Canadiens forward Nick Suzuki captures Selke Trophy after 1st 100-point season

It was a highly successful season for the Montreal Canadiens. The Habs returned to the playoffs for a second straight year and made it to the Eastern Conference Finals. While the Canadiens would be eliminated by the Carolina Hurricanes in the playoffs, the season was a success.

With success comes individual awards. Now, Nick Suzuki has been honored by the Professional Hockey Writers Association, according to hockey insider Frank Seravalli.

Suzuki has been named the winner of the Frank J. Selke Trophy, which is given each year to the forward in the NHL who demonstrates the most skill in the defensive aspect of the game. It was the first time Suzuki had won the award, after Aleksander Barkov had won the past two seasons.

Suzuki is coming off his best season as a professional; he scored 29 times while adding 72 assists, good for 101 points. It was a career high in assists and points. Further, he finished with a plus-37 plus/minus rating, which was also the best of his NHL career. The Canadiens forward dominated the voting, receiving 151 of the 198 first-place votes. He also received votes from 191 of the 198 voters. Suzuki won the award over Anthony Cirelli and Brock Nelson, among 53 total players who received votes.

Suzuki was not the only Canadiens player to receive an award on Friday. Cole Caufield has also received hardware. Caufield is the winner of the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, according to an announcement from the NHL.

“The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy is awarded to the player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability,” the NHL posted on X, formerly Twitter.

It is the first time that Caufield has won the award, as Anze Kopitar has won it two of the past three seasons. The last time a member of the Canadiens won the award was in 1987-88 when Mats Naslund took home the trophy.

The post Canadiens forward Nick Suzuki captures Selke Trophy after 1st 100-point season appeared first on ClutchPoints.