Blackhawks: Patrick Kane takes home ESPY for best NHL Player

Chicago Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane has taken home another trophy for his collection.

ESPN hosted their ESPY ceremony a few nights ago, and the NHL was included in the event. Chicago Blackhawks forward and star Patrick Kane was nominated for the best NHL player and he had some tough competition.

Auston Matthews:

Auston Matthews just finished up his fifth NHL season, and it was one of his most successful. Matthews put up 41 goals and 25 assists in 52 games. Over the course of a full 82 game season that would have been about 65 goals through 82 games. Matthews is going to be one of the top stars in the NHL for years to come and this amazing season for him scoring goals is only going to lead him to better places.

Connor McDavid:

McDavid doesn’t have as much help on his team as Auston Matthews does. McDavid has star Leon Draisailt but outside of that, Edmonton is McDavid’s team. This season saw him put up 105 points in 56 games. The team relied upon McDavid to make them better and he helped them win most nights.

More from Blackhawk Up

• Blackhawks: Grading Connor Murphy and a position comparison
• Blackhawks: Shuffling the lines to try and spark offense at 5 on 5
• These Lineup Changes could Solve the Blackhawks’ Scoring Problem
• Blackhawks: List Of Things To Be Thankful For This Thanksgiving
• The perfect holiday gifts for the Chicago Blackhawks fan

Andrei Vasilevskiy:

Vasilevskiy just won his second Stanley Cup in back-to-back years. He just won the Conn Smythe Trophy and was one of the best players on a great Tampa Bay team. He has had shutouts in so many series-clinching games over the past two years, and he has just been one of the best NHL players you can see around the league right now. What McDavid and Matthews lack in playoff success, Vasilevskiy has it.

The Great Kane:

Patrick Kane is a great hockey player, and I think he does belong on a list like this, but maybe not this season. Kane would have been a lock for an award like this in 2015, 2016, or 2017 but for him to win this award this season when he only put up 15 goals and 66 points is still pretty good, but compared to any of the other players on this list this season and it does not make sense that Kane took it home.

I guess this just shows that in the broader NHL community a lot of people still see the Blackhawks as a championship team and not the team that hasn’t made the playoffs in three of the past four years. I think that can be chalked up as the voting community not paying attention, and not the Blackhawks actually being that top team.