Hart Trophy Watch: Patrick Kane, Henrik Lundqvist and Dallas Stars power

With roughly 25 games in the books, it’s time to take a gander at the MVP race for the 2015-16 NHL season. 

When it comes to voting for the actual trophy, we have a strict “in it to win it” policy; you can’t have a Hart Trophy winner from a non-playoff team. But for the sake of this ranking, we’ve included players from teams that are currently out of a playoff seed.

We also figure only one or two goalies, in the end, are going to be in contention for the Hart. But we’ve included four here, as there’s no question they’re in the MVP conversation.

So with that established, here are the top 10 candidates for the Hart Trophy through Monday’s games:

10. Max Pacioretty, Montreal Canadiens 

The Canadiens have exceled offensively beyond anyone’s expectations, but Patches is just doing as Patches does: 12 goals and 12 assists in 25 games, doing work on the Habs’ top line with Tomas Plekanec and Brendan Gallagher (before the injury). One of the most dominant players on the Canadiens roster, playing on the most dominant line,” wrote Eyes On The Prize.

9. Braden Holtby, Washington Capitals

His 1.95 GAA is sterling, and he has a .926 save percentage in leading the league with 15 wins. A bit further down the list because the team in front of him is quite good, and because there are a few goalies ahead of him in the ranking. That said, he’s aces at Cage The Elephant karaoke.

8. Vladimir Tarasenko, St. Louis Blues

The Blues winger doesn’t just score goals, he scores meaningful goals. “Those goals he scores, even if there’s just 30 or whatever, I guarantee you two-thirds of them will be important goals again,” said coach Ken Hitchcock. He has 14 goals and 10 assists in 23 games.

7. Daniel Sedin, Vancouver Canucks

The Sedins’ renaissance has been the story of the ‘Nucks this season, and Daniel has 11 goals and 16 assists in 25 games. That includes 10 power-play points, and a hat-less hat trick. If this was a WWE pay per view, the crowd would be chanting “you still got it!” for the 35-year-old Wonder Twin.  

6. Cory Schneider, New Jersey Devils

Schneider has a 2.03 GAA and a .928 save percentage in back-stopping the surprising Devils to sniffing distance of a playoff seed. He’s No. 8 in shots against (540). The Devils knew what they’d get out of Schneider; and despite the Devils’ goal support, they’re still just No. 21 in average offense. 

5. Tyler Seguin, Dallas Stars

It’s hard to parse who the most valuable player in a duo really is, but Seguin will have to be content with being the 1-A for the Dallas Stars. He has 13 goals and 21 assists in 24 games, with the majority of those goals coming on the road. Also looks great naked on a Zamboni, a mandatory qualification for any MVP candidate.

4. Erik Karlsson, Ottawa Senators

Just on another level right now. He has 26 points in 23 games, including 14 points in his nine-game point streak. In the Senators’ 12 wins, he has 18 points and is a plus-17. Let the #Karlsson4Hart campaign roll on!

3. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers

Other than the Colorado Avalanche, the Rangers are the worst possession team in the NHL. Yet they have the best PDO (105.6) in the NHL. Why? Lundqvist. The King has a .935 save percentage and a 2.10 GAA in 20 games, backstopping the Rangers and helping them to the fifth-best PK in the NHL. Also, what other goalie on this list can claim to have blocked a pie?

2. Jamie Benn, Dallas Stars

Last year’s Art Ross winner has a higher points per game average (1.46) than last season (1.06) and is leading the NHL in average goals created (0.59). He has 18 goals and 17 assists in 24 games. And he’s grown as a leader, too, especially in his relationship with Seguin.

1. Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks

His chemistry with rookie Artemi Panarin and center Artim Anisimov was immediate, and his scoring pace is the most torrid of his career: 37 points in 24 games, and the longest point streak for an American-born player in NHL history. As Craig Custance and Dave Lozo have opined, it remains to be seen if Kane’s off-ice issues affect voters for the Hart; but from an on-ice impact perspective, Kane has been the best catalyst for his team in the League. 

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Greg Wyshynski is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at [email protected] or find him on Twitter. His book, TAKE YOUR EYE OFF THE PUCK, is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold.

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