On Wednesday, the NHL announced the finalists for the 2025 Ted Lindsay Award. It is essentially the MVP award in hockey, as it’s given to “the most outstanding player as voted by fellow members of the NHLPA.” It is the only award voted on by players.
The league named Nikita Kucherov, Cale Makar and Nathan MacKinnon, the reigning winner, as the three finalists, but the NHLPA will ultimately decide the winner. With only three finalists, there were bound to be snubs. It’s worth noting that two of the top three scorers in hockey were included.
2025 Ted Lindsay Award snubs
3) David Pastrnak
David Pastrnak deserves some recognition. Not only was he third in points this year, but he also played every game for the Boston Bruins. Pastrnak scored all those points with little help around him on a disappointing team, and as one of the main threats. Opposing defenses knew they had to shut Pastrnak down to beat Boston, but they were largely unable to do it.
2) Mitch Marner
Mitch Marner had 102 points this year, the fifth-most in the NHL. He also earned those points on a good team. It’s one thing to score a lot of points on a bad team (which is a different type of challenge), but to score 102 points on a first-place team that has genuine Stanley Cup hopes is another. Marner carried the Toronto Maple Leafs all year with stars going down or not playing as well, and he could’ve easily been named a finalist.
1) Leon Draisaitl
Leon Draisaitl was deserving of being described as the “most outstanding player” in the league this year. The forward didn’t miss as much time as his counterpart, Connor McDavid, and Draisaitl, who just signed a record extension, recorded an impressive 106 points in 71 games. It was the third-most points in the NHL, so he was easily one of the best players in hockey.
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Edited by Victor Ramon Galvez
