NHL 'mid-season' awards: Have your say
Plenty of surprises, disappointments as All-Star break approaches
It has been one heck of a season so far, from big surprises to even bigger disappointments.
With the All-Star break fast approaching, and since fans did such a good job voting for the game (#FreeJohnScott), we want your votes for the "mid-season" NHL awards.
Biggest surprise
No Canadian teams in playoff picture
It hasn't happened since 1970, but we could be looking at an all-American NHL post-season. All seven Canadian teams are on the outside looking in at just past the halfway mark.
James Reimer among top goalies
With the Toronto Maple Leafs well out of the playoff picture and in the midst of a rebuild, not many people were betting that Reimer would be battling the Capitals' Braden Holtby for the best save percentage.
Jaromir Jagr still going strong
At 43, the NHL veteran isn't showing any signs of rust. Jagr has continued to climb the all-time goals list. He currently sits in the fourth spot, but could easily surpass Brett Hull (741) for third before the end of the season.
Best storyline
Canadiens start hot, go cold
The Montreal Canadiens stormed out of the gate and appeared to be building off their deep playoff run from last season until Carey Price went down with an injury.
If anything, the importance of the team's star netminder has become glaring. After flirting with history and posting a 9-0-0 start, the Canadiens have stumbled from first to fifth in the Atlantic Division.
Blackhawks' winning streak
The defending Stanley Cup champions were the talk of the league when they strung together 12 wins in a row from Dec. 27-Jan. 19.
Chicago leads the Central Division and seems poised for another deep playoff run.
John Scott
When the enforcer was voted into the All-Star Game by fans, the league was hoping he would politely decline.
The bottom line is that Scott will be a captain in the 3-on-3 tournament, which should make for some entertaining moments in Nashville.
Top performers
Panthers leading Atlantic, who saw this coming?
This could definitely double for "biggest surprise," but after going on a 12-0-0 winning streak from Dec.15- Jan. 10, Florida now has a secure grasp on the Atlantic division.
Barring a Montreal-style meltdown, the Panthers are well on their way to their first playoff appearance since the 2011-12 season.
Washington Capitals running away with Metro
It was bound to happen. Washington has one of the best goalies in the NHL in Braden Holtby and one of the league's top goal scorers in captain Alex Ovechkin, so it was only a matter of time until that translated to league-leading numbers.
Patrick Kane piling up the points
Patrick Kane has already equalled his career high for goals in a single season at 30, with plenty more hockey to be played.
No one is close to catching the all-star winger in the points race either, as last year's Art Ross Trophy winner Jamie Benn isn't even within 10 points of Kane in the runner-up position.
Biggest disappointments
Pittsburgh Penguins
Phil Kessel was supposed to be the missing piece to help make the Penguins championship contenders once again, but it has been far from that in Pittsburgh. Sidney Crosby hasn't been his usual self and the organization made a coaching change in hopes of lighting a fire under the team's core group.
Anaheim Ducks
The plight of the Ducks has been a bit of a mystery this season. Coach Bruce Boudreau has been on the hot seat for much of the campaign with his squad fighting just to get back into playoff contention.
McDavid injured in rookie season
Considered a generational talent, Connor McDavid was seen as a saviour for the Edmonton Oilers, who have endured years of losing.
However, McDavid suffered an injury early in the season, robbing fans around the league of watching an emerging talent.
The good news is that he is nearing a return to Edmonton's lineup.