corsi darling (55.3 CF% this season), Nichuskin has carved out a vital role for himself as a defensive specialist in a top-heavy Avalanche lineup. His 1.9 Defensive Point Shares (DPS) — or the amount of standings points earned by said player’s defense — outpaces his Offensive Point Shares (OPS) of 1.5.

While Nichuskin isn’t there yet, don’t be surprised if he snags a couple Selke votes this year. And at age 25, if he manages to bump his offensive output to around 20-plus goals, he may force his way into the Selke conversation.

Anthony Cirelli, Tampa Bay Lightning

Cirelli is on his way to becoming a two-way stud in the NHL. Just 22 years of age, Cirelli is primarily used as a defensive forward under Lightning head coach John Cooper.

Starting 51.7 percent of his faceoffs in the defensive zone, Cirelli still manages to chip in offensively, adding 16 goals and 44 points to a potent Lightning offense this season.

However, Cirelli is still a bit of a way off from the two-way titans of the league and has benefited from a sky-high 106 PDO this season – definitely seeing his fair share of good luck.

Patrice Bergeron, Boston Bruins

The four-time Selke winner may have finally graduated from the class of “elite two-way player” category to the “elite scorer that also excels at defense” this season. Though Bergeron can still work both ends of the ice, he’s seen his deployment change.

The Marchand-Bergeron-Pastrnak line has become the premiere offensive trio in the NHL. Therefore, Bergeron isn’t relied on to shutdown opposing top lines, his main objective is to score. With three straight 30-goal seasons to his name, it seems like he has adjusted to that role.

Bergeron will still likely receive a few Selke votes this year — as he was one of the PHWA midseason nominees — and with his dazzling 56.3 Corsi For and 23.2 Expected Goals Against (xGA) it’d be deserved. But it’s hard to say he’s as relied upon defensively as he once was.