NHL Awards Rankings: New No. 1 in Vezina Trophy race
By Sion Fawkes
The NHL’s race for the Vezina Trophy is getting interesting, with so many strong contenders in the mix that it was tough to pick just five of them. Therefore, we had a few snubs, but the five names listed below have more than earned their spot in our latest Vezina Trophy rankings.
Two of the goaltenders you will meet below are involved in timeshares, but don’t let that fact sway you from what they have done when given the nod to man the crease. They continue to be among the best in the game, as are the full-time starters listed below.
So if the 2023-24 NHL Season ended today, who do we believe would take home one of the most coveted trophies in the game? Keep reading to meet the five top contenders as we near the middle of what has been an entertaining season.
A new No. 1 in the Vezina Trophy race goes to…
5. Sergei Bobrovsky, Florida Panthers
Sergei Bobrovsky has had a couple of hiccups lately, but other than that, he’s been on a roll. The 35-year-old continues to play at an elite level, and in three of his last five games, he has allowed two goals or fewer, including a 5-1 win against the Edmonton Oilers in which he saved 38 of 39 shots on goal.
Bobrovsky didn’t have the best season in 2022-23, leading to questions of whether the goaltender was past his prime. However, he should have negated those concerns through the first half of 2023-24. So far this season, Bobrovsky boasts a 16-9-1 record, with two shutouts, a 0.911 save percentage, and a GAA of 2.48.
He has been a pivotal reason why the Panthers didn’t lose a step amidst the fact they were forced to start the season down a couple of prominent defensemen. Now that Florida has been rather healthy recently, look for Bobrovsky’s numbers to keep trending north.