ACHL Year 3 Awards — The Night the Hardware Got Handed Out 🏆

Year 3 is officially in the books. The votes have been counted, the spreadsheets have been closed, and the award hardware has found its rightful owners. Let's recap the biggest night on the ACHL calendar.

BAZ BASTIEN AWARD — ACAHL Top Goaltender

Joel Blomqvist, Buffalo Sabres

The farm league's best goalie wasn't even a debate. .921 save percentage. Five shutouts. Blomqvist was an absolute wall all season long and the voters made it clear — this one was never close.

EDDIE SHORE AWARD — ACAHL Top Defenseman

Santeri Hatakka, Montreal Canadiens

86 points. +37. Only 5 first-place votes went to the entire rest of the field combined. This wasn't a vote — it was a coronation.

LES CUNNINGHAM AWARD — ACAHL MVP

Zachary Bolduc, Montreal Canadiens

The closest race of the farm league awards. Josh Doan of the Calgary Wranglers pushed all the way to the wire but Bolduc edged him out in a nail-biter. Montreal's farm system is absolutely loaded and Bolduc is the crown jewel.

LADY BYNG TROPHY — Sportsmanship

Valeri Nichushkin, Florida Panthers

105 points. 2 PIM. Zero major penalties. The man scored on you all season and somehow managed to stay classy doing it. The classiest player in the league. It wasn't close.

SELKE TROPHY — Best Defensive Forward

Mark Stone, Anaheim Ducks

+25. 283 penalty kill minutes. 58 points. Stone made opposing forwards question their career choices on a nightly basis. The voters recognized greatness. It wasn't close.

NORRIS TROPHY — Best Defenseman

Moritz Seider, Colorado Avalanche

63 points. 248 hits. 134 shots blocked. In one of the tightest Norris races in recent memory, Seider just edged out Rasmus Dahlin of the Tampa Bay Lightning in a photo finish. What a season from both blue liners.

CALDER TROPHY — Best Rookie

Easton Cowan, Chicago Blackhawks

The best rookie in the league this year? A name Leafs fans know well. Apparently all Cowan needed was a change of scenery. Chicago welcomed him and he delivered. The future is bright.

VEZINA TROPHY — Best Goaltender

Ilya Nabokov, Nashville Predators

It wasn't close. It wasn't even a conversation. Nabokov was in a different stratosphere from every other goalie in the league this season. The voters knew it. The forwards who faced him definitely knew it.

HART TROPHY — League MVP

Brayden Point, Colorado Avalanche

The biggest race of the night. Vincent Trocheck had EIGHT first-place votes. Eight. And still came up short. Point was everywhere on the ballot — 7 firsts, 5 seconds, 5 thirds — 102 points, zero penalty minutes, and the respect of the entire league. Your Year 3 ACHL MVP.

GM OF THE YEAR

Minnesota Wild

Built it right. Won the playoffs. Coasted through the whole thing while other GMs were sweating. The blueprint was immaculate. The execution was flawless. Well deserved.

Congratulations to all of our Year 3 award winners. See you next season. 🏒👑